Research On The Youngstown,US Smart-Shrinkage Plans' Implementation And Its Implication For China

The issue of shrinking cities is under heated discussion in the international and domestic urban scholars.In the post-war era,because of deindustrialization,suburbanization,institutional transition and other factors,many cities in the Western countries endured continuous depopulation,and thus be defined as shrinking cities.Recently,aiming at rebalance the relationship between population and built environment,some American shrinking cities proposed right-sizing oriented smart shrinkage plans,which attract widespread concerns.However,up-to-date related studies mostly focus on the causalities and effects,by leaving the corresponsing planning strategies and their implementation largely uncovered.Meanwhile,shrinking cities are also emerging in China,while few corresponding plans have been made,therefore it is worthwhile to learn from the abroad.This dissertation focuses on a typical shrinking city in the US,literally the City of Youngstown,Ohio,which recently publicized two right-sizing oriented smart shrinkage plans.The study mainly analyzes these two plans' implementation process that engages dilemmas and challenges,as well as success and experience.The study applies a range of methods including field survey,semi-structure interview,Python programming and parcel-based GIS plan implementation evaluation.In the begining,this dissertation analyzes the context and background of Youngstown's urban shrinkage,as well as its effects on geographical and built environment.Afterwards,this dissertation moves onto examining Youngstown 2010 Plan's systematical,initiative right-sizing through top-down implementation on Youngstown 2013 Zoning Code,and examing Youngstown's Neighborhood Action Plans' scattered,passive right-sizing through bottom-up implementation on demolishing blight structures and buildings.Correspondingly,this study has the following two research findings.First,Youngstown 2010 Plan's right-sizing method,literally land use pattern change,did not implement well on Youngstown 2013 Zoning Code,from the perspective of neither conformance nor performance.This is caused by the Youngstown 2010 Plan's lacking consideration of property right,legally defensibility,democractic underrepresentive,political stability and economic feasibility that actually affect its implementation.Second,compared with the Youngstown 2010 Plan,Youngstown's Neighborhood Action Plans implemented much better on right-sizing through demolishing blight structures and buildings.However,because of difference in the path of implementation,labor division method and management method,the local government's implementing result is much worse than the land bank from the perspective of both conformance and performance.This study implies that smart shrinkage plans are not panacea for saving shrinking cities,the keypoint lies in establishing a justified and proper institution,thus ensuring right-sizing methods to be legal,economical and effective.Through analyzing Chinese shrinking cities' multiple planning dilemmas and their causalities,this study indicates experience and lessons from the perspective of establishing institutions that can be learned from the Youngstown case.