Walking Toward the Mountain: Spatial Memory and Urban Inertia

This paper offers a conceptual exploration of urban inertia through the lens of spatial memory, situating the discussion explicitly within architectural and urban planning prac- tice. Drawing on a metaphor derived from a fixed spatial trajectory, the study examines how remembered routes and habitual spatial practices persist despite changing social and environmental conditions. Rather than treating inertia as a social reluctance or planning failure, the paper reframes it as a spatially produced condition embedded in architec- tural form, planning logics, and everyday use. Building on discussions of spatial memory, path dependency, and the social production of space, the paper argues that urban inertia emerges when inherited spatial configurations continue to guide movement and perception beyond their original context. By framing participation as a spatial design instrument, the paper highlights the role of architecture and planning in supporting collective reori- entation. Spatial memory is thus approached not as an obstacle to be erased, but as a condition to be critically reworked through design. Shared as a preprint, this text invites interdisciplinary discussion while remaining grounded in design- and planning-oriented inquiry.