Revitalisation as a tool for the development of slow city (Cittaslow)

Abstract

Cities and regions are struggling with social, economic, ecological, and spatial problems, which often accumulate in the historical centers, industrial areas, and degraded residential housing estates. A possible solution is to implement revitalisation measures as an instrument to activate the socio-economic functions of degraded (crisis-stricken) areas. The aim of this article is to discuss the specific character of revitalisation processes in cities which are members of the Polish National Cittaslow Network, and to determine the role of revitalisation in the development of Polish slow cities as well as the extent to which this tool is used in the local and regional development policy within the Polish National Cittaslow Network. The results of the author’s own study (a survey questionnaire addressed to mayors of Cittaslow cities in 2020) were presented against the background of the data on revitalisation measures taken by municipal governments, which were collected and reported by Statistics Poland. Beside individual revitalisation programs in Cittaslow member cities, there is an ongoing supralocal revitalisation program. This is an innovative approach to planning revitalisation efforts pursued simultaneously in several cities in one region. Moreover, the revitalisation measures and activation of crisis-stricken areas are pointed to as one of the major effects achieved owing to the membership in the Cittaslow network. This implicates that competition among cities in one region can evolve towards effective coopetition of cities. This transformation is important for building the resilience of slow cities, which play an increasingly growing role in the sustainable development of regions.