no d us working group Amsterdam, 17-18 November 2008

1. nodusworking groupAmsterdam, 17-18November 2008 The link between central/regional planning and local area-based actions Iván Tosics LE Metropolitan Research Institute, Budapest

2. What is NODUS for – the original idea • NODUS focuses on the links between spatial planning and urban regeneration. The aim is to improve the coordination between these policies and also the governance system, in order to achieve more balanced urban development at supra-local (regional) level. • In a narrower sense, the methodological aspect of NODUS is to develop a methodology how to act on metropolitan (FUA) level to assign the worst parts as local renewal areas. • NODUS aims to investigate planning policy and the government system which should play decisive role in the steering of local area-based urban renewal programmes and projects.

3. Towards a more precise defintion of the aims of NODUS • Regional planning is an important basis for organized initiatives in urban renewal. In an optimal case regional plans include the main types of urban renewal interventions (economic restructuring, heritage protection, social regeneration), and they often include also the selection of concrete action areas for interventions. • Local strategies might use different ways to improve the situation of the poor: concentrating directly on the poor areas or indirectly, through filtration effects of other interventions (eg new construction for middle class) or through sectoral (housing, employment, social) policies. • The situations and ideas of the NODUS project partners are very different, according to the existence and strength of the regional level, the planning power on regional and local level, their financial situations and also their public priorities.

4. Re-phrasing the aims • Re-phrasing the topic of NODUS: regional level strategy based integrated interventions in deteriorated neighbourhoods, and the “second integration” of such interventions in a regional perspective (in order to achieve territorial balance and also greater effects for the whole area). • The original idea of Catalunya LP (regional level selection of areas for social renewal) is part of the larger strategic framework. In NODUS this broader regional framework, the alternative models and methods have to be explored, and then each partner can concentrate on some of the elements which has the highest interest for the given region/city partner.

5. Models on central-local relationship in urban renewal

6. Examples for the models Amsterdam is somewhere between models 1 and 2. Emilia Romagna and Catalunya belong to model 3 (areas are not selected on regional level, only a preliminary long list prepared and those become selected who offer a project), Mazovje and Katowice: between models 3 and 4, as the local level defines crisis areas within the framework of the loose ROP conditions. Dobrich: there is some programme on district level but without money and power… thus practically no upper level programme exists Example for model 3: Hungary • Cities need to prepare Integrated Urban Development Strategy for the whole city • Development-oriented medium-term (7-8 years) document for the whole settlement • Designation of the „action areas” where they plan major integrated projects (not only with EU support) and a draft financial plan for each action area • Action areas must fulfil pre-determined criteria of size and social deprivation level • The national/regional level decides which action programme proposals will get financing

7. Governance framework: how to get selected as action area? • CAT: regional level selects the areas for renewal programmes among those pre-selected, who offer project • ER: municipalities propose the areas for renewal programmes • AMS: the central state defines variables and appoints deprived areas. The worst 40 areas are also defined by the central state. (Besides that Amsterdam has 27 renewal projects…) • MAZ: municipalities assign crisis areas. Once a year applications to ROP financed District Regeneration Microprogram. • DOB: municipality decides about renewal areas. Only source is ROP. • KAT: ? ALBA: ?

8. The content of NODUS work The broad framework for NODUS is based on linking regional level strategic planning with area-based urban renewal policy. NODUS deals mainly with the following three aspects: • multi-level government institutional cooperation model (for determining regional level planning and renewal policies, and also for evaluating the outcomes in order to achieve territorial balance and greater effects for the whole area: stages 1 and 4) • methods to identify and select deprived areas, dependent on the aims of urban renewal and the strategic plan towards renewal (stage 2) • possible approaches to achieve the social goal (sectoral and area-based policies), including the content of integrated urban renewal activities (stage 3). The choices made within this broad framework might be and are different for the partners in the NODUS project.

9. Ranking of the three aspects by the NODUS project partners

10. The results of the ranking As seen from the table, the choices made within this new broad framework are different across the partners in the NODUS project. Partners emphasized the importance to keep the original structure of four stages, as measuring the effects, outcomes (stage 4) is not necessarily done on the regional level, thus it should not be joined with stage 1. Stage 4 has been given high priority, this is potentially interesting for all partners and is a relatively uncharted territory. In any case, all partners will work on all the four stages.

11. Thank you for your attention! tosics@mri.hu