Spatial transformation, public policy and metropolitan governance: secondary business districts in Dublin and Warsaw

Across Europe, economic development is increasingly focused on large city regions intensifying processes of metropolitanization. However, the trajectories and experience of these processes are context dependent, shaped by the broad political–economic context and public policy frameworks. Drawing on case studies of Warsaw (Poland) and Dublin (Ireland), this paper examines the relationship between the transformation of the metropolitan spatial structure (through a focus on secondary business districts) and public policy at the metropolitan scale. Unlike the majority of Secondary Business Districts across Europe, the two selected cases (Sluzewiec and Sandyford) have evolved organically over time. Based on desk research and interviews with local stakeholders, the paper explores the evolution of these districts in the context of public policy choices within multi-level governance and public–private frameworks. The paper concludes by highlighting the role of public policy within secondary business district formation and evolution, and the implications for the broader metropolitan area.