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Provided by RAUmPlan - Repository of Architecture; Urbanism and Planning WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

NEW ECONOMIC DISTRICTS IN BELGRADE AREA

Slavka Zeković, PhD, Tamara Maričić, MSc Institute for Architecture and Town& Regional Planning of Serbia, 11000 Belgrade, Bulevar kralja Alexandra 73/II SERBIA

Abstract: Dynamic changes in spatial structure of cities are in the focus of attention, as well as, the development of new economic zones/poles in urban areas, new spatial forms of economic activity. It is considered that the processes of globalization and market mechanisms have led to the ’break down’ of urban structures into numerous specialized localities, by way of developing economic clusters and other activities. The development of new economic poles in cities is a consequence of activating new localities and changing the present territorial organization and the development of ’knowledge-based’ economic activities. In city Belgrade the new economic districts – new industrial, commercial, entrepreneurial zones developed systematically or spontaneously in the suburban areas (along highways) have a major role in spatial development of economic activities and in the planning of territorial organization of that metropolitan areas. Key words are: new economic districts, spatial clusters, business activities, sustainable development, urban policy, the urban development

1 Introduction zones/clusters within urban areas in Serbia. For an effective planning of sustainable Therefore, this work is trying to demonstrate development and spatial organization in urban the need for the research of new economic areas in Serbia in the following period, it is forms in urban areas, the need for mechanisms necessary to incorporate European strategic of agglomerating activities in spatial/economic frameworks, approaches and planning practises clusters and the harmonisation of sustainable [1,2,3]. In the process of economic and social urban development in Serbia, based on the transition in Serbia, coordination to the example of the Belgrade area. conditions of EU competitiveness, the development of small and medium-sized entreprises in the industrial sector, services and 2 Sustainable Urban Development other business activities, as well as urban The latest discussions concerning potential policy, is a complex economic and urban spatial development are not possible without planning challenge. Under the pressure of taking into consideration the visions of socio- global processes in economic development, the economic development. However, in economic transition of the socio-economic system into a theory the ideas of certain schools about the market-oriented economy in Serbia, among vision of economic development have always other things, has influenced the creation of new been divided between free market and/or state economic poles/zones/clusters in urban areas, regulation. Two key global tendencies have changes in spatial organization of cities, the influenced the socio-economic and spatial apearance of new locational forms of industries, changes – the globalization of economy and the services, business activities, etc. The document transformation of postcommunist economic Serbia’s Strategy of Industrial Development systems and state into a market economy, 2007-2012 [4], does not deal with the questions political pluralism and the strenghtening of about the creation of new economic institutional frameworks. The concept of

ISBN: 978-960-6766-87-9 33 ISSN 1790-2769 WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

sustainable development, as a challenge in have been already ruined by devastated harmonizing economic, social, political, industrial and commercial objects. It is often environmental and spatial dimensions could the case that such objects in the cities are serve as a suitable frame for “depreciation of abandoned because of old technology and for influences“ of globalization processes and other reasons, so it has been suggested that socio-economic transitions on all levels of these spaces (brownfields) are put to good use planning. Due to the influences of the latter by reconstructing them. The experiences of processes, spatial organization of cities and urban planning in Eastern–European cities have settlements, regardless of big regional been directed more towards new green-fields differences, is characterised by a ’Planetary“ and less towards activating brown-fields. sindrom of standardizing lifestyles and Apart from this general European trend organization of work for people, together with a of curtailing regional differences, establishing homogenization of urban structures and new „economic poles of development“ in processes (the so-called European monotopy metropolitan peripheries is also significant in [5], in the sense of unification of places, spatial planning spatial development. According to structures, the expanding new economic zones Burdach J.[9], it is a matter of a new discourse in cities areas). in peripheral growth (metropolitan). New According to Jakšić M. [6], the economic poles in metropolitan areas are a challenge of the 21st century is not in result of a high participation of the public sector establishng a fixed and final utopia, but in ( especially in providing heavy infrastructure, creating an ev-topia. In other words, instead of support in curtailing spatial unbalance, etc), but u-topia – the creation of an ev-topia (a place also in attracting foreign and local investments. that evolves, develops), meaning a system of In some large cities of Europe, and stimulating and applying knowledge and Serbia as well, (ex. Belgrade, Novi Sad), new adjusting skills to the conditions, uncertainties economic poles – new economic, commercial, and aims of the surroundings. As the industrial, entrepreneurial zones that have been mechanisms of perception and acquiring created by planning or spontaneously in the knowledge have a social character, social suburbia (along motorways, main roads) have a relations are based on territory, so is the priority in the development and spatial development of economy based on knowledge organization planning of the area. The reasons togeter with mechanisms of urban planning for such a trend are manifold – low price of policies. Principles of sustainable development land, available sites, proximity of residential should be added to these (CEMAT, 2000) [7]. areas, favourable conditions on site etc. The expansion of work/factory zones in big cities is contradictory to the idea of a sustainable 2 The Identification of Expanding compact city, above all, because of an increase Economic Activities in Urban in transportation, greater energy consumption, greater costs of infrastructure, negative effects Areas on the environment, ruin of agricultural land In the Green Paper on EU cities [8], the basic and similar. In this way, the tendency of aims of urban development have been defined, deurbanization has transformed into based on the improvement of the quality of suburbanization, because the density of environment in these territories: (1) population in peripheral metropoliten areas has environment protection and management, rapidly grown, as well as the number of flats, which means reduction of uncontrolled pressure the growth of economic activity, costs of and growth of various activities, with the infrastructure, ecology etc. New centres of restoration of cities; (2) the curtailment of city production and consumption influence the participation in the causes of pollution, which transformation of suburbia ( as mainly means careful planning of the economic activity residential, socially homogenous zones, with expansion and the use of spaces in the city that lower density in an urban periphery) into post-

ISBN: 978-960-6766-87-9 34 ISSN 1790-2769 WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

suburbia ( which expresses the transformational 15,1%, Sofija 27,1%, Ljubljana 27,4%, process in multi-functional locations). Many Moscow 31,6%, St. Petersburg 43,8%. In different concepts have been concerned with Belgrade , it is approximately 18%. However, this phenomenon of the transformation of the general opinion is that due to the price of suburbia into post-suburbia, describing it as a construction, parking problems et sl., the new „new centrality“ outside of the central place, dominant trend is construction in new industrial i.e. the creation of a new centre outside the facilities, on free locations in the urban downtown city area. The term „new economic periphery (greenfields). pole“ implies various kinds of new dynamic Clustery deconcentration of business centres with a functional specialization in the activity leads to a new relation and movement metropolitan periphery. The main spatial forms from the centre of city to the outskirts. The of new economic poles in peripheral urban effects of development and concentration of areas (suburbia) are industrial parks, industrial activity and living in the suburbia technological parks, industrial complexes, (post-suburbia), without control of the over- shopping malls, business-commercial centres, construction phenomenon or urban lots, logistics centres, business centres etc. environmental effects and pollution et sl., have According to [9], the concept of classic spatial an ever-growing, partly explosive character. models of cities (standardized „rings“ and Post-socialistic „boom“ of the metropolitan sectors) is being more and more transformed periphery is not imminent to only eastern- into polycentric forms, created by grouping or european and Balkan countries, but to networking different kinds of locations for developed metropolitan areas of Western different purposes. A tendency of the breaking Europe too. The development is shifting from up of urban structures into different series of the central compact city nucleus to the inner specialized and fragmented localities, by way of and outer city peripheries. One of the principle clusters of activities disperesed inside a reasons for the socio-economic and spatial populated structure. In that way, more and more transformation of urban areas is the proces of an image of a „functional archipelago“ is tertialization, i.e. the development of services. created in an urban (periphery) fabric, unlike The main instigator of these processes are earlier approaches. (For exampke, in earlier usually foreign investments into the services Master plan of Belgrade in 1970’s, the concept sector (most often it is the banking sector, of an „archipelago in a sea of green“ was insurance, shopping malls, sales and exhibit promoted). The cummulative effects of halls, hotels, storehouses and trade etc). The developing new poles lead to a new concept of role of city authorities and local investors in growth of urban/metropolitan periphery as well. this proces is relatively small, usually they have Initial nucleuses of this development are often a service function in providing suitable shopping centres, business-commercial centres conditions on locations. et sl., which is a consequence of the transition The formation of new economic poles into post-industrial society. as a result of a general tendency for an A significant part of urban spaces is international shift of production and services occupied by industrial and transportational from the city centre to the periphery. In other functions and facilities, often they are very words, the market mechanisms and factors of negative. Recently, with privatisation, the international proportions, activate the pressure process of reactivating abandoned industrial of direct foreign investments into locations (brownfields) in eastern-european metropolitan/urban peripheries, above all, cities, including Belgrade is gradually being because of the agglomeration economies, opened. In cities with a market economy, the reduction of various costs, acceptable and industry holds 4-10% (Paris 5.2%, London favourable locational economies in periphery 4,7%) of the entire developed space [10], while city zones etc. This process has negative industrial locations in eastern-european cities repercussions both in spatial-environmental, occupy 15,1-43,8% (Prag 13,4%, Varšava and in the institutional domain as well. Based

ISBN: 978-960-6766-87-9 35 ISSN 1790-2769 WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

on theoretical opinions, experiences from many new employment growth in city peripheries, and areas, it seems that the process has a the first early signal of a polycentric structure of devastating effect on the regional and local a territory. Spatial economy of periphery urban institutions, as well as on the local investors, by area is not homogenous. Although, until imposing on them the rules of behaviour, recently, traditional city peripheries were standards, movements and direction of capital. identified as a mixture of industrial spaces, Inside an urban-spatial context, it can be family homes, traffic corridors and greenery, directly observed in the profound changes ( today they have a more distinct sensitivity to quite often in the caving in as well) of the market signals and initiatives in relation to the existing spatial organization of a city, city central city zones. In this space, drawn by the zonings, propositions, rules and regulation growth of population with a higher education, standards for using the building land et sl. So, especially by way of a new infrastructure for direct foreign investment is the pivot of the research-development institutions, many new development of new economic poles in urban high-tech activities of production take place areas (banking, shopping malls, high-tech and services. There activities of transportation business activities, industrial parks, logistics services are developed, logistics, production, centres and transportation etc). This process has wholesale (warehouses, storehouses etc.) a foothold in the theoretical concept of liberal shopping malls and services. economy, especially the so-called Smith’s „invisible hands“ of the market. In other words, the processes of illegal constuction and 3 Results and Discuss of New expansion of cities are only a consequence of Trends of Economic Activities in bad legal solutions in the field of planning and building of spaces, poverty of citizens, social Belgrade Metropolitan and other problems, but they are directly fuelled The process of post-suburbanization is a and/or initiated by market mechanisms. The consequence of activity of commercial powers process of suburbanization is „artificially“ and it takes place in all metropolitan initiated by economic and social policies as peripheries, including Belgrade. Significant well, but also by inadequate mesures of urban foreign investments and the development of policy and policy of urban land ( ex. 86,000 entreprises ( of which around 1/3 are in untransformed system of managing the building Belgrade) and 90,000 enterpreneurs, illustrate a land, undeveloped instruments of taxing more significant role of market mechanisms of building land and real estate, tax rates, the fee allocated new economic content in the for land development and usage, local taxes, metropolitan area. According to Serbia’s subventions, concessions, etc.) In accordance Strategy for Joining the EU [12], a with economic restructuring (tendency towards development of industrial parks is predicted, tertialization) in urban/metropolitan structure, a which would later grow into clusters, with the stagnation and „disappearance“ of classic provision of necessary heavy infrastructure, industrial zones, complexes, entreprises is possibility of fast construction of business and evident. A functional conversion of these zones industrial facilities, fiscal incentives and is evident, fuelled on one side by the process of qualified labour. The National Investment Plan privatization of state entreprises in these zones, of RS predicts the construction of 49 industrial and on the other side, by the pressure of direct zones in towns of Serbia. According to data foreign investment. [13], only in the area of Belgrade, in a „new According to [11], the post-communist wave“ of construction 20,000 ha of urban land deveopment of eastern-European cities shows a (farmland) has been found to be under hybrid layout with relics of spatial structures of construction in the peripheral area. A housing the socialist era, a phenomenon of structure deficit in Belgrade, numerous refugees and transformation and new suburban/posturban dislocated persons, have caused a significant spatial layout of clusters. They are nucleuses of residential pressure onto the suburbs, and

ISBN: 978-960-6766-87-9 36 ISSN 1790-2769 WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

uncultivated farmland of Belgrade promoted, with an explosion of illegal agglomeration (ex. Zemun corridor, belt of construction and an expansion of cities. motorways to Surčin, Batajnica, Novi Sad, The aim of urban planning policy and Avala direction, Borča, Ovča, Pančevo the concept of clustery deconcentration direction etc.) as well as the birth of new small activities is to prevent the negative entreprises, and the concentration of economic consequences of the doom scenario and entropy activity in the mentioned spaces. Metropolitan of urban territories (conversion of the „boom“ periphery outside the borders of the city of development scenario into the so-called „doom Belgrade is becoming more attractive for scenario“), based on the priciples of sustainable settlements (ex. the zones along the motorway development. Considering the fact that the Belgrade-Novi Sad, Belgrade-Zagreb, development of new economic polarities in Belgrade-Niš, Ibar direction, Avala direction, urban peripheries mainly is not linked to Zrenjanin direction etc.) due to easy access to regional and national politics, the concept of the corridors, nature etc. In addition, a polycentric urban structure could alleviate the concentration of economic activity is evident negative effects of the mentioned tendencies. along the motorway from Belgrade to The development of potential implications of Batajnica, Novi Sad, Novi Beograd, airport new polarities onto the regional environmnet “Nikola Tesla”, Dobanovci, Zemun, Pančevo and development, the manner of coexistence of road etc. A great concentration of economic growth and stagnation areas and/or depression, activity has occured outside the Belgrade the disappearance of traditional industrial agglomeration , on the motorway zones - ex. production, expansion of services, explosive large industrial zones in Šimanovci (550 ha), growth of suburbia, is the subject of planning Pećinci (500 ha), Krnješevci (250 ha), etc. At policy of metropoliten area. motorway exits (corridor X) big shopping The current developing tendencies in centres have been built like „Metro“, „Tempo“, the Belgrade metropolitan reflect the growing „Idea“, „Rodić“, „Mercur“, „Mercator“, socio-economic differences through a special „Veropoulos“, etc. Municipalities that have „functional archipelago“. In accordance with better traffic and communication links with the experiences of the European metropolitan their surroundings, and with the central zone of peripheries, the possible scenarios for the future Belgrade, and have an efficient entrepreneurial expansion of new economic polarities in the local authority and administration, are metropolitan area of Belgrade: (1)an actual advantaged in attracting new content. In the existence of area growth, mainly along Belgrade agglomeration, those are important traffic corridors nearby the city municipalities Pećinci (1,050 ha, Surčin (250 centre, will continue in the future as well. ha), Stara Pazova (1,900 ha), Indjija (930 ha) Today this process is visible along the and others. At the Belgrade metropolitan area motorways Belgrade-NoviSad, Belgrade- are located 12 industrial zones (about 2,500 ha). Zagreb, next to the airports „Nikola Tesla“,etc; The process of globalization and the (2) the development of new industrial structures activity of the „invisible hand“ on the market, (modern production complexes – industrial among other things, is the product of profound parks, technology parks entrepreneurial zones, spatial, structural, urban and socio-economic complexes) mainly by government aid, the changes on all levels. On the territory of Serbia, arrival of multinational companies, the support due to the activity of transitional changes these of EU et sl. Apart from technological processes have been significantly boosted. complexes, the new polarities are the shopping However, they flow spontaneously, randomly malls, distribution-transportation centres, and often without adequate planning and business centres and others, (3) the prediction management or institutional control. In the that the residential zone of suburbanization will period between 1990-2000, due to the many expand in the future onto the green zones and political economic and social happenings in will demonstrate the adverse side of Serbia, „grey“ economy was especially suburbanization; (4) the process of

ISBN: 978-960-6766-87-9 37 ISSN 1790-2769 WSEAS International Conference on URBAN PLANNING and TRANSPORTATION (UPT'07), Heraklion, Crete Island, Greece, July 22-24, 2008

reurbanization in the Belgrade agglomeration is process of globalization. That zones could be present sporadically, by way of rehabilitation of some kind of mixure of old spatial structures. the existing industrial zones; (5) the and the development of new locational models development of new industrial/business spatial in the urban fabric, under the influence of forms of the new economic poles of market and the globalization process of development in the urban and rural area, with economic activity and investment. In this the possible development of a big theme park. process are evident: the existence of growth The establishment of airport city bussiness zone area, mainly along important traffic corridors in New Belgrade, construction of Waterland in nearby the heart of the city; development of New Belgrade, construction of Aqualand new locational forms (industrial park, nearby Dobanovci, along the motorway technology park, high-tech corridors), mainly Belgrade-Zagreb, zones of recreation and with government aid, foreign investment, etc; entretainment like specific economic poles, large changes onto urban structures of (6)and apart from the problems and metropolitan areas; over-construction of impossibilities of an accurate prognosis for building locations; the effect on the price directing the dynamics and developing fluctuation of real estate in certain parts of processes, it is predicted that the centre of metropolitan land; population mobility from the trends in the following decade in the Belgrade centre to the periphery. It is estimated that the metropolitan will move to te periphery. absence of harmonization of European development policies, urban development, environment in the economic development in Conclusions cities of Serbia could have consequences in the The development of economic activities within growth of competitiveness of urban economy the new economic zones/poles/clusters in urban and sustainable urban development. areas can be assessed as a consequence of the Regional Planning on 7-8 September 2000, Hannover, Strasbourg, Council of Europe References [8]Green Paper on the Urban Environment, [1]Lisbon -revisited - Finding a New Path to European Commission, 1990 European Growth’, Working Paper, 2004., EPC [9]Burdach J.,New economic poles in European [2]Competitiveness and Innovation framework metropolitan peripheries: Introductory remarks Programme 2007-2013, (2006), European on theory and empirical evidence, European Parliament and the Council, 1639/2006/EC, Spatial reseach and policy, Vol.13 No 2/2006. 24.October 2006, OJ L 310/15,09.11.2006 [10] Bertaud A., The Spatial Structures of [3]Communication ‘Fostering Structural Central and Eastern European cities, in The Change: an Industrial policy for an Enlarged Urban Mosaic of Post-Socialist Europe, Space, Europe’, COM (2004), 274, 20.april 2004. EC Institutions and Policy, Verlag, Springer, 2006. [4] Serbia’s Strategy of Industrial Development [11] Dovenyi Z., Kovacs Z., Budapest-The 2007-2012, 2006, Government of the Serbia, Post-socialist Metropolitan Periphery between Belgrade ‘Catching up’ and Individual Development [5] Jensen O.B., Richardson T. (2004) ,Making Path, ESRP, vol.13, No2/2006. European Space, Routledge, London [12] Strategy of the Serbia’s entry into the EU, [6] Jaksic M., Vision, institions and economic (2005), Government of the Republic Serbia, development, Ekonomski anali No.163/2004, Belgrade Economics faculty, Belgrade [13] Serbia Investment Climate Assessment, [7]CEMAT ,Guiding principles for sustainable Finance and Private Sector Development Unit spatial development of the European continent, (ECSPF), (2004), Europe and Central Asia, Adopted at the 12th Session of the European World Bank Conference of Ministers responsible for

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