Week 9 The post-industrial and post-modern city

Week 9: The Post-Industrial/Post-Modern City

Introduction

• Focused on global economic shifts and neoliberalism.

• Instructor: Dr. Amy Y. Zhang (yueming.zhang@manchester.ac.uk)

Week 8 Recap

Modernist Ideals

• Impact of modernist ideologies on urban environments.

• Effects of Fordism:

  • Mass automobile ownership

  • Separation of job centers and suburban homes.

Critiques of Modernist Urban Planning

• Ongoing challenges highlighted.

Aims of the Lecture

• Introduce concepts of urban development post-1970s in the West:

  • Post-Fordism

  • De-industrialization

  • Neoliberalism

• Identify neoliberal manifestations in urban settings.

• Explore postmodernism in urban contexts and its reflection in city form and function.

Post-Fordism

Emergence Factors

• Triggered by the 1973 oil crisis leading to increased mass production costs.

• Rise in new information technologies.

• Shift towards small-batch production and specialized jobs.

• costs of oil increases which increased cost of mass production

Economic Changes

• Development of economies of ‘scope’ and decentralization of production.

• Focus on consumer types rather than social class.

• Growth in service sectors (e.g., finance) and emergence of white-collar jobs.

• Increased participation of women in the workforce.

De-Industrialization

Overview (1)

• Impacted traditional industries:

  • Shipbuilding

  • Coal mining

  • Automobile manufacturing

• Geographically specific:

  • Areas: West Midlands, Tyneside, Lancashire, US known as ‘Rustbelt’.

• Examples: Significant job losses (e.g., half a million textile jobs).

Overview (2)

• Inner-city areas severely impacted.

• Affects specific social groups:

  • Males

  • Youth

  • Ethnic minorities

• Variability of impact based on local industry mix (e.g., Liverpool vs. Detroit).

Impacts of De-Industrialization

• As of 2012 in England: 60,000 hectares of vacant and derelict land/property.

• 2010 in Germany: 128,000 hectares of disused land/property.

• In the US, 16.7% of large cities identified as vacant.

• vacancy is a problem

Service Sector Growth

Analysis

• Some cities benefited significantly, yet not sufficiently to offset manufacturing losses (e.g., Glasgow – lost 38,961 jobs, gained only 2,795).

Unemployment Impacts

• Increase in long-term and youth unemployment, showcasing regional imbalance.

Job Creation Trends (1998-2008)

Net Private Sector Job Creation in England

• Example Cities:

  • London: +321,400

  • Birmingham: -61,400

  • Overall patterns show disparity in job creation across regions.

Service Sector: Work Patterns

Effects of De-Industrialization

• Rise in part-time/flexible work arrangements (e.g., temp contracts, gig economy).

• Growing importance of educational opportunities linking to employment potential.

Post-WWII Keynesian Welfare State

Economic Theory

• John Maynard Keynes' view on consumption as a vital growth factor.

• Advocacy for increased state spending during economic downturns to support employment through public jobs.

Transition to Neoliberalism

Ideological Shift

• Late 1970s, critiques of Keynesian interventionism arise.

  • Focus on inflation without corresponding growth (stagflation).

• Neoliberalism as driven by political changes (Thatcher, Reagan).

Definitions of Neoliberalism (Harvey, 2005)

Political and Economic Framework

• Ideologically: Enhances individual entrepreneurial freedom within a framework of strong private property rights and free markets.

• Economically: Advocates for free movement of goods, services, people, and money – creation of markets where none existed.

• is an ideological framework and a range of economic actions and ways of organising things

Political Role

• State’s role minimized in market intervention but crucial in creating market frameworks.

Types of Neoliberalism

Classification

1. Roll-back Neoliberalism: Initial de-regulation and state cuts.

2. Roll-out Neoliberalism: Reassessing state roles in regulating capitalism.

3. Roll-with-it Neoliberalism: Adapting through crises with continuous reinvention.

Neoliberal Structural Models

Donor-Recipient Policy Model

• Identifies the dynamics between growing and lagging regions.

Growth-Oriented Policy Model

• Focused on restructuring objectives.

Neoliberalism: Urban Planning Restructuring

Planning Changes

• Reduction of planning powers, emphasizing business coordination.

Example Measures

• Enterprise zones: Tax exemptions and capital allowances.

• Urban Development Corporations: Non-elected bodies with planning authority.

New Urban Politics

Shift from Government to Governance

• Transition from hierarchical systems to inclusive governance involving diverse stakeholders: private sectors, NGOs, communities.

• Increased emphasis on participative governance with shared responsibilities.

Urban Planning and Governance Challenges

Findings from Manchester Research

• Lack of affordable housing in new city center developments (2018).

• Developers utilize financial arguments against providing affordable units.

• Section 106 agreements used for negotiated contributions towards affordable housing.

Inequality and Segregation in Cities

Urban Divide

• Concentration of low-quality housing linked to wealth disparities.

• Internal social organization vs poverty.

Community Design

• Emergence of gated communities and spaces designed to socially exclude.

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Structure

• 7 domains creating the Index, ranked by levels of deprivation.

Manchester Specifics (2019)

• Manchester ranks 6th among UK local authorities, with varying deprivation ranks across wards.

Territorial Stigmatization

Definition

• Collective negative representation of places reinforcing inequality.

Context of Urban Restructuring (1970s-1990s)

Economic Changes

• Income and employment divergence; shift from mass production to customization.

Industrial Transformation

• Emerging private capital; challenges to planning authority.

Transition to Postmodern City

Perspective Changes

• Shift from modernist development to postmodern understanding, marked by fragmentation and diversity.

Key Areas of Urban Restructuring (Soja, 1996)

1. Economic Base Restructuring: Shift from manufacturing to services and flexible production.

2. Urban Form Restructuring: Suburban urbanization and gentrification trends.

3. Social Structure Changes: Fragmentation and visible lifestyle disparities.

4. Rise of the Carceral City: Increased privatization and surveillance.

5. Urban Imagery Changes: Focus on consumption and environmental aesthetics.

Soja’s View on Los Angeles

• Seen as a postmodern archetype with apparent accessibility but underlying disparities.

• Representation of urban spaces as power-constructed mosaics.

The Postmodern City

Characteristics

• Not merely a post-industrial city, reflects deep-seated rejections of modernist planning principles.

• Urban space fragmentation and challenge to the top-down vision.

Understanding Postmodernism

• Describes approaches based on narrative diversity and subjective realities.

Features of Postmodernism

• Embraces multiple possibilities, promotes uncertainty and diversity, contradicting interpretations of progress.

Postmodernism’s Influence on Urban Planning

Impact Assessment

• A significant deviation from traditional planning ideologies and practices.

Summary of Key Concepts

1. Postmodernism as a reaction to modernism.

2. Connection to broader trends (e.g., de-industrialization).

3. Neoliberal ideology promoting laissez-faire capitalism and ‘business-friendly’ approaches to urban planning.

Contemporary Cities Characteristics

• Increasingly multi-centered, fragmented, and globally interconnected.

• Transformation of industrial landscapes and labor divisions.

Key Readings for Further Study

• Dear, M., & Flusty, S. (1998), Postmodern urbanism.

• Peck, J., & Tickell, A. (2002), Neoliberalizing space.