Shopping-Center im Zentrensystem des Ruhrgebietes

Abstract

The construction of 21 large planned shopping centres in the Ruhr industrial area since 1964 has been an important functional addition to the complex traditional system of central places (see fig.1, supplement V). The introduction to this paper deals with the general situation of shopping centre research in Germany as well as with some studies on urban centres in the Ruhr which did not include shopping centres as special elements of the central place system. Within chapter 3 the shopping centres are classified according to construction periods, their architectural concepts, size classes, and types of location (see fig. 2 and table1). Chapter 4 deals with the functional equipment of retail and service establishments and their development; the shopping centres in the Ruhr have been grouped into six so-called types of equipment (see fig. 3). Within chapter 5 the results of comparing empirical research of the two most important centers are explained: the Ruhrpark Shopping Centre in Bochum (see fig. 4) and the Rhine Ruhr Centre in Mulheim near the border of Essen (see fig. 5). With regard to their age and their architectural concept, both belong to different generations of shopping centres but they are very similar according to their location between two large cities, to their sizes and their regional spheres of influence. On the basis of land use mapping, consumer enquiries and traffic analysis, the structure of retailing and services as well as their use by consumers are compared in detail. Within the hierarchy of central places these two largest shopping centres in the Ruhr are only centres of medium rank which are characterized by deficiencies especially in services and partly in retailing. This paper represents the first results of a larger retail project on shopping centres and hypermarkets in the Ruhr.