Municipal experimentation in times of crises: (Re-)defining Melbourne's innovation district

Abstract

Innovation is high on the agenda for decision-makers in urban policy and planning. With the rise of innovation districts, cities have seen entire precincts being dedicated to facilitating and boosting innovation. The aim of this paper is to better understand the potential of innovation districts for transformative innovation policy aligning innovation objectives with wider societal and environmental needs in cities through urban experimentation. To explore this interface, it draws on a case study of the evolution of the Melbourne's Innovation District (MID) City North and its embedded test sites initiative. At a general conceptual level, the key emerging themes are the following: (1) the imperative for innovation in innovation districts oscillates between primarily economic objectives in terms of attracting start-ups & spin-offs and generating creative jobs in the knowledge economy on the one hand and aligning innovation investments and outcomes with social and environmental needs in and of the city. The public has an increasing role to play in lending legitimacy to innovation districts and aligning its purpose with economic, social and environmental needs. (2) Due to shifting imperatives there is a lack of clarity on the innovation imaginary rendering interpretative flexibility to shaping the global concept of innovation districts ‘on the ground’; (3) An innovation district affords a safe space for urban experimentation and contestation around the purpose of innovation; (4) imperatives and imaginaries around innovation districts evolve in response to external pressures.