Procesy urbanizacyjne na terenach turystyczno-wypoczynkowych strefy podmiejskiej Łodzi
The urbanization processes in the tourist destinations. Example of the urban fringe zone of Łódź

Author(s): Marzena Makowska-Iskierka
Subject(s): Social Sciences, Geography, Regional studies, Regional Geography, Sociology, Rural and urban sociology
Published by: Łódzkie Towarzystwo Naukowe
Keywords: urbanization; tourist destinations; Lodz
Summary/Abstract: The urbanization processes, in spite of their great complexity and multifaceted character, in most of the monographs are analyzed only in several chosen aspects, not in a complex way. Mostly researched are the phenomena that exist in cities, more seldom in rural areas and usually without taking into consideration their specific character. So far, Polish works on tourist destination zones mostly did not concentrate on the urbanization process. Some scientists studies concentrated upon observation (Włodarczyk 1999), others claimed this type did not develop in the given area (Dziegieć 1987, Karolczak 2002). This research is characteristic of its originality in presenting the topic (it is referring to tourist destinations of the urban fringe zone of Łódź, and its details (analysis of data conducted on the level of towns), variety and complexity of surveys (urbanization described in all aspects). Moreover, there are a lot of comparisons of earlier information (mainly from the beginning of 1980s) with current ones, which led to presentation of scale, pace and directions of developing changes in the researched areas. Proposed were also gauges to specify characteristic features of contemporary urbanization. The subject presented in this work shows relevant phenomena, joining issues of geography, tourism and settlement, developing existing scientific achievement in this field at the same time. The Ph.D. aim of the research was to identify and examine the urbanization processes happening in tourism destinations76 of the urban fringe zone of Łódź in all aspects; analyzed were phenomena happening in demographic, economic, spatial and cultural spheres. First the survey of literature on research problems were made, as both urbanization and tourist area are complex issues. Then the characteristic of the area was made, mainly considering the genesis of holiday towns, their locations and transport availability, as well as natural and antropogenic advantages. Another step was to conduct detailed and multifaceted surveys of the area, thanks to which abounding source materials were collected, unfortunately in most cases in unprocessed form of quality and quantity data (rarely the evidence was gathering in computer system). To work out the obtained results, various statistical and cartographic methods were used. In order to do so, existing criteria were verified as well as gauges of the level of urbanization of the urban areas within suburban zone, functioning as tourist and own were proposed. While describing and interpreting phenomena that occur in the chosen area, a lot of features were taken into account, and description explaining relations between them was used. Also, to compare the process of urbanization developed in time in the researched tourist area, relation to data collected in earlier years was made. Due to these efforts, the causes, directions and results were determined. It helped to define developing tendencies and predict the forecast. While describing the urbanization processes developed in demographic and professional field, the density of population, number of people registered for permanent residency and their demographic structure were analyzed (such as sex, age, demographic responsibilities, feminization rate), as well as marital status, education and occupation. Also, the analysis of registration for permanent residency according to years and territorial origin of the population was conducted. Characterized were also ‘new’ temporary residents (that is respondent tourists and allotment users) accounting sex, age, education, marital and family status, occupation, wages, and territorial origin. In spatial-physiognomic field, there was examined the wide issue of changes concerning the structure of using the land and forms of the land ownership, spatial layout and towns function, building physiognomy and towns equipment in technical and social infrastructure. Classification of examined towns was made according to occupied area, typographs and analysis of dynamics and directions of changes in using the land, the leading directions were determined with K. Doi method. The forms of the ownership of the land and correlations with individual types of lands were analyzed. Spatial and functional changes of examined tourist and holiday areas were compared, the location and arrangement of the allotments were described, also the changes of their number, their development, appearance and age. Also, the age of the houses, spatial concentration and density of housing, change of the number, type and surface area of resident and holiday houses were described. Development physiognomy and its types, concerning architecture, wall materials, roof type, equipment, rooms and storeys number were taken into account. Moreover, technical and social infrastructure of holiday areas was discussed. While characterizing the transformation in economic field, allotment trade, building development and individual business entities activities were taken into consideration. Offers on selling the allotments an houses in tourist urban zones of Łódź were compared, the number and types of planning permissions for holiday and dwelling houses made within 1999–2004 were analyzed, also the business entities according to time of starting, type of activity, location and owner’s residence were compared. In cultural field, relations between residents and tourists (allotment users) were examined and non governmental organizations activities were described within researched area. Information from interviews and questionnaires were used for this purpose. The origin of allotments’ owners were determined in this way, as well as frequency and nature of mutual contacts with dwellers, the quality of rest, possibilities of further development of tourism and holiday settlement, discerning benefits from tourism development in those zones, motives for purchasing real estates in particular town and plans of moving to tourist zones. Cultural, entertainment, environmental and others organizations were described paying special attention to the character and aims of their activities, also the attempt to estimate their influence on activation of local society was made. As a result of the survey and wide studies, classification of tourist holiday towns were made, those located in suburban zones of Łódź, according to the level of urbanization processes development. A model and scheme of changes of these processes in the researched area was created, referring to transformations and types of tourist space and stages of tourist urbanization. There was made a prediction of the course of events that could occur as a result of further urbanization in tourist destination zones. Due to collected materials, the results of the surveys and their thorough analysis, all planned aims of the work were achieved. All the assumptions were proved and formulated hypotheses were reviewed positively. That means the urbanization processes in the tourist destinations of the urban fringe zones of Łódź, having distinctive features – differing from transformations in agricultural villages or towns – lead to irreversible special changes that end the cycle of life of the tourist zone. Holiday settlement near Łódź is only a stage in the urbanization process of the zones. It was proved that type, size and pace of the transformation of functions from tourist holiday into resident ones in towns located within suburban zone of the city, such as Łódź, depend on their localization, advantages and development, temporally functioning as holiday destination, and on socio-economic and occupational structure of the allotments’ owners (also the level of wages, needs and life aims), state policy (development concession, mortgages), trends. The symptoms of these processes are the range of migration (visible in the number of permanent residence registrations) and intensity of area development (land and real property prices, number of building development permissions, number and types of functioning business activities). It was proved that the town with tourist functions is an attractive place for permanent residence and centre of journey to work, but also intensive building development is noticed there. This means that suburban holiday areas in Łódź are equal to the most attractive regions in Poland and around the world77. The aims of the work that were accomplished – besides verification of research hypotheses and determination of specific urban features in tourist-holiday zones – were also to define and describe stages of development of those processes in towns near Łódź. Based upon the author’s own researches and the subject literature, there was proposed an author’s model (scheme) of the cycle of development and urbanization processes transformation in holiday settlement of Łódź fringe zones. It considered six separate stages that were thoroughly described. Moreover, taking into account 10 variables, there was classification and typology of research towns made according to the level of advancement of urbanization processes and presented potential directions of transformation of separate types. There were also specified the criteria for defining stages of urbanization of tourist destination suburban zones and verified universally applied gauges of urbanization. They allowed, among other things, to determine the character, structure, dynamics, relationships and scale of urbanization processes functioning in tourist-holiday zones of Łódź fringe zones. Methods applied, such as K. Dois’s defining of leading elements in the structure or Ward’s hierarchic classification, appeared to be very useful in the research. Diverse demographic, economic, spatial an cultural gauges indicated that analyzed towns, which so far have functioned as tourist-holiday destinations, have features typical of towns, proving the urbanization of these areas.

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