C. Bratt, THE PLANNING OF SHOPPING-CENTERS - LOCAL AUTHORITIES COMPETING IN AN UNFORESEEN ESCALATION PROCESS, Scandinavian housing and planning research, 12(4), 1995, pp. 209-221
The hypothesis was that local authorities act strategically vis-a-vis
neighbouring municipalities when deciding whether to permit the openin
g of a new shopping centre or not. Three case studies all reveal the s
ame result: the assumption of strategic action could not be confirmed.
The local authorities seem rather to apply a limited perspective. As
could probably be expected, they concentrate on the interests of their
own municipality and show little concern for regional issues. However
, they also seem to disregard the fact that the initiative to establis
h a shopping centre may motivate a neighbouring municipality to do the
same. The result is an escalation process where the shopping centres
or the plans for the centres steadily expand. One reason for this patt
ern of evolution seems to be that the local authorities rely on the ju
dgement of the developers and allow them to take control.