Empowering regional economy with a spectacular space: mega-events, over-drafted capital and momentary growth in China's metropolises

摘要

China's leading city-region governments have actively pursued momentary economic growth and spectacular spatial development by hosting mega-events. The cases of the Beijing and Guangzhou show that mega-events have functioned as instruments (ab)used by municipal governments to expedite land sales, relocate old state-owned industries, and drive migrant workers and the urban underclass out of the city centre. Improved environmental quality was found to be short lived. Hosting mega-events was a temporary stimulus prolonging the cycle of regional economic growth (and decline). The competitive edge of the central city was further enhanced at the expense of the disadvantaged and marginalized periphery. The findings of this research call for a critical re-evaluation of perceptions of space and place in studies of urban and regional development.%中国的一流城市地区政府积极通过举办重大赛事来追求短暂的经济增长与令人瞩目的空间发展。北京和广州的案例表明，重大事件已经成为市级政府加快土地销售、转移国有老产业和将农民工和城市底层人口驱逐出城市中心所使/滥用的工具。研究发现这带来了短时的环境质量改善。举办重大赛事是一种延长区域经济增长（与衰退）周期的临时性剌激措施。中心城市竞争优势的进一步提高以弱势的边缘地区的发展为代价。本研究的结果呼吁对城市与区域发展研究中空间和地方的认识进行批判性的再评价。