Mixed-Use Megaprojects and the Competitive City

Mike S. Harris is a Senior Lecturer in Landscape Architecture and Urban Design at the University of New South Wales. Mike completed his PhD at the University of Sydney and the Royal Academy in Copenhagen on large scale urban projects. His research, teaching and advisory work focusses on precinct planning and design, public space and streets. This book examines the motives and outcomes of competitively positioned mixed-use megaprojects on government-owned land. These projects have emerged worldwide in recent decades, driven by urban international competition, the mobility and expansion of knowledge economies, the shift of global investment from physical to human capital, and the prevalence of market-driven or entrepreneurial politics. Six case studies across three countries are analysed through five themes: Positioning, Governing, Shaping, Connecting, and Public Benefit. While pursuing similar objectives of attracting mobile capital, each project operates within a specific political, financial and social context. These projects reflect the prevailing development practices and underlying power structures of cities and states. Throughout the implementation process, they can also reveal the power struggles and competing agendas within a city. In this manner, they serve as a valuable lens for understanding the political, economic, and cultural dynamics of a city, and how urban morphology manifests these processes.