Changing form of the Baltic cities: resurrection of the suburbs

Abstract

Urban sprawl is one of the dominant types of urban development in advanced and developing world (Bruegmann, 2005; Clapson and Hutchison, 2010). It is described as a process of gradual conversion of rural areas into partly urbanized environment. Although outer growth started from the outset of cities (Mumford, 1968), international community of urban researchers, planners and policy makers is highly concerned about the current extent of this phenomenon (EEA, 2006). Extensive urban growth is often considered as uncoordinated process creating fragmented suburban landscape (Sieverts, 2003; Meeus and Gulinck, 2008), which is frequently associated with an increased traffic flows, environmental pollution, inefficient use of public funds and formation of homogeneous living environment (Couch, Leontidou and Petschel-Held, 2007). Current development of the Baltic cities and especially trends of their suburban growth have been analyzed only partly, because of the relative novelty of the phenomenon and well-established dominance of North American cities in this field. The article attempts to fill this gap and present a research on conditions and consequences of extensive development of major cities in the Baltic States. This study is based on a hypothetical model of the Baltic city as successor of the Soviet city in the Baltic region. Evidences from the recent growth of Lithuanian cities show that suburban sprawl is a dominant trend in major urban regions with long-term consequences on their spatial structure (Cirtautas, 2013). Therefore, this article advocates a need to revise urban policy in the Baltic countries and promote coordinated development of urban, suburban and rural areas in the context of prevailing negative demographic trends and limited economic capacity of both, central and local governments.