People, Place and Partnership: Exploring Strategies to Revitalise Town Centres

Abstract

<jats:p>More and more town centres in Western Europe are in decline, as indicated by growing shop vacancy rates in shopping streets. To turn the tide, decision makers look for revitalisation strategies. Are there any solutions? Making use of theoretical insights, empirical findings and anecdotal evidence from the Netherlands, we suggest that town centre revitalisation is a matter of connecting people, place and partnership. First, strategies should be based on an understanding of how customers (people) behave. Secondly, redesign of the physical environment (place) might be needed, since visitors prefer compact centres that are built on a human scale and known for a unique profile. Finally, close collaboration between a wide range of local stakeholders (partnership) is essential. We conclude that town centre revitalisation is possible, but takes a lot of energy and patience from the actors involved.</jats:p>

Indies in Scotland: Exploring the Unique Role of Independent Bookshops in Scotland’s Towns and Villages

“…The main challenge in terms of economic survival for the bookshops consulted was either their very rural location, or, for those in villages or small towns, what was seen as the 'dying high street', a topic which has been examined in some depth, resulting in thoughtful and imaginative assessments of the problems as well as potential solutions [12,28]. As independent shops in local high streets, such as bakers, butchers, grocers, close down there is an obvious knock-on problem of lack of passing trade for other non-essential stores, like bookshops.…”

“…in small towns and villages) the proactive engaged activism of bookshop owners can potentially be captured to help redevelopment of the high street. As noted earlier, there are many imaginative proposals for the 'high street problem' [12,28]. This includes the promotion of destination shops, experiential venues which must encapsulate fantastic experiences, places where people want to spend time.…”

The Relation Between Shoppers and Different Designs of Commercial Spaces; a Humanistic Approach, Irbid City as a Case Study

“…Jane Jacobs was among the first urban thinkers who recognized this role of town centers. In her classic article 'Downtown is for people' (1958), which has inspired her bestseller "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" (1961), she states that the blend of offers and the opportunity to come together in a public space, has turned the downtown into a 'living room' for the local community [6]. Coca said that downtown centers are multifunctional social places [6].…”

“…In her classic article 'Downtown is for people' (1958), which has inspired her bestseller "The Death and Life of Great American Cities" (1961), she states that the blend of offers and the opportunity to come together in a public space, has turned the downtown into a 'living room' for the local community [6]. Coca said that downtown centers are multifunctional social places [6]. So, it is clear that to build or redesign the downtown you have to observe how the people use it in order to know how to develop it the right way.…”

Podwórka jako przestrzenie sąsiedzkie – perspektywa mieszkańców obszaru rewitalizacji Włocławka

“…: socjologię, pedagogikę, geografię społeczno-ekonomiczną i gospodarkę przestrzenną, urbanistykę i architekturę (w tym m.in. : Kotus 2005Kotus , 2007Jałowiecki, Szczepański 2002;Chmielewski 2010;Majer 2010Majer , 2015Gehl 2013Gehl , 2014Hospers 2017;Mrozowski 2017;Bierwiaczonek 2016Bierwiaczonek , 2018. Cenne źródła informacji stanowią opracowania odnoszące się wprost do mieszkańców podwórek i ich problemów, w tym w szczególności losów dzieci i młodzieży (np.…”