STRUCTURAL FEATURES OF WEST EDMONTON MALL

This article addresses the question of how West Edmonton Mall (wem) may be a new and distinctive component of retail spatial structure by analysing the retail and service attributes of the mall in the context of (I) Edmonton's retail structure at the regional shopping centre level, and (2) the internal structure of the mall. It is suggested that wem has added a new level to Edmonton's retail hierarchy, rivalling the downtown as the city's primate centre. The analysis of tenant changes leads to the conclusion that these changes tend to reflect a movement from unconventional to conventional tenant mix, and that wem is not much different, other than in sheer size, from most large regional shopping centres. The only unique structural characteristic appears to be the existence of enclaves not usually found in other malls.     

WEST EDMONTON MALL AS A TOURIST ATTRACTION

Recent years have seen the mega-phenomenon assume increasing significance in tourism; it is not surprising, therefore, that West Edmonton Mall, the world's first mega-mall, should be viewed as a tourist attraction. This
article discusses the role of shopping as a tourist activity and the opportunity to shop as a facet of the appeal of a location to tourists. It examines the relative attractiveness of West Edmonton Mall as a tourist destination in this context and concludes that it has few outstanding characteristics beyond its unique size and range of leisure facilities. The permanence of its appeal beyond the regional scale is therefore unikely. The long-term appeal of shopping and related facilities is discussed in the context of a model of tourism development.     

WEST EDMONTON MALL: ENTREPRENEURIAL INNOVATION AND CONSUMER RESPONSE

West Edmonton Mall was developed and has maintained its position as Edmonton's primary focus of retailing, recreational, and leisure activity through innovative entrepreneurial skills and extensive promotions. These are viewed as necessarily concomitant to the size, location, and functional complexity of the mall relative to the size of the Edmonton market and the remainder of the city's retail structure. One strategy was to dominate the market by tempting consumers with the rewards of a complete shopping environment within the confines of one, carefully orchestrated retail complex. The success of this approach is evaluated through an examination of the entrepreneurial behaviour of the developer (Triple Five) in relation to the consumer spatial preferences of a sample of Edmontonians. From this evidence it is suggested that the mall's retail importance may not be as pervasive locally as is commonly thought. Consumer mobility and the intrinsic character of the retail structure are reasons suggested for this, both of which require further investigation and elaboration.     

GEOGRAPHIC IMPLICATIONS OF MEGA-MALLS, WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO WEST EDMONTON MALL

West Edmonton Mall (wem) is an internationally known shopping mall I leisure complex comprising approximately 4 million sq. ft. of leasable retail and service space. It contains more than 600 shops, plus a hotel and leisure and recreational facilities that are unmatched in any previous shopping centre. The superimposition of a single, massive development on a pre-existing urban structure has created both opportunities and problems for Edmonton, while the emergence of such an urban phenomenon, unprecedented in scale and character, should raise new questions and stimulate new thinking among academics. This introductory article provides a context for the articles that follow by outlining the developmental history of wem and assessing its significance as a mega-ma/ prototype, and by identifying themes to be addressed in detail in the subsequent articles.     

WEST EDMONTON MALL AS A CENTRE FOR SOCIAL INTERACTION

The emergence of a mega-mall - with its increased scale, size, and ensuing annexation of much of a city's retail and social life - intensifies the need for research about the social functions of shopping centres. Profiles of mall social life are necessary to understand the larger geographical, legal, political, and social issues accompanying the proliferation of such privately owned, publicly used indoor urban environments. Social interaction at West Edmonton Mall (wem) is characterized through an examination of its physical design and operation and an assessment of attitudes and uses of its local patrons, including adolescent 'ma/ies. wem is not as successful in orchestrating visitor satisfaction as one might expect, due partly to the amplification of tension between mall owners I designers and the desire of local residents to engage the mega-mall on their own terms.     

SHOPPING AND LEISURE: IMPLICATIONS OF WEST EDMONTON MALL FOR LEISURE AND FOR LEISURE RESEARCH

In the context of three alternative approaches to the meaning of leisure (activity, time, and experience), this article uses West Edmonton Mall (with its vast array of shops and unique complex of recreational facilities) as a starting point to explore four relationships between shopping and leisure. These are: independence (shopping as purchasing); shopping for leisure (the purchase of goods for use in subsequent leisure time); shopping and leisure (when shops and leisure facilities are juxtaposed in a single facility like West Edmonton Mall); and shopping as leisure (when shopping begins to take on the attributes of leisure as an experience). It is concluded that the last category offers the most interesting questions for future research.     

基于制度转型的中国城市空间结构研究初探

1990年代以来全球范围内的众多国家发生了重大制度转型,以中国为代表的社会主义国家转型引起了国际学者的广泛关注。城市空间结构是城市社会、经济发展的空间投影,对其理解也必然要从制度转型的深刻层面去加以认识。文章系统回顾了西方城市空间结构研究经历的城市形态研究、实证主义方法、政治经济学分析等过程,揭示出其基本走向是转向对深层制度性因素的关注。继而文章着重分析了中国制度转型的三个根本方面,并概要性地阐释了其对城市空间的影响,最后列举了相应的一些重要研究领域和基本方向。     

面临新城市贫困我国城市发展与规划的对策研究

文章论述了我国新城市贫困的基本特征及其对城市发展的影响,指出新城市贫困已经对我国城市的经济、社会、空间发展以及城市管理产生了前所未有的冲击,社会公平问题已经成为关系到我国城市持续健康发展的重大问题。面临新城市贫困的严峻现实,我国城市发展必须兼顾效率与公平,扩大就业应当是我国城市健康发展的重要保障,也是解决新城市贫困问题的最终手段;而城市规划必须关注城市的社会发展,以促进城市可持续发展为终极目标,要在城市规划的指导思想、方法、内容以及规划实施的管理上进行深入反思并作出相应改进。     

城市发展战略规划:透视激烈竞争环境中的地方政府管治

经济全球化和市场化给中国城市的发展营造了一个激烈竞争的环境,地方政府的企业化倾向更加明显,并对外界环境变化做出了种种反应。发展战略规划就是地方政府力图突破传统城市规划的制约,以增强城市竞争力为目标、强化地方发展利益的一种新城市管治方式。章通过城市发展战略规划的研究,分析了其作用以及地方政府在其中的主导角色,透视了在中国经济社会转型期地方政府管治的变化。     

从景观生态学构建城市旅游开发与规划的操作模式

本文试图建立一个有关城市旅游开发与规划的应用理论模式,该模式的建立主要依据地理空间分析方法,同时借用景观生态学抽象形态单位斑、廊、基的概念。并以不同城市的旅游规划为实例说明了该模式的操作运行。     

城市发展研究的整体主义初探

科学发展观的提出以及复杂性科学的兴起,要求必须立足整体主义开展城市发展研究。在这种背景下,提出城市系统工程的命题,其本质是一种城市发展研究的整体主义方法论。城市系统工程的核心内容包括:时空观作为研究理念,城市与发展作为研究主题,城市系统、城市逻辑与城市制度作为研究维度,以及发展阶段、发展规律、发展战略和发展调控作为研究问题。针对城市系统工程的三种研究维度,给出了对应的研究方法体系。     

城市规划视角下西安市主城区住宅空间结构演变研究

近年来,住宅市场的空间分异逐渐受到学界关注。本文以西安市主城区为研究区域,以2003年至2009年区内住宅资料为基础数据,分析了西安市主城区住宅空间结构的动态演变规律,并从城市规划视角对住宅空间结构演变机制做以探究。结果认为:西安市主城区内住宅空间结构呈现出数量上向轴线和板块集聚、价格上向多核均衡演变的趋势。住宅空间结构的演变受城市规划的空间战略、产业布局、交通建设和设施配套等影响较大。科学的城市规划能够引导住宅结构逐步优化,使之从单一极化结构向多极多层次的网络化均衡结构演变。     

论城市旅游规划与城市规划的相互协调

本文通过分析城市旅游规划与城市规划的特点指出城市旅游规划的局限性与城市规划的权威性,城市旅游规划应依赖城市规划来弥补其局限性,但同时城市旅游规划对城市规划也具有一定的影响作用,城市规划应根据城市旅游发展的要求进行适应性调整。     

空间联系视角的沈阳市多中心城市结构研究

以沈阳市为研究案例,借鉴国际著名团队POLYNET的研究经验并加以改良,进行了空间联系视角的多中心城市结构的实证分析。分别从人口密度分布、就业-居住空间联系网络与企业空间组织网络三个维度来识别沈阳市的人口中心、就业中心与产业中心,综合分析这些"中心"得出四点结论:①城市核心区就业与居住中心构成十字交叉的内循环结构;②浑南新区次中心特征颇具雏形;③外围人口中心、就业中心与产业中心错位发展;④沈阳市呈现不均衡的多中心结构特征。     

城市区位景观尊严规划研究

20世纪60、70年代以来,西方发达国家的城市景观空间研究由"物质景观"转向了"物质与文化景观并重"的研究,其本质在于从人本主义视角探究不同景观的区位价值和区位重构关系,尤其关注城市日常生活空间质量观下的人居环境景观与景观的社会公正配置与规划,从而响应不同的区位价值,满足阶层化下的人的区位尊严需求。本文重在从行为文化区位景观价值视角探讨城市区位景观价值的演变特征、区位景观理论的内涵与构成及区位文化景观尊严规划的原理构成等。     

城市规划中的社会公平性问题浅析

本文以可持续发展的观点,分析了在现代市场经济条件下城市规划中的社会公平性问题的表现形式;并通过建立分析模型,借助地理信息系统的空间分析功能对规划用地中的公平性问题进行了探讨性的分析研究;文中还就苏州工业园区为例,介绍了其规划中的公平性问题处理的成功经验,最后强调了城市规划中对规划公平问题重视的重要性。     

帕雷托公式重构及其与城市体系演化

本文首次提出并论证了帕雷托公式关于城市体系规模结构"均衡度"和"结构容量"两个指数,并以此对传统的帕雷托公式进行重新构建。重构后的帕雷托公式不仅成为描述城市体系规模分布的一般性模式,还全面展示了城市体系的各种演化状态,使其应用范围得以扩展。最后本文成功地运用重构后的帕雷托公式对"八五"期间我国各大区城市体系的演化状态作了全方位的应用性研究。     

中国西部开发研究评述

本文在改革开放以来我国东西部经济发展差距日益扩大的地区经济发展格局下,在充分吸收前人研究成果和参阅大量文献的基础上,对改革开放二十年以来我国学术界对西部开发的研究著作、西部开发中关于东西部经济发展差距拉大的原因、西部经济开发战略、西部产业结构调整、西部开发的经济布局、西部开发中对外开放和区际贸易等问题一一做了评述,指出了西部开发研究工作中取得的成绩和今后研究中可资注意的有关问题。