Semi-Natural Areas on Post-Mining Brownfields as an Opportunity to Strengthen the Attractiveness of a Small Town. An Example of Radzionków in Southern Poland

Abstract

The socio-economic and political changes of the end of the 20th century in Central and Eastern Europe had significant impacts on the transformation of urban spaces, especially in industrial and mining towns. The article attempts to explain the essence of these changes concerning the spatial development of—a small post-mining town in southern Poland. This article evaluates urban development policy in response to the significant land-use changes in the small post-mining city of Radzionków, with particular attention to the transformation of brownfield sites to semi-natural areas of regional importance. This issue is interesting for two reasons. First, this small city, located in a large European agglomeration, has to face competition focused on interesting regional projects. Second, there is a desire for reindustrialization as a remedy for job losses in mining and heavy industry. The successful establishment of a large botanical garden in this city provides a case study for discussing the future of small post-industrial cities and the development of land use policy regarding valuable natural areas located in post-industrial and post-mining areas. This study also indicates the vital role of the creative management factor.

Planificare teritorială ‐ de la teorie la practică. Studiu de caz din Ținutul Pădurenilor

“…Deşi se pune accentul pe dezvoltarea durabilă şi utilizarea raţională a resurselor, există încă numeroase areale post-miniere care nu sunt utilizate adecvat (Belzyt, 2019). Astfel sa impus ideea de revitalizare a acestor zone, prin măsuri ca: integrarea în circuitul turistic (Cercleux et al, 2018;Lamparska, 2019;Kaźmierczak et al, 2019); ecologizarea şi transformarea în parcuri sau grădini botanice (Marot and Harfst, 2021;Kantor-Pietraga et al, 2021) sau amenajarea unor parcuri industriale (Krzysztofik et al, 2020). În acest context, studiul prezent abordează fosta zonă minieră Ghelari în vederea revitalizării acesteia şi includerii clădirilor industriale în circuitul funcţional.…”

A Research Agenda for Small and Medium-Sized Towns

“…Industrial heritage is probably the most commonly identified asset in industrial towns. These are tangible remnants of older industrial production, such as industrial sites, buildings and landscapes, which are commonly converted for tourism use (Bosák et al, 2018) or other forms of brownfield development (Kantor-Pietraga et al, 2021;Marot and Harfst, 2021). However, Görmar and Harfst (2019) caution that this may be too narrow an understanding of what industrial culture can offer, and that intangible aspects are even more important for new path development.…”

Przekształcenia zagospodarowania przestrzennego terenów poprzemysłowych w gminach powiatu tarnogórskiego z wykorzystaniem metod GIS

“…W krajobrazie powiatu znajduje się wiele nieczynnych kamieniołomów wapienia i dolomitów, np. nieeksploatowany kamieniołom na zboczu Księżej Góry w Radzionkowie (Kantor-Pietraga, Zdyrko, Bednarczyk, 2021). W centralnej części powiatu występują utwory jurajskie, takie jak: piaski, muły i piaskowce wapieni dolnej, środkowej i górnej jury.…”

“…W jej przypadku również zaplanowane nowe inwestycje na terenach poprzemysłowych w większości są zrealizowane. Plany te nie dotyczą terenu w Radzionkowie (Kantor-Pietraga, Zdyrko, Bednarczyk, 2021). Z kolei kamieniołomy znajdujące się na terenie Radzionkowa są miejscami zagospodarowanymi turystycznie.…”