METROPOLITAN REGIONS AND SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED CITIES

THE CASE OF BARCELONA Marc Pradel MiquelUniversitat de Barcelona

SUMMARY The context Barcelona metropolitan region Vallès Occidental Historical development

Strategies for economic development The Consortium for employment and economic development of Vallès Occidental Isolated strategies for growth

BARCELONA METROPOLITAN REGION • 164 Municipalities

• 7 Counties• 36 municipalities under

the Metropolitan Authority (Àrea Metropolitana de Barcelona)

• 4,776,107 inhabitants• Polycentric metropolis

but strong role of Barcelona

VALLÈS OCCIDENTAL• 23 municipalities• + 900,000 inhabitants• 2 municipalities concentrating

half of the population• Sabadell 207,444 • Terrassa 215,517

• Small municipalities• Rellinars 726• Gallifa 202

• Sense of belonging to Vallès

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT ‘Failure’ of the industrial revolution in SpainUneven industrialisation in Spain, concentration in Barcelona (manufactures) and Basque Country (processing of rough materials)

Protectionist Catalan bourgeoisie aiming to control national market

Role of textile industries in CataloniaEmergence of a bourgeoisie from the combination of traders and craftsmen

INDUSTRIALISATION IN SABADELL AND TERRASSA Transformation of guilds into association of companies: Manufacturers’ guild (Sabadell) Industrial institute (Terrassa)

Small and medium-sized companies sharing spaces to sufragate costs of machinery Vapor Llonch Vapor Vell

Crisis of cotton industries in the 1860s and specialisation in Wool production Control of wool markets in Spain Increase of political influence

INDUSTRIALISATION IN SABADELL AND TERRASSA

Industrialisation of nearby villages Creation of Banks Two self-managed industrial districts Terrassa with bigger industries and capital

Sabadell with small-size companies and bigger mobility

TWO SUBSYSTEMS OF CITIESTerrassa

RubíSant Cugat del VallèsVacarissesViladecavallsCastellbisbalMatadeperaRellinarsSant Llorenç SavallUllastrellGallifa

Sabadell

CerdanyolaMontcada i ReixacRipolletBadia del VallèsBarberà del VallèsSanta Perpètua de MogodaPolinyàPalau-Solità i PlegamansSentmenatCastellar del VallèsSant Quirze del Vallès

INDUSTRIALISATION IN SABADELL AND TERRASSA: CIVIL WAR AND DICTATORSHIP Democratic local elections with the second spanish republic (1931´-1936) and loss of political power by the local economic elites

After the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939) return of the economic elites to power and economic growth due to low wages and protectionist policies of the regime

Opening of the economy after the II World War (agreement with US) Growth and diversification of industry since the 1960s (automobile, chemical…) But crisis of the textile sectors since the 1970s due to external competiveness

ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DECLINE Arrival of massive flows of migration from the rest of Spain to work in the new industrial sectors

Process of delocalization of factories and population to the small municipalities of the county and consolidation of Sabadell and Terrassa of centres of two hinterlands with increasing urban segregation Industrial municipalities with working class and factories Suburbanization and high class suburbs (Sant Cugat, Matadepera, Vacarisses) with services as main economic sector

Sabadell and Terrassa as tertiarized economies offering services to industrial sectors ‘Centralist’ General Metropolitan Plan (1976) reinforcing the role of Barcelona

POPULATION GROWTH DURING THE SIXTIES

DEMOCRACY AND NEW GOVERNANCE FRAMEWORKS Transition to democracyTransformation of the old guilds into democratic entrepreneurs’ associations CECOT (Terrassa) and CIESC (Sabadell)

Arrival to local power of communist and socialist parties, that largely control the county with strong support of neighbourhood associations and trade unions

Local municipalities trying to promote economic development but conflicts: With entrepreneurs associations not willing to collaborate With the growing relevance of the Catalan government aiming to control such policies

With other municipalities of the area (competence between municipalities) With the Metropolitan General Plan that privileges Barcelona

THE DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE CONTEXT Strong role of regional governments in economic development, as they have tended to concentrate competences and resources City councils reluctant to loose competences and trying to develop their own policies after strong centralism of Francoism In Catalonia, two different political projects: Nationalist conservatism, concentrating competenes at regional level with a liberal project. Conservatist nationalist party controlling the catalan government

Progressive catalanism, aiming to give more power to municipalities in the context of a social-democrat project. Socialist party controlling main municipalities.

STRATEGIES FOR ECONOMIC

DEVELOPMENTMetropolitan regions and small and mèdium-sized cities: the case of Barcelona

THE CONSORTIUM FOR EMPLOYMENT AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF VALLÈS OCCIDENTAL (CEDEVO, 2006-2015) Experience since 1997 on implementation of Active Employment Policies (Territorial Pacts for employment promoted by the EU)

Formed in 2006 to implement Active employment policies but adopting a vision on Economic Development Catalan government (department of work) 23 municipalities 2 main trade unions CCOO and UGT 2 main entrepreneurs’ asosciations CECOT and CIESC

FUNCTIONS OF THE CONSORTIUM To provide training and skills to workers at the local level avoiding duplicating services

Integrating local labour Markets at county level Obtaining funds from other administrative levels (catalan and Spanish governments, EU…)

Soft coordination of economic development policies Creating a single economic parks offer (specialisation of industrial areas) Coordinating local policies into a single catalogue

ISOLATED STRATEGIES FOR GROWTH Large municipalities (Sabadell and Terrassa): Adaptation of already existing industries to innovation and new sectors

From clothing to healthcare materials From chemical industries to well-being

Searching for new sectors considered strategic Audiovisual park of Terrassa Upgrading food industries Optics and photonics

Medium-sized municipalities Following strategies for large cities Developing their own strategies with suport of higher levels of administration

Small municipalities Joining others’ efforts

SOME EXAMPLES Innovation plan of Terrassa (local plan) Local plan to promote new sectors and reinforce already existint ones. Similar to Barcelona local strategy for growth

Catalonia Innovation Triangle (Consortium between three mèdium-sized municipalities: Rubí, Sant Cugat and Cerdanyola) Attracting knowledge-based companies bringing added value services Use of universities and other infrastructures with heavy suport of the Catalan government)

Innovation Plan of the Ripoll Basin (led by Sabadell and involving six other industiral municipalities near the river Ripoll) Organizing industrial activity around two sectors

STRATEGIC SECTORS IN THE TWO AREASSabadell (and other municipalities) Two macro sectors to guide actions of all other sectors Health

Chemical Clothing Metallurgic

Food industries Chemical Logistics …

Terrassa Food industries Technical clothing Leisure and entertainment Auxiliar industries for industrial sectors Optics and fotonics Ecotechnology Aeronautics Audiovisual

COMPETITION AND COMPLEMENTARITY DYNAMICSBarcelona

Economy based on Added value services and industries Tourism

Economic strategy based on the 22@ district project Audiovisual cluster Design cluster ICT Cluster Energy cluster Biomedicine cluster

Vallès Occidental Added value services in the south in competition to Barcelona Catalonia Innovation Triangle (Sant Cugat, Rubí and Cerdanyola)

Industrial activity linked to Barcelona Montcada, Santa Perpetua, Barberà…

COMPETITION AND COMPLEMENTARITIES• Southern Municipalities of the

county being integrated into Barcelona Strategy in the framework of the metropolitan authority

• Sabadell and Terrassa trying to develop their influence towards northern municipalities and neighbouring counties in the north and maintaining certain influence in the south of the county

DIFFERENT DISCOURSES AND STRATEGIES Discourses on the economy of knowledge: attracting companies based on knowledge and added valueTerrassa Sant Cugat

Discourses on industrial innovation: bringing competitiveness to already existing industry through innovation and agglomeration: SabadellTrade UnionsEntrepreneurs’ associations

MULTI-SCALARITY Municipalities developing strategies at different scales: Local Supra-local (involving different municipalities of the county) County Metropolitan (for instance municipalities in the south integrated to the Metropolitan Authority)

Catalan These strategies showing contraditions and competitiveness amongst them But strong sense of belonging and agreement capacity

CHANGES WITH THE CRISIS Destruction of industrial activity and very relevant growth of unemployment Demise and changes in the political system:Crisis in Sabadell as the political elite is being processed for corruptionThe case shows the strong control of Sabadell over small surrounding municipalities

Recentralization of competences by the catalan and national governmentsLack of funding of the Consortium, dissolution and integration of its functions into the County council, that assumes economic development at county level but not active employment policies

CONCLUSIONS ON THE CASE STUDY•Sabadell and Terrassa pushing to maintain their role as sub-centres in the metropolitan región•Dynamics of collaboration and competitiveness in these efforts•Growth of a third pole of economic relevance in the south of the county and led by Sant Cugat del Vallès•Integration of the south of the county into metropolitan área stategies (36 municipalities)•Strategies of Sabadell and Terrassa to reinforce their role towards north of Catalonia•Agreement on demanding public investments in infrastructures and private investments

GENERAL CONCLUSIONS

•Strategies of local municipalities in complex multi-level governance contexts: dynamics of competition and collaboration•But sense of belonging bringing capacity of collaboration, specially in front of the large city

Marc Pradel Miquel1st March 2016

marcpradel@ub.edu