What are the effects of an out-of-town shopping centre on an existing shopping city centre

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What are the effects of an out-of-town shopping centre on an existing shopping city centre

Urban Environment, the physical environment in urban areas with its complex mix of built and natural elements. Urban environments are increasingly studied, and their importance recognized, from a variety of perspectives. Some interpretations of the term include social and cultural aspects—for instance the values, behaviours, and traditions of the urban population—and these can have a profound influence on the quality of life in urban areas, as can the competence and accountability of the institutions appointed to manage or safeguard it.

Obviously a new shopping centre is causing a division between the older centre and the new out-of-city centre. With the transport and facilities provided people today are willing to travel distances 30 minutes away by car.

Advantages of the older shopping centres are that they are in the heart of the city and other services as well as the shopping centre can be provided. Many times centres in central business districts get more funding by the government and companies due to their location and transport quality. Many city centres aren’t in a convenient position due to the older town planning and the lack of space and sometimes they don’t keep in pace with the modern lines of structures.

New shopping centres are more modern, better equipped with high technology, ergonomic environment and simplified internal design, for the visitors to learn quickly the sights and places of their interest. Usually they also offer more facilities for less money in order to attract new visitors e.g. parking.

 Their location and provisions are better suited covering a wide geographical area as the studies take place upon newly provided data, such as population and population density, average GDP of the surrounding area population, attractions in the area, distance and accessibility to the nearest shopping centre and the services provided by it, average traffic through the seasons and motorways serving the location of the city centre. The intendancy of the business submits the relative plans and discusses the propositions e.g. funding, area concession etc with the council and make an agreement. Then the business management looks at the biggest chain-stores all over the country and makes recommendations if their interested. Management will look at things like services that should be provided. Advertisement is also an important factor for people to be engrossed and decide and visit the centre.

Although it’s believed that the effects of the new shopping centre over the main central business district are decrease of custom, overcrowded cities highly urbanised can be relieved by the new shopping centres and then again they can become the centre of a suburb settlement that will attract residents in benefit of the cheaper land property obtained and the peaceful environment and at the same time contribute to this decentralisation.

 

An example of a new shopping centre taking over and monopolize the buying interest is the one in Merry Hill. The new centre offered concentrated shopping and flexible services, spacious and safe parking, fully enclosed environment for protection from the weather, integrated leisure schedule as well as producing 4000 new jobs in the shopping centre. This caused complete economic devastation to the theretofore biggest shopping centre of Dudley that was declining even before the construction of the Merry Hill Centre. The predicted range of recession was 15%. To their disappointment it reached 70%. Major shopping stores like Marks and Spencer’s, Sainsbury’s, B&Q etc, closed down due to limited sales and the town was deserted.

 Merry Hill that was prior steel works industrial area turned out to be the incompetent shopping centre of the area. Merry Hill has now got 25.000.000 visitors per year.

 Unemployment in Dudley increased as the shopping centre occupied people and kept the region in vigilance. The local authorities realized that there would be no point trying to regain the lost grounds. Now the council seems to be modifying their direction of expense investments towards tourism hoping to be successful as this is going to be a different kind of leisure and it will bring fulfilment to the areas touristic aspects. Though there are some attractions, the zoo, a medieval castle, museum, landmarks their standards aren’t enough to attract a satisfactory number of tourists and certainly to redeem the past prestige Dudley had.

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Today in the United Kingdom 30% of the shopping takes place out of the city and this numbers will be going up as long as the suburbs are expanding and land is more and more expensive in city centres traffic problems grow and competition between businesses is retained.

An increasing proportion of the world’s population is living in urban areas: at the beginning of the 21st century, this proportion was about half, with around one-seventh in cities with 1 million or more inhabitants. The urban environment might be considered the opposite of the natural environment, since it ...

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