In the public Metropolis Forum, the annual meeting of Deltametropolis Association, the metropolitan development of the Netherlands was the central issue. Short essays of experts and people involved, were the input for the debate on how metropolitan development in the Netherlands can kick-start.
One of the sessions went into dept on: “How large is the metropolis?”. This session focussed on: why a Metropolis in the Netherlands, what is the Dutch Metropolis and how will the Netherlands become more metropolitan?
Why a Metropolis in the Netherlands?
Out of the presentation of Evert Meijers we learned that Metropolises are more productive. Research has shown that cities become more 5,8 productive if their inhabitants double. Concentration and density being more sustainable than sprawl is another argument to choose for metropolis development.
What is the Dutch Metropolis?
The Research of Evert Meijers has also shown that an agglomeration of cities does not benefit of the 5,8% improvement as a concentrated city. The solution is thus in the well organising of the network between the cities. Also the presentation of Arjan Harbers shows similar conclusions. The spatial development along infrastructure has beard fruits in Switzerland. The network thinking, however shows the problem on how to define the borders?
How will the Netherlands become more metropolitan?
In contradiction to common believe, the metropolis exists of custom-made, site specific development. The research of David Evers shows that metropolis development is privately driven. People make the metropolis, the public authorities always try to keep up. Bert Mooren confirms that the Dutch policy is mainly on paper and does not have clear results in practice, mainly due to a lack of need of urgency. The power of the Dutch metropolitan development is in the collective. A triple helix (private, public and civic society) on different scale needs to support the metropolis development.