Neoliberalization Process in Contemporary City: A Theoretical Model

Authors
1 Associate Professor, Faculty of Architecture and Urban Planning, Tabriz University of Islamic Arts
2 PhD researcher in Urban Planning, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
3 Faculty member of Jihad University Research Institute of Culture, Art and Architecture, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Cities play a strategic role in contemporary political-economic space. Despite of global process-based distribution of political and theoretical status of neo-liberalism, it’s geographical and spatial space transformations have never been experienced at determined methods. This paper indicates the question of neoliberal city form. Question in which relies on “actually existing neo-liberalism” as a key character of “neo-liberal restructuring project”. It refers to ways in which different local contexts are embedded within wider dominant global structural grid of neo-liberal discursive command centers. It implies another key attribute, the “path dependent neo-liberalism”, the neo-liberal project defined on contextually embedded bases, elaborately rearranges, replaces and redefines the structures of existing institutional layout and subsequently transforms the shape of the city in two critical moment of neoliberal restructuring project: the “moment of destruction” and the “moment of creation”. Three different layers of neo-liberal process in cities has distinguished by synthesizing two theoretically different but dialectically intertwined methodological foundations: functional layer, structural layer, “common sense revolution” layer. This synthesized theoretical frame work has conceptualized the contemporary neo-liberal city form transformation by emphasizing on distinction between two different mechanisms of neo-liberal project, the glocalization and urbanization stages. In the last part, explanation of an analytic model of neo-liberal city transformation has been emerged from discussed issues. The columns of this table-formatted model, consists of the layers of neo-liberal process and the rows Includes integrated dimensions of city form. This model provides primitive analytic criteria for understanding the overall layers of neo-liberalization process in specific urban contexts. Cities play a strategic role in contemporary political-economic space. Despite of global process-based distribution of political and theoretical status of neo-liberalism, it’s geographical and spatial space transformations have never been experienced at determined methods. This paper indicates the question of neoliberal city form. Question in which relies on “actually existing neo-liberalism” as a key character of “neo-liberal restructuring project”. It refers to ways in which different local contexts are embedded within wider dominant global structural grid of neo-liberal discursive command centers. It implies another key attribute, the “path dependent neo-liberalism”, the neo-liberal project defined on contextually embedded bases, elaborately rearranges, replaces and redefines the structures of existing institutional layout and subsequently transforms the shape of the city in two critical moment of neoliberal restructuring project: the “moment of destruction” and the “moment of creation”. Three different layers of neo-liberal process in cities has distinguished by synthesizing two theoretically different but dialectically intertwined methodological foundations: functional layer, structural layer, “common sense revolution” layer. This synthesized theoretical frame work has conceptualized the contemporary neo-liberal city form transformation by emphasizing on distinction between two different mechanisms of neo-liberal project, the glocalization and urbanization stages. In the last part, explanation of an analytic model of neo-liberal city transformation has been emerged from discussed issues. The columns of this table-formatted model, consists of the layers of neo-liberal process and the rows Includes integrated dimensions of city form. This model provides primitive analytic criteria for understanding the overall layers of neo-liberalization process in specific urban contexts. Cities play a strategic role in contemporary political-economic space. Despite of global process-based distribution of political and theoretical status of neo-liberalism, it’s geographical and spatial space transformations have never been experienced at determined methods. This paper indicates the question of neoliberal city form. Question in which relies on “actually existing neo-liberalism” as a key character of “neo-liberal restructuring project”. It refers to ways in which different local contexts are embedded within wider dominant global structural grid of neo-liberal discursive command centers. It implies another key attribute, the “path dependent neo-liberalism”, the neo-liberal project defined on contextually embedded bases, elaborately rearranges, replaces and redefines the structures of existing institutional layout and subsequently transforms the shape of the city in two critical moment of neoliberal restructuring project: the “moment of destruction” and the “moment of creation”. Three different layers of neo-liberal process in cities has distinguished by synthesizing two theoretically different but dialectically intertwined methodological foundations: functional layer, structural layer, “common sense revolution” layer. This synthesized theoretical frame work has conceptualized the contemporary neo-liberal city form transformation by emphasizing on distinction between two different mechanisms of neo-liberal project, the glocalization and urbanization stages. In the last part, explanation of an analytic model of neo-liberal city transformation has been emerged from discussed issues. The columns of this table-formatted model, consists of the layers of neo-liberal process and the rows Includes integrated dimensions of city form. This model provides primitive analytic criteria for understanding the overall layers of neo-liberalization process in specific urban contexts. Cities play a strategic role in contemporary political-economic space. Despite of global process-based distribution of political and theoretical status of neo-liberalism, it’s geographical and spatial space transformations have never been experienced at determined methods. This paper indicates the question of neoliberal city form. Question in which relies on “actually existing neo-liberalism” as a key character of “neo-liberal restructuring project”. It refers to ways in which different local contexts are embedded within wider dominant global structural grid of neo-liberal discursive command centers. It implies another key attribute, the “path dependent neo-liberalism”, the neo-liberal project defined on contextually embedded bases, elaborately rearranges, replaces and redefines the structures of existing institutional layout and subsequently transforms the shape of the city in two critical moment of neoliberal restructuring project: the “moment of destruction” and the “moment of creation”. Three different layers of neo-liberal process in cities has distinguished by synthesizing two theoretically different but dialectically intertwined methodological foundations: functional layer, structural layer, “common sense revolution” layer. This synthesized theoretical frame work has conceptualized the contemporary neo-liberal city form transformation by emphasizing on distinction between two different mechanisms of neo-liberal project, the glocalization and urbanization stages. In the last part, explanation of an analytic model of neo-liberal city transformation has been emerged from discussed issues. The columns of this table-formatted model, consists of the layers of neo-liberal process and the rows Includes integrated dimensions of city form. This model provides primitive analytic criteria for understanding the overall layers of neo-liberalization process in specific urban contexts.

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