Shrinking of cities in the Czech Republic and its reflection on society: Case study of Karviná City

Ondřej Šerý,Hana Svobodová,Zdeněk Szczyrba,Zdeněk Šilhan

doi:10.5937/22-16622

Abstract

The shrinking of cities is a process that accompanies cities in post-conjunctural changes, when they are entering a phase of economic decline and the decline in population connected with it. The Ostrava-Karvina area is one of the economically problematic regions in the Czech Republic nowadays but it used to be ranked as one of the economic heartlands in the period of socialism. The region, dependent on bituminous coal mining and heavy industry, gradually began to decline after the year 1989 and one of the consequences is a significant decline in its population. This paper deals with identification of the causes and consequences of shrinking cities explained through the example of the town of Karvina through an analysis of quantitative data, questionnaire surveys, and semi-structured interviews. The questionnaire survey revealed that the main reason causing the departure of young and educated citizens is the lack of work opportunities. High unemployment and thus the presence of many socially disadvantaged people causes the atmosphere in the city to deteriorate, and this is accompanied by social problems, such as ageing of the population or criminality. Lack of safety of citizens and a bad environment are other reasons why young people leave the city. The decreasing number of citizens closes the vicious circle by leading to a lower demand for services, closing of shops and other services and increasing numbers of empty houses and flats. Another essential part of the paper is the question of possible measures by the local authority leading to the elimination of these undesirable phenomena, but also the belief in the necessity of help from the government.

Highlights

Throughout the whole period of their existence, the development of cities has been connected with an increase in the size of their population or area
The perception of the process of shrinking, from the point of view of citizens, is expounded by a case study of a specific town – Karviná – and the causes and consequences of the shrinking were identified by means of semi-structured interviews with local people, along with an evaluation of possible approaches to a solution to this negative phenomenon
The town of Karviná is a typical example of a town which is situated in a structurally affected area in the Czech Republic

Summary

Introduction

Throughout the whole period of their existence, the development of cities has been connected with an increase in the size of their population or area. Cities distinguished by a decrease in their population and gradual loss of importance appeared in the USA and Western Europe, approximately in the mid-20th century. A discussion started on “decreasing” or “shrinking” cities (Martinez-Fernandez et al, 2012). It is a relatively new phenomenon in the post-Soviet states of Eastern Europe (Popescu, 2014), because it has been made possible by closer links with the West, when the Communist regime fell at the turn of the 1980s and 1990s, and the transition from a centrally planned economy to a market economy. The perception of the process of shrinking, from the point of view of citizens, is expounded by a case study of a specific town – Karviná – and the causes and consequences of the shrinking were identified by means of semi-structured interviews with local people, along with an evaluation of possible approaches to a solution to this negative phenomenon

Objectives

Methods

Findings

Conclusion