Theory

• Changes in city centre

  Over the last 30 years, city centres have experienced decline. High parking costs, congestion and perception of city centres as dirty and unsafe pulled people away from the CBD
• Town centre mixed development

  Many cities encourage the development of functions other than retailing to increase the attractions of the city centre, including:

  • a wider range of leisure facilities e.g. cinemas, theatres, restaurants
  • availability of spaces e.g. gardens to enable people-watching etc.
  • promotion of street entertainment
  • developing nightlife and flagship attractions
  • constructing new offices, hotels and flats
• Development of cultural and heritage quarters

  Focuses more on the history of an area based around small-scale industries, building a regional reputation, which attracts more tourists and brings financial benefits to the wider area
• Gentrified areas

  Gentrification is defined as the buying and renovating of properties often in more run-down areas by wealthier individuals, supported by estate agents and local governments, encouraging the regeneration of large parts of British inner cities in the last few decades.
• Gentrification can happen for a number of reasons:

  • the rent gap: the situation when the price of property has fallen below its real value, usually due to lack of maintenance or investment
  • commuting costs: living closer to the city reduces the need to commute
  • the pioneer image: the trend of creative individuals such as artists and designers moving into 'edgier' neighbourhoods
  • government support
  • changing composition of households
• Fortress landscapes

  • greater use of closed-circuit television (CCTV)
  • railings and fencing around private spaces
  • 'mosquito' alarms, emitting a high-pitched sound heard by young people, discouraging loitering
  • effective use of street lighting
  • speed bumps to prevent joyriding
• Edge cities

  Self-contained settlements emerging beyond the original city boundary and developed as cities in their own right - largely a result of urban sprawl and develop close to major roads or airports but links to social segregation
• Concept of the postmodern western city

  The changes that took place in Western society and culture in the late twentieth century, mainly concerned with art and architecture, characterised by the mixing of different artistic styles
• Both fortress landscapes and edge cities have been viewed as features of the postmodern western city but other key features include:

  • a more fragmented urban form comprising independent settlements, economies, societies and cultures
  • greater emphasis on producer services and knowledge-based industries
  • eclectic and varied architecture (London cityscape)
  • spectacular flagship developments
  • greater ethnic diversity but heightened economic, social and cultural inequalities and polarisation