Growth Centres in Spatial Planning

Growth Centres in Spatial Planning examines the role of growth centers in spatial planning in terms of achieving the intended objectives. Intended objectives include improving a region's potential for adopting innovations, a saving in public investment on infrastructure, a more efficient pattern of service provision, a dissemination of growth impulses throughout the problem region, and the interception of would-be migrants from the region. More specifically, this book analyzes the extent to which growth-center policies are likely to attain these objectives and how such policies might be modified accordingly. This text consists of eight chapters and begins with an appraisal of growth-center theory and growth-center policy, along with the fundamental issues that are involved in putting such policies into practice. This is followed by a discussion on regional policies with a clear growth-center element in Scotland, Ireland, and France. The reader is then introduced to the link between urban centers and the diffusion of innovations; the degree to which the spatial concentration of investment is desirable in order to achieve the most economic pattern of service provision; and the role of spatial agglomeration in stimulating economic growth. The spatial impact of growth centers and the role of growth centers in generating, intercepting, and attracting migrants are also considered. This text concludes with a chapter that proposes some policy guidelines and directions for research. This book will be of interest to planners and policymakers involved in urban planning and regional development more generally.