Geographia Polonica (2020) vol. 93, iss. 2

Who defines urban regeneration? Comparative analyses of medium-sized cities in Poland and Russia

Przemysław Ciesiółka, Maria Gunko, Galina Pivovar

Geographia Polonica (2020) vol. 93, iss. 2, pp. 245-259 | Full text
doi: https://doi.org/10.7163/GPol.0172

Abstract

The aim of the current study was to identify the main actors (leaders) involved in transformations of medium-sized cities in Poland and Russia that share similar legacies but took different development paths after the collapse of state socialism. These transformations are discussed using the framework of urban regeneration and are based on empirical data from two cities – Kolomna (Russia) and Kalisz (Poland). The data were obtained through expert interviews, as well as nonparticipant observation in the two cities. Though the process of urban regeneration shows similarities, the process leaders are different.

Keywords: urban transformations, urban change, urban regeneration, urban planning, medium-sized cities, Eastern Europe, Poland, Russia

Przemysław Ciesiółka [przemko@amu.edu.pl], Faculty of Human Geography and Planning Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań Krygowskiego 10, 61-680 Poznań: Poland
Maria Gunko [msgunko@igras.ru], Institute of Geography Russian Academy of Sciences Staromonetny pereulok 29, 119017 Moscow: Russia
Galina Pivovar [gpivovar@skolkovo.ru], ‘Skolkovo’ Moscow School of Management Novaya ulitsa 100, 143025 Skolkovo Odintsovsky rayon, Moscow oblast: Russia