This paper presents some preliminary recommendations for mayors looking to revitalise their town centres. Our qualitative analysis addresses four research questions which provide the mayor with new ...insights that should increase the town’s economic attractiveness by proposing a place marketing approach.
•The authors map modal shift as a result of bikesharing by respondent home location.•The authors evaluate the demographic attributes associated modal shift from bikesharing.•An ordinal regression ...model shows how variables are associated with modal shift.
Public bikesharing—the shared use of a bicycle fleet—has recently emerged in major North American cities. Bikesharing has been found to decrease driving and increase bicycling. But shifts in public transit have been mixed. The authors evaluate survey data from two U.S. cities to explore who is shifting toward and away from public transit as a result of bikesharing. The authors explore this question by mapping geocoded home and work locations of respondents within Washington DC and Minneapolis. Respondents were mapped by their modal shift toward or away from bus and rail transit. The results show that in Washington DC, those shifting toward bus and rail transit live on the urban periphery, whereas those living in the urban core tend to use public transit less. In Minneapolis, the shift toward rail extends to the urban core, while the modal shift for bus transit is more dispersed. The authors analyze socio-demographics associated with modal shift through cross-tabulations and four ordinal regression models. Common attributes associated with shifting toward public transit include increased age, being male, living in lower density areas, and longer commute distances. The authors conclude with a discussion of the final results in the context of bikesharing’s impacts on other cities throughout North America.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK
There is a legacy of research aiming to conceptualise and empirically estimate retail store catchment areas, however, a dearth that frames such considerations within the context of retail ...agglomerations and their position within regional or national networks. As a result, this paper provides an extension to single store or shopping centre retail catchment estimation techniques, and presents an empirically specified and tested production constrained model for a national network of retail centres in the UK. Our model takes into account the spatial interactions between potential customers and a hierarchical network of retail centres to estimate patronage probabilities and catchment extents. The model is tested for a large metropolitan area vis-à-vis real world shopping flows recorded through a survey of shoppers. Finally, we present an open source software tool for custom model fitting, and discuss a range of theoretical and empirical challenges that such a model presents.
•This study estimates catchments areas for a national network of retail centres in the UK.•The model estimates retail catchment extents at a Lower Super Output Area level of granularity.•This paper discusses a range of theoretical and empirical challenges that such a model presents.•An open source software tool for custom model fitting is also presented.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
Patronage in town centres has been fluctuating over the past few years, indicating that consumers are buying elsewhere in pursuit of better and more fulfilling shopping experiences. This is ...concerning as patronage is considered an indicator of high streets vitality and viability. To help understand the changing patterns of patronage, especially related to the growth in online retail spending, this study sheds light on key touchpoints that influence the town centre shopping experience. Using the customer journey framework and drawing insights from datasets of two central UK regions, we provide new contribution to town centre research by capturing significant and specific physical and digital touchpoints in the town centre shopping journey, thus developing our understanding of the determinants of the town centre shopping experience. Consequently, this work provides recommendations for town centre management to help improve town centre patronage by developing customers’ experience with shopping-specific touchpoints.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
The purpose of this study is to examine the current Town Centre Management TCM practices within Ireland's rural towns since the abolition of Town Councils in 2014. This new study finds that Ireland's ...approach to TCM is much more complicated and multifarious with varying practices across the samples. The findings highlight a fractured TCM partnership between the public sector (Local Government), and opposing sectors, (Retailers, Volunteering Groups, Citizens, and Business Owners). Adding to the knowledge on TCM schemes in Ireland, this paper finds that despite respected recommendations from semi-state bodies to drive town centre management by local ‘dynamic leaders’, no model has been developed to attract, support, and retain such a person. This post-positivistic study with a descriptive qualitative design was drawn from a series of in-depth interviews with significant key stakeholders, across a stratified sample of rural towns, that have experience in TCM practices. The results which emerge facilitate a theoretical management framework as a guide for town centre stakeholders to analyse the unique elements of their situation and implement a strategy towards a TCM scheme. This research demonstrates that TCM with the right structure and support from local government is a viable solution to rejuvenating towns in rural Ireland.
•Ireland's approach to town centre management is diverse.•Rural towns need support from Local Government to ensure they remain sustainable.•Ireland's rural towns need to develop a Town Centre Management scheme.•Rural places need a designated salaried town manager to drive positive change.•Consequences of the abolition of Town Councils in Rural Ireland in 2014.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UILJ, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZAGLJ, ZRSKP
Stores in retail and other service agglomerations, such as high streets and shopping malls, compete with each other for customers. Yet they may also cooperate with each other in relation to ...operational and marketing matters within the agglomeration in which they are located. The aim of this paper is to investigate the impact of both competition and cooperation, i.e. coopetition, on agglomeration and store performance. Drawing on the network debate, this paper develops a conceptual model and tests it in three distinctive agglomerations, each in an urban setting, namely first- and second-order high streets as well as an inner-city retail and service cluster. A total of 277 store managers served as key informants in our survey. Variance-based structural equation modelling reveals that both competition and cooperation improve agglomeration performance directly. Despite competition having a negative direct effect on stores' performance, the overall effect is insignificant. Cooperation affects store performance positively but only indirectly. The contribution of this paper is to reveal and substantiate the complex nature and benefits of the effects of the coopetition of stores located within agglomerations. More widely it underlines the importance of managers of agglomerations understanding the differing effects of competition and cooperation and using this understanding in their management decision making.
•Competition and cooperation between stores increase agglomeration performance.•There is a positive spill-over effect between agglomeration and store performance.•Cooperation increases store performance indirectly via agglomeration performance.•The spill-over effect nullifies competition's negative impact on store performance.•Coopetition capabilities of stores enhance competitiveness of an agglomeration.
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
Despite all the principles of sustainable urban design, more and more spaces in small town centres are getting dedicated to traffic. Public open spaces (POS) in these towns are mainly reserved for ...car traffic, and social activities have been in decline. All at the expense of transportation space and built-up areas. As a result, there are fewer and fewer POS, which provide well-being and comfort to people, are accessible to all and are also attractively designed, allowing the development of a wide range of activities, and contributing to a town’s good image. Therefore, the aim of this paper is to determine the state of provision of POS in the centres of selected small towns in Slovenia and to assess the image of these town centres. Using various methods and instruments, we tested the hypothesis of whether there is a relationship between POS and the image of town centres. We used a cartographic method and a questionnaire survey, as well as statistical methods, in order to confirm the hypothesis. The study has revealed that groups of morphologically similar small towns are statistically different from each other in terms of observed relationships between POS and the image of the town centre. Therefore, a morphological analysis approach is very important in terms of evaluating the relationship between POS and the image of town centres. In conclusion, recommendations are given for the design of POS in small town centres.
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IZUM, KILJ, NUK, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
The historic precincts of suburban cities in New Zealand are characterised by partially occupied, vacant or abandoned buildings, which are located in key locations of the central business districts ...(CBDs). Increasing unoccupied spaces and low demand for older buildings are detrimental to the socio-economic growth of many provincial towns in New Zealand. The study discussed in this paper sought to: 1) investigate the proportion of totally/partially existing vacant older buildings within the town centre of suburb-#; 2) identify the underlying factors that contributed to emergence of the vacant buildings and the consequences of the prevalent vacancy rate on suburban town centres; and 3) recommend possible ways to increase the demand for these buildings. Using a mixed-methods approach for data collection, the research findings showed a vacancy rate of approximately 86 per cent (n = 47) of older heritage buildings located in the main high street of suburb-#. Additionally, several factors were identified to be responsible for the high vacancy rate of the older buildings: 1) building conditions; 2) social factors; 3) economic factors; and 4) building regulations. The research findings provided significant suggestions on how property redevelopment coupled with town centre regeneration can be used as a responsive strategy that can attend to the changing needs of owners, occupiers and visitors, as well as ensure compliance to commercial and regulatory demands of seismic strengthening of older heritage buildings.
In market societies, investors have played a key role in driving suburban densification. However, the concentration of one- and two-bedroom apartments in suburban town centres has raised concerns ...about the potential mismatch between investor-driven supply and consumer demand. Despite these criticisms, analysis of consumer demand for multi-unit housing rarely considers housing supply in the same locality. Recognising the significance of multi-unit dwellings in housing supply, this paper develops a clearer understanding of consumer demand and market supply of multi-unit dwellings in suburban town centres. In order to integrate consumer preferences and housing data, the paper combines qualitative analysis of the housing preferences of a group of (largely) migrant women with children living in apartments in the suburban town centre of Liverpool, Sydney, Australia, with quantitative analysis of household type, apartment size and dwelling approvals. In so doing, we show that market-led supply creates a mismatch between housing need and type, as housing careers move beyond detached homes towards spacious apartments in suburban town centres. We conclude that calibrating the share of larger apartments in Local Government Development Control Plans with consumer demand will improve housing outcomes in densifying suburbs.
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BFBNIB, NUK, PILJ, SAZU, UL, UM, UPUK
Although the knowledge about place branding and place management is growing, there is a substantial gap in the understanding of place branding among professionals responsible for the management of ...town and city centres, including private-public partnership formats such as business improvement districts (BIDs). This exploratory study addresses this knowledge gap through in-depth interviews with key professionals in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The results suggest that the strategic potential of place branding is negatively affected by a focus on operational thinking, which hinders innovation towards more holistic approaches to place management. Further quantitative research is needed to elaborate on these findings across the UK, Ireland and other countries to enhance the understanding of the uses and interpretations of place branding among town and city managers.
•This study addresses a substantial gap in the understanding of interpretations of place branding among place management professionals in the UK•The research suggests that the strategic potential of place branding is hindered by a generalised focus on operational thinking
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GEOZS, IJS, IMTLJ, KILJ, KISLJ, NUK, OILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBJE, UL, UM, UPCLJ, UPUK, ZRSKP
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