CITY CASE STUDY FOR SUMMER UNIVERSITY NAME OF CITY: ALLIUM INTRODUCTIONAllium is a city of about 300,000 people. It is situated on the coast of the Silver See, a large lake. Allium was founded in the 11h century as a market town, at a north-south trading route.

In the 1960s and 1970s, its population surged, thanks to the development of manufacturing industries (mainly metal industry and pharmaceutical industry). Since the late 1970s, the industries have downsized considerably (for common reasons: relocation to Asia, automation). Currently, only 10% of the workforce is employed in the industry, compared to 40% at its peak.

CITY CENTRE & TOURISMAllium’s beautiful medieval centre has survived may past disasters and wars. It attracts an increasing number of tourists, and real estate prices have gone up there. Some streets and squares have been made car-free. During summer, many outdoor events are organised here. The growth of tourism leads to the replacement of housing space and daily goods retail stores in the medieval centre (by hotels, pensions, gift shops, etc.) and the conversion of non-commercial public space into commercial leisure areas. As a result, the medieval centre gradually loses its function as the traditional gathering place for local people.

UNIVERSITYAllium also has a university (Allium University, with some 15,000 students), offering the full range of academic disciplines. It was established in the 1970s. The campus is located at about 3 Km from the city centre. Most students live on campus, and student life largely takes place there rather than in the city – thus their “commitment” to the city is also limited. In recent years, the university has tried to become more “entrepreneurial”, promoting students to start their own business.

Although the university attracts many young people from other parts of the country, the cities’ population is ageing. The number of highly skilled jobs is limited, and many students leave the city after graduation.

UNEMPLOYMENTThe unemployment rate is rising; especially among young people without qualification (early school leavers, dropouts) and low-skilled migrants. The city offers a wide range of training facilities for those groups, but the problem is that the number of jobs is down, employers prefer to hire more highly educated people or students and many of the city’s unemployed people simply don’t have the right skills. About 10% of the city population has a migrant background. The vast majority of migrants came in the 1970s, working in the industry. They had little formal education. The next generations are climbing the social ladder, but many are still struggling to find their place in society, and the social contacts between the “natives” and immigrants are sparse. Migrant communities tend to have their own, parallel social structures, clubs, and religious institutions. Mutual prejudices abound.

DEPRIVED AREAS & POLICY RESPONSESThe northern part of the city is the main headache of the city leadership. It has a collection of high-rise estates built in the “booming” 1960s to house the growing number of manufacturing workers. The quality of housing there has deteriorated. The flats are small, noisy, and very energy consuming. There is an accumulation of problems: high crime levels, problem families, people with mental disorders, drugs abuse, teenage pregnancies, game addiction, and obesities (rising rapidly among children).

Over the last 15 years, many efforts have been devoted to improve the situation of people in the area: social programmes, parenting trainings, self help groups, financial management support, etc. A number of organisations have been (and still are) active: municipal departments (social services, planning, education), churches, and some NGOs, but little noticeable improvement has been made so far. Citizens in the area have become cynical about the city administration’s efforts to help them, and it is increasingly difficult to reach or involve them. Ten years ago, the city built a big sports complex (the soccer clubs, hockey clubs, and a big hall for indoor sports) next to the estates, relocating several sports clubs. The hope was engagement with sport could address some of the problems and improve social cohesion. But so far, very few of the inhabitants have become member of one of the sports clubs.

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DUBLIN

URBAN REGENERATIONBefore the crisis, the city had elaborated plans to demolish the high-rise estates, and to build a more mixed quarter instead. The new homes would be highly energy efficient, and the area would attract have a more diverse mix of income groups. But there were protests among the inhabitants, who were afraid they would not be able to afford the higher rent levels after an eventual renovation. Ultimately, the plans were frozen because of the economic crisis: developers withdrew, saying the project cannot be made profitable.

Another part of the city where regeneration would be needed is the abandoned industrial site near the city centre – now a brownfield area. Not only it is a “visual pollution” next to the medieval city centre, but also it uses potentially valuable land. Unfortunately, its rehabilitation would require massive resources. Although some initial plans have already been made, there is no solid strategy in place yet to tackle this challenge.

EFFECTS OF THE CRISISAnother big worry of the city is the economic situation. Tax incomes of the municipality have fallen by 25% in the last 3 years (due to lower property tax incomes and national funding cuts). At the same time, the demand for social services in on the rise, mainly due to rising unemployment and a growing group of elderly people in need. The municipality has to cut costs, and find alternative models for finance and service delivery.

The retail sector in Allium is in deep trouble. Many small retailers are on the verge of collapse, outcompeted by online retailers and big multinational chains. There is widespread fear that the opening of a large new shopping mall in the region (currently under construction at 10 km south-west of the city) will be the final blow for many of them.

ON THE BRIGHT SIDEThere are positive signs as well. Recently, a small cluster of “creative” industries has emerged (app developers, furniture designers, a graphic designer) in the mixed area just next to the city centre, where prices are still affordable. Young people move in, and some trendy bars and clubs have opened their doors. Some fear that people on low incomes who live there will soon be “pushed out” of the area because they won’t be able to pay the rising rent levels.

BIG PROJECTS & CONTROVERSIESThe flagship project of the city is its “smart city strategy”, which aims to increase the use of renewable energy (mainly sun and wind power), and boost the use of new information technology among firms, citizens, and in public services. A dedicated project bureau is now translating the rather general strategy into concrete projects, but conditions are not easy given the limited public funding that is available. The city wants to have deep and long-term involvement of companies (ICT firms, utilities) and the university.

Recently, a large hotel chain named “Sustainable Pleasures” made a proposal to develop a large luxury holiday resort at the lakeside, including a small port for yachts. The company would like to buy a large plot of land, (including a stretch of the beach, in an environmental sensitive area) and build an exclusive luxury all-in concept. The new resort will be fully Co2 neutral, and even generate surplus energy. Sustainable Pleasures argues that the project will generate jobs and tax income, and could give the ailing construction industry a boost. But also, it would mean a loss of nature, and a popular part of the lake beach would become inaccessible for the citizens of Allium. The city management is in favour of having the resort, but the city parliament (and the citizens) is deeply divided over the issue.

GLOSSARY OF GOVERNANCE & FINANCES IN ALLIUM: The city’s competences are in the following main fields:

• Education: kindergardens, primary and secondary schools. Higher education is a State matter

• Urban planning & public participation

• Health care & elderly care (except the academic hospital); co-funded by State and insurance

• A variety of social policies (city has relatively much freedom; It gets an annual lump sum from the State)

• Labour market policies: city is responsible for (re)integration of unemployed people into the labour market. It gets more state funding if more people find a job or start a company.

• Sports and leisure: city is owner of most amenities, and rents them to sports clubs

• Environment: city must apply national legislation and commit to standards, but has freedom to pursue specific policies and/or give subsidies.

• Finance: About 25% of the city’s income comes from local tax; the rest from national funds, and some European funding. The city collects property tax (10%) and tourist taxes (1€ per night).

• Housing: 30% of the housing stock is public housing, owned and maintained by the city. Most of social housing is in the Northern quarters.

CITY DEPARTMENTSThe city has the following key municipal departments:

• Economic development, education & science

• Citizen services

• Tourism, culture, sports & leisure

• Planning, environment, traffic/transportation

• Mayor’s office

• Family, health & social affairs

MAJOR CHALLENGES• Reduction of energy consumption and increase sustainable consumption

• Increase enjoyment, ownership of and involvement in public space

• Design the next generation of public services

• Design/ secure a mixed use of urban areas

• Improve the match between human capital and employers’ needs (current and future)

• Making cities attractive to young people and prepare them for citizenship

• Increasing business start-ups and growth

• Improving the creation and transfer of knowledge between universities, businesses, citizens and local authorities

Figure 1. A sketchy map of Allium

ANNEX: ADDITIONAL DATA, INFORMATION AND RECENT NEWS HEADLINES

Allium Population analysis by %

Age 1980 1990 2000 20100-16 15 16 13 12

16-25 25 26 23 21

25-40 27 24 25 24

40-65 25 23 23 21

65-80 5 6 9 12

80+ 3 5 7 10

Unemployment rate

Business structure

Change in business structure

School early leaving rates (% of young people failing to complete secondary school education)

Year %2007 13

2008 12.7

2009 12.5

2010 12.4

2011 12.6

2012 13

Education

Data on the medieval city centre

Size 150 ha / 1,5 km²

Inhabitants 15.000

Tourist arriving per year 300.000

Events in public space per year 15

Buildings under monument protection 800

Data on start-ups

• 20% of all new companies in Allium have to close after 1 year; another 25% after 2 years.

• 15% of entrepreneurs have an income below the minimum wage

• 25% of new start-ups are founded by women

• 5 % of start-ups employ more than 5 people after 3 years in operation

• It is estimated that Allium has about 150 informal “companies”, most of the in construction, catering, and cab drivers. They are not registered and don’t pay tax

Number of startups from Allium university

Year Founded by students Founded by researchers2007 3 2

2008 6 2

2009 10 3

2010 12 3

2011 15 1

Data on environment

• Less than 5% of green spaces in the city: lack of public gardens and playgrounds (the residential area of social housing stocks has a lower percentage)

• Large brownfield area of 500 hectares of which 50% has been purchased by the city in 1999 after the bankruptcy of the former investors.

• The lake and the wood (about 100,000 hectares) are among the precious natural resources in the whole region

RECENT HEADLINES AND MEDIA QUOTESBelow are a number of recent media quotes, extracts from newspapers articles, and results of some recent studies relevant for Allium.

• “School drop out rates in Allium jump for second year running. Young people question the value of qualifications when there are few local jobs.” (Allium Tribune)

• “Who will care for our older people, now that the number of social workers in our city has halved?” (Allium Tribune)

• “Deputy Mayor calls for calm after third night of rioting in Allium’s North East suburbs.” (Allium Tribune)

• Allium has achieved to attract as many tourists as it has inhabitants! The mayor states: “That is just an intermediate target point. We aim at 400.000 guests a year. They bring money into the city and strengthen our local economy”. (Allium City Newsletter)

• Citizens’ initiative of inhabitants living in the city centre had its first meeting to combat the increasing amount of commercial events taking place in the centre. They ask “Whom belongs our city centre?!” (Allium Tribune)

• “Hotel room capacity in the city centre comes to its limit” (Chamber of Commerce newsletter)

• “Tourists’ expenditures add up to 1/3 of the overall income of shops and retail in the city centre” (Annual Report of Chamber of Commerce)

• “Sustainable Pleasure is ready to invest 1 million euros in the hotel”. Banks are ready to give a loan, but conditions and agreements with the municipal governments are not transparent. (Allium Tribune)

• “Sustainable pleasure promises to provide more than 500 jobs in the city and its functional area, from the building sector, catering, gardening and other resort’s related activities” (announcement of Sustainable Pleasures in Allium Tribune)

• “Immigrants in the United States are very entrepreneurial”, says recent study. Immigrants in the US are more likely to start a business than non-immigrants. The gap in new business formation between immigrants and nonimmigrants has been growing recently, too (National newspaper)

• “Surge in new companies in services and creative industries”. A recent survey in Allium among start-ups shows that the number of startups has risen by 7% per annum in the period 2007-2011. The vast majority of startups are in services. High-growth sectors are webshops/retailers, independent advisors, and creative sector firms like photographers, designers (Chamber of Commerce newsletter).

• “Sustainble pleasure: chain hotel is ready to take over Allium’s land, promising new jobs, clean energy production and more tourism. For whom will this be sustainable? The battle between citizens, investors and city governments is hot debate for the future of the city!” (National newspaper)

In the 2012 National Innovation Scoreboard Allium was in the bottom third. The rankings are based on a number of indicators:

• number of patents and licenses registered by companies in Allium

• number of start-ups

• percentage of turnover spent on research and development

• level of public investment in research and development

• mobility of staff between research organisations and companies

• presence of innovation institutions

• “ Our class did a project on waste and recycling as part of our geography curriculum. We came up with some good ideas for our local community to improve recycling to help save our planet. We went on the Allium website, to see who we could talk to about our ideas, but we’re not sure what to do next. Our teacher suggested we write to the paper for help.” (Extract from letter in Allium Tribune from seventh-grade students in Allium high school)

• “I went to a Chamber of Commerce meeting once, but it seemed to be very focused on the city centre, to do with shops and tourist businesses. As a high-tech start-up we are lean and mean, and have to focus on growing our business. I don’t have time to go to meetings that have no relevance to my company, or to listen to politicians trying to convince people to re-elect them.” (Interview with entrepreneur, in Allium Tribune)

• “Allium people not making the grade”, employers report. The Allium Chamber of Commerce reported today that their members are finding it difficult to find skilled workers. This was one of the key findings of a survey into business challenges in the city carried out recently. ‘We can teach a lot of the technical skills in house. What we need are people who can communicate, work in the team and turn up on time”, said one SME owner. (newsletter Chamber of Commerce).

• “Skills shortages stifle Allium’s recovery” (quote from economics professor in Allium Tribune)

• On the brink: deputy mayor calls for shake up in city thinking. Allium’s deputy major called today for a radical shack up in the way the municipality does business. She said that the administration needs to move away from its traditional policy silos and develop new and innovative approaches to its many challenges. (Allium Tribune)

• Allium ‘can-do’ - new creative hub provides greenshoots of recovery. New statistics released today suggest that the many creative industries freelancers springing up in Allium may be starting to generate real value for the city’s economy. (Newsletter Chamber of Commerce)

• “Allium University – a city within the city? University students have very little actual links with the city, survey says”. (Allium Campus Magazine)

• “Lakeside dilemma. Our municipal leaders face the tough dilemma of taking away our beautiful lakeside from the people of Allium and give it to private investors or let it further deteriorate” (editorial, Allium Tribune)

• “Shame on the city – rundown industrial buildings in the neighbourhood of our unique medieval centre. The municipality has still no solid plans for the abandoned brownfield area in the immediate neighbourhood of Alliums touristic centre” (letter in Allium Tribune, by urban planning professor from Allium University).