The problems of spatial development of Polish seaside resorts

Abstract

In order to understand the transformation processes which take place in settlement units located in the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea, the following should be taken into account, namely, the reasons for shaping urban space, as well as the tendencies and trends in urban spatial development. At present, the areas where the greatest transformations occur are: the city center, the industrial areas, the communication systems, the outskirts and areas of a typical, agricultural style. Services are fragmented and it is prohibited to locate modern large-sized shopping centers. At the same time, there is dynamic population growth which is connected with the formation of numerous estates of multi-family houses. Therefore, the factors which occur in one area cause changes in another. These include, among other things: migration, governance and policy carried out by district authorities, the applicable law (often diverse and contradictory), and urban planning trends and doctrines as well as other development factors. The present study is an attempt to classify and organize the factors affecting the changes in rural settlement units located in the coastal zone of the Baltic Sea. These factors have been divided into 4 categories: spatial factors, demographic and social factors, legal and administrative factors, as well as economic factors. Within each of these categories the factors have been further divided into endogenous and exogenous. The paper discusses the barriers which inhibit and sometimes prevent the analyzed settlement units from undergoing transformations. These include: demographic and social barriers, infrastructural barriers, natural barriers (due to the features of the natural environment), legal barriers, economic barriers, financial barriers, administrative barriers and spatial barriers.