THE LA LUCIA-UMHLANGA RIDGE AS AN EMERGING “EDGE CITY”

ABSTRACT

For the past thirty years, major metropolitan areas have been deconstructed and reconstructed as a consequence of global economic reform and the progression of capitalism. One of the key dimensions of this transition is the changing form of cities through the process of decentralization. This process initially involved communities, but recently has included commercial relocation. Garreau (1991) coined the phrase “Edge City”, which refers to this process and the recentralisation of office space in previously greenfield locations. The La Lucia-Umhlanga Ridge, north of Durban, on the east coast of South Africa, displays the characteristics of a possible “Edge City”. This paper is aimed at discovering the degree to which this transition is occurring by applying Garreau's (1991) concept of an “Edge City”. The study area is comprised of a commercial hub to which a number of national and multinational companies have relocated from the CBD, as well as a wide range of retail activities. Holistic planning has included a residential component in the form of gated communities. The location is also typical of “Edge Cities”, which locate in peripheral locations at the intersection of freeways. This and other evidence indicates that the emergence of an “Edge City” is occurring in line with global trends. However, it is contended that in the context of South Africa as a developing society in transition, the decentralisation of business/residential nodes cannot be completely aligned with processes occurring in the developed world.