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| Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia Górnośląski Związek Metropolitalny |
|
|---|---|
| Country | Poland |
| Voivodship | Silesian Voivodeship |
| Council | Zarząd GZM |
| Government | |
| - Head of Council | Piotr Uszok |
| Area | |
| - Total | 1,218 km2 (470.3 sq mi) |
| Website | http://www.gzm.org.pl |
Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia (Polish: Górnośląski Związek Metropolitalny(Polish: Metropolia Silesia)[1] (Polish: Metropolia Górnośląska)[2] is a union of 14 adjacent cities in the Silesian Voivodeship, Poland.
The Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia lies within the largest urban area in Poland. Its population is 2,039,454 (2008)[3], within a conurbation of 2.7 million - the Katowice urban area. It is also part of the wider Silesian metropolitan area, with the population of 5,294,000. The union's share of Poland's Gross Domestic Product is 8% and the combined budget of the union's participants exceeds 6 billion PLN.
Contents |
History
The union has been created by a local initiative, and the participation was voluntary. An overwhelming majority of the local population supports the formation of the union. The intent to form the union was formally stated by the presidents of the participating cities, who signed a declaration to this effect on January 9, 2006 in Świętochłowice. The Union's registration was signed by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Administration of the Republic of Poland (Polish: MSWiA) on 8 June 2007 with city of Katowice[4].
In 2006 and 2007, the union planned to unite these cities in one official city called "Silesia"[5].
The aim of the union is the creation of a strong metropolitan center with pooled resources, an internationally competitive profile and unified management of common infrastructure.
Goals
The main goals of the union include the following:
- Arriving at a common development strategy for the cities comprising the union, in accordance with the current law governing planning and land use.
- Putting into effect projects embraced by a common development strategy of the constituent cities.
- Obtaining financial means from available domestic and foreign funding sources.
- Managing the roadways transferred to the union by its constituent communes.
- Preparing motions having as their aim obtaining public means derived from the budget of the European Union.
- Stimulating the job market throughout the constituent cities of the union.
- Supporting innovative economic programs that increase the competitive standing of the cities in the world.
- Expressing opinions pertaining to legislative and decision-making processes in matters important to the union and affecting the union's activities.
The effects of the union's activity are to include: improvement in managing the agglomeration, strengthening its economic muscle and increased competitive standing of the constituent cities of the MAUS, and also the coordination of public relations and promoting the constituent cities, as well as underscoring the importance of the region.
Location
The Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia spans urban communities in the historical regions of Upper Silesia (south part of Silesia) as well as Lesser Poland's Zagłębie Dąbrowskie in Silesian Voivodeship in southern Poland, within the northern portion of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin, between the Vistula and Oder rivers.
The Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia is the centre of the largest urban area in Poland and one of largest in European Union - Katowice urban area (2,7 million). The area bloomed in XIX and early XX centuries thanks to the vibrant development of industry and numerous local resources. The conurbation consists of about 40 neighbouring cities, however the entire metropolitan area (the Silesian metropolitan area) includes over 50 cities (5 million). Katowice is also in the middle of a 7-million megalopolis[citation needed] stretching from Kraków region through Katowice to the Ostrava region.
Districts
The Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia has been created by a local initiative, and the participation was voluntary. An overwhelming majority of the local population supports its formation. However, outside of the area, the formation of the union appears to have less support. Originally, 17 cities were to enter into the union, but owing to technicalities of the Polish law which could have prevented its legalization, only 14 of the 17 cities; that is, those with the legal status of an urban county, proceeded with forming the union.
The constituent cities in decreasing order by population are as follows (data of 2008)[3]:
| District | Population | Area | Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Katowice | 312,201 | 164.67 km² | 1,896/km² |
| Sosnowiec | 222,586 | 91.06 km² | 2,444/km² |
| Gliwice | 197,393 | 133.88 km² | 1,474/km² |
| Zabrze | 189,062 | 80.40 km² | 2,352/km² |
| Bytom | 184,765 | 69.44 km² | 2,661/km² |
| Ruda Śląska | 144,584 | 77.73 km² | 1,860/km² |
| Tychy | 129,776 | 81.64 km² | 1,590/km² |
| Dąbrowa Górnicza | 128,795 | 188.73 km² | 682/km² |
| Chorzów | 113,678 | 33.24 km² | 3,420/km² |
| Jaworzno | 95,520 | 152.67 km² | 626/km² |
| Mysłowice | 74,912 | 65.75 km² | 1,139/km² |
| Siemianowice Śląskie | 71,621 | 25.5 km² | 2,809/km² |
| Piekary Śląskie | 59,061 | 39.98 km² | 1,477/km² |
| Świętochłowice | 54,525 | 13.31 km² | 4,097/km² |
| Total | 1,978,479 | 1,218 km² | 1,624.4/km² |
The borders between the constituent cities have been for decades largely artificial, and in many cases absurd. For example one side of the street would belong to the one city, and the other to another.
Nationally, the union strives to address several problems, including:
- Poor recognition (e.g., often omitted from Polish maps[6])
- Gross under-investment (for example, by far the lowest per capita allocation of the EU development funds in Poland[7]).
Bordering cities
Cities bordering directly to Cities bordering directly to the Metropolitan association of Silesia (2008)[3]. Some of the following cities declared their willingness to join the Metropolitan Association of Silesia, inter alia Tarnowskie Góry and Mikołów. Będzin, Czeladź and Knurów is co-founder, but owing to technicalities of the Polish law which could have prevented its legalization, three cities canceled candidacy.
| City | Population | Area | Density |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tarnowskie Góry | 60,975 | 83.72 km² | 728/km² |
| Będzin | 58,639 | 37.37 km² | 1,569/km² |
| Chrzanów | 39,452 | 38.32 km² | 1,030/km² |
| Knurów | 39,449 | 33.95 km² | 1,162/km² |
| Mikołów | 38,698 | 79.20 km² | 489/km² |
| Czeladź | 34,072 | 16.38 km² | 2,080/km² |
| Łaziska Górne | 21,942 | 20.07 km² | 1,093/km² |
| Trzebinia | 20,128 | 31.94 km² | 630/km² |
| Bieruń | 19,464 | 40.67 km² | 479/km² |
| Pyskowice | 19,104 | 30.89 km² | 618/km² |
| Radzionków | 17,163 | 13.20 km² | 1,300/km² |
| Lędziny | 16,262 | 31.48 km² | 517/km² |
| Wojkowice | 9,368 | 12.79 km² | 732/km² |
| Imielin | 8,010 | 28.00 km² | 286/km² |
| Sławków | 6,866 | 36.67 km² | 187/km² |
| Total | 409,592 | 534.65 km² | 766.1/km² |
| Total with MAUS | 2,388,071 | 1752,65 km² | 1195,25/km² |
See also
External links
- (Polish) GZM Site
- (Polish) Euroregiony
- (Polish) www.samorzad.pap.com.pl
- (Polish) www.katowice.nasze miasto.pl
- (Polish) 17 śląskich miast chce się połączyć w Silesię
- (Polish) Pomysł powstania największego miasta w Polsce - Silesii
- (Polish) Statute of the Metropolitan Association of Upper Silesia
References
- ^ (Polish) [1]
- ^ (Polish) [2]
- ^ a b c (Polish) Powierzchnia i ludność w przekroju terytorialnym w 2008 - Central Statistical Office in Poland
- ^ (Polish) www.esil.pl - "Rejestracja Górnośląskiego Związku Metropolitalnego", 27.06.2007
- ^ (Polish) dziennik.pl - "17 śląskich miast chce się połączyć w Silesię", 11 December 2006
- ^ (Polish) Pozytywny wizerunek regionu Yród³em sukcesu oel¹skich firm
- ^ (Polish) [3]
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