Leaves in the wind? Local policies of small and medium-sized towns in metropolitan regions

Kaufmann, David; Meili, Rahel (2018). Leaves in the wind? Local policies of small and medium-sized towns in metropolitan regions. European planning studies, 27(1), pp. 21-41. Taylor & Francis Group 10.1080/09654313.2018.1535576

[img] Text
Kaufmann and Meili 2018_Leaves in the Wind.pdf - Published Version
Restricted to registered users only
Available under License Publisher holds Copyright.

Download (1MB)
[img]
Preview
Text
Kaufmann Meili 2018_Leaves in the Wind_preprint.pdf - Accepted Version
Available under License Publisher holds Copyright.

Download (345kB) | Preview

Small and medium-sized towns (SMSTs) contribute to the economic performance of whole metropolitan regions. However, the variety of factors that influence the economic development of SMSTs is understudied and the impact and relevance of their local policies are especially unclear. This article studies local policies of SMSTs within the metropolitan region of Zurich (Switzerland) and the impact of local policies on the economic specialization of these towns. Switzerland serves as an interesting context in which to study SMSTs, particularly those in metropolitan regions, due to their constant growth and the high local autonomy enjoyed by their local governments. Using a multiple case study design that relies on a pair-wise comparison, we find that the economic specialization of SMSTs can mainly be explained by factors that are exogenous to local policy-making such as the town’s location and its connectivity. Land-use strategies are the only local policies that can influence the economic specialization of SMSTs. Therefore, SMSTs are well advised to invest in professionalized land-use departments and to coordinate their land-use strategies with neighbouring jurisdictions.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography > Human Geography > Unit Economic Geography
11 Centers of Competence > KPM Center for Public Management
08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography > Human Geography
08 Faculty of Science > Institute of Geography
11 Centers of Competence > Center for Regional Economic Development (CRED)

UniBE Contributor:

Kaufmann, David, Meili, Rahel

Subjects:

300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 320 Political science
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 330 Economics
300 Social sciences, sociology & anthropology > 350 Public administration & military science
700 Arts > 710 Landscaping & area planning
900 History > 910 Geography & travel

ISSN:

0965-4313

Publisher:

Taylor & Francis Group

Funders:

[4] Swiss National Science Foundation

Language:

English

Submitter:

David Christen

Date Deposited:

25 Oct 2018 13:50

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 15:18

Publisher DOI:

10.1080/09654313.2018.1535576

Uncontrolled Keywords:

small and medium-sized towns, metropolitan region of Zürich, local autonomy, local policies, economic specialization, economic development, Adliswil, Bülach, Dübendorf, Wädenswil

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.120607

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/120607

Actions (login required)

Edit item Edit item
Provide Feedback