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The emergence of a multiscalar growth regime and scalar tension: the politics of urban development in Songdo New City, South Korea

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  • HaeRan Shin
  • Se Hoon Park
  • Jung Won Sonn

Abstract

This study approaches the politics of urban development from within the framework of the emergence of a new multiscalar growth regime and the path dependence of the Korean developmental state. Through a case study of the Songdo New City development in South Korea, this study looks at how the scalar division of labor among various actors has interacted with the emergence of a multiscalar growth regime. We focus on the logic by which different scales of governmental and nongovernmental actors cooperate and, at the same time, compete with one another for authority over economic development. Our findings demonstrate, first, that the new regime resulted from the emergence of downward state rescaling to the local scale and of private business as a key actor. Second, the regime actors have been involved in scalar tensions and have constantly negotiated the scalar divisions of labor among them. This research provides a contextualized example of a spatiotemporal logic in which statehood has been transformed into a network.

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  • HaeRan Shin & Se Hoon Park & Jung Won Sonn, 2015. "The emergence of a multiscalar growth regime and scalar tension: the politics of urban development in Songdo New City, South Korea," Environment and Planning C, , vol. 33(6), pages 1618-1638, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:envirc:v:33:y:2015:i:6:p:1618-1638
    DOI: 10.1177/0263774X15614442
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    4. Kitchin, Rob & Coletta, Claudio & Evans, Leighton & Heaphy, Liam & MacDonncha, Darach, 2017. "Smart cities, urban technocrats, epistemic communities and advocacy coalitions," SocArXiv rxk4r, Center for Open Science.
    5. Cardullo, Paolo & Kitchin, Rob, 2017. "Being a ‘citizen’ in the smart city: Up and down the scaffold of smart citizen participation," SocArXiv v24jn, Center for Open Science.
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    8. Jie Li & Rebecca Lai Har Chiu, 2020. "State rescaling and large-scale urban development projects in China: The case of Lingang New Town, Shanghai," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 57(12), pages 2564-2581, September.
    9. Jichuan Sheng & Michael Webber, 2019. "Governance rescaling and neoliberalization of China’s water governance: The case of China’s South–North Water Transfer Project," Environment and Planning A, , vol. 51(8), pages 1644-1664, November.
    10. Kitchin, Rob & Cardullo, Paolo & Di Feliciantonio, Cesare, 2018. "Citizenship, Justice and the Right to the Smart City," SocArXiv b8aq5, Center for Open Science.
    11. Kim, Hyungkyoo & Lee, NaYeon & Kim, Seung-Nam, 2018. "Suburbia in evolution: Exploring polycentricity and suburban typologies in the Seoul metropolitan area, South Korea," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 92-101.
    12. Khan Shahed & Khan Megumi & Kyung An Sang, 2019. "Response to urban challenges by global cities within developmental states: The case of Tokyo and Seoul," International Journal of Management and Economics, Warsaw School of Economics, Collegium of World Economy, vol. 55(4), pages 369-390, December.

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