Wang, Weikai (2020) The discourse, governance and configurations of polycentricity in transitional China: a case study of Tianjin. PhD thesis. https://theses.gla.ac.uk/81666/ Copyright and moral rights for this work are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This work cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given Enlighten: Theses https://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] The Discourses, Governance and Configurations of Polycentricity in Transitional China: A Case Study of Tianjin Weikai Wang BSc, MSc Peking University Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Philosophy School of Social and Political Sciences College of Social Science University of Glasgow September 2020 Abstract Polycentricity has been identified as a prominent feature of modern landscapes as well as a buzzword in spatial planning at a range of scales worldwide. Since the Reform and Opening- up Policy in 1978, major cities in China have experienced significant polycentric transition manifested by their new spatial policy framework and reshaped spatial structure. The polycentric transformation has provoked academics’ interests on structural and performance analysis in quantitative ways recently. However, little research investigates the nature of (re)formation and implementation of polycentric development policies in Chinese cities from a processual and critical perspective. This research interprets the underlying meanings and rationality of polycentric development strategy in planning discourse and explains how concrete centres within the polycentric system are created, governed and materialized to facilitate the implementation of polycentric policies in the special context of political system, spatial planning system and socio- economic conditions in China. Referring to existing literature of polycentricity and theories of urban space, this research develops a novel theoretical framework, which holds that polycentricity is produced by the articulation of state power, planning profession and produced space. The research is founded on an embedded case study of Tianjin based on empirical data derived from interviews with stakeholders and secondary data. Through a discourse analysis of four Tianjin City Master Plans, discourses of ‘polycentric urban settlements’, ‘functional polycentricity’, ‘polycentric growth nodes’ and ‘nested polycentricity’ are identified, which are deployed in different ways with variegated composition of spatial elements. Moreover, rather than being mere technocratic practice, the production and legitimation of distinct discourses is essentially an articulation of multi- scalar power involving various stakeholders, which is disguised and justified by the planning profession. The findings demonstrate that polycentricity is a malleable concept and its fluidity creates space to accommodate consensus or to allow the play of contested interests and policy experiments. Based on that, this research further selects centres in Tianjin Binhai New Area Core Zone, Wuqing District and Dongli District as embedded cases to explore how the polycentric development policy is implemented in practice. The empirical findings from local perspective show that these centres are created or formed according to different contexts and logics, and they are consolidated by employment of a portfolio of tools and instruments such as new planning and urban design, establishment of financial and development corporations, exclusive preferential policies, manipulation of public sector, land development and institutional innovation. Correspondingly, these centres have experienced distinct development trajectories and shown different spatial outcomes from the perspectives of urban form, functional composition, and spatial identity. It is suggested that significant gaps and contradictions exist between spatial visions and actual development, which poses challenges for sustainable development. i Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................. i List of Tables ................................................................................................. vii List of Figures ............................................................................................... viii Acknowledgement ........................................................................................... x Author’s declaration ...................................................................................... xi List of Abbreviations .................................................................................... xii Chapter 1 Introduction ................................................................................... 1 1.1 Polycentric transition in China: manifestations in the policy agenda, urban reality and academic debate .......................................................................................................... 3 1.1.1 The quest for polycentricity in the policy agenda ................................................. 3 1.1.2 Restless urbanisation and new growth on the edge .............................................. 4 1.1.3 Recent academic attention to polycentricity in China .......................................... 5 1.2 Research aims and objectives ...................................................................................... 6 1.3 Thesis structure ............................................................................................................ 9 Chapter 2 Unfolding polycentricity: concept and theory ......................... 12 2.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 12 2.2 Evolution of urban form ............................................................................................. 12 2.2.1 The rise of the polycentric city and region ......................................................... 12 2.2.2 Driving forces for polycentric development ........................................................ 14 2.2.3 Polycentricity as a spontaneous process ............................................................ 17 2.3 Theorising polycentric development .......................................................................... 18 2.3.1 Modelling polycentric development .................................................................... 18 2.3.2 Reformulation of urban system theory ................................................................ 20 2.3.3 Agglomeration economies and polycentricity ..................................................... 21 2.4 Fuzziness and fluidity of polycentricity ..................................................................... 23 2.4.1 Scale dependency and sensitivity ........................................................................ 24 2.4.2 Morphological, functional and strategic polycentricity...................................... 25 ii 2.4.3 Polycentricity as an intermediate state ............................................................... 26 2.5 Unfolding polycentric configurations ........................................................................ 26 2.5.1 The polycentric city ............................................................................................. 26 2.5.2 The polycentric urban region .............................................................................. 28 2.5.3 The polycentric urban field ................................................................................. 30 2.6 Conclusion and discussion ......................................................................................... 33 Chapter 3 Polycentricity in strategic vision: planning and governance .. 35 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................................ 35 3.2 Changing paradigms in urban forms .......................................................................... 35 3.2.1 Compact versus dispersed pattern ...................................................................... 36 3.2.2 Polycentricity: an alternative form towards sustainability? ............................... 38 3.3 Planning and polycentric development ...................................................................... 40 3.3.1 Planning for polycentricity ................................................................................. 40 3.3.2 Planning of polycentricity ................................................................................... 42 3.4 Governance and Polycentricity .................................................................................. 44 3.5 Spatial identity: bridging vision and reality ............................................................... 48 3.6 Conclusion and discussion ......................................................................................... 51 Chapter 4 Theoretical framework and methodology ................................ 55 4.1 Introduction ...............................................................................................................