Why does Perth stand alone? Interviews with subject matter experts about the drivers of settlement in Western Australia

Australian non-capital cities are overshadowed by their state capitals. High state-level urban primacy is especially true of Western Australia. Various theories in economic geography might explain the west Australian settlement pattern. Few are grounded in the experience of those with power over and...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inAustralian geographer Vol. 53; no. 2; pp. 183 - 200
Main Authors Wilkinson III, George S., Haslam McKenzie, Fiona, Bolleter, Julian
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Sydney Routledge 03.04.2022
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Subjects
Capital cities
Centralization
Decision makers
Decision making
Decision theory
Dominance
Economic geography
Experts
Geography
Infrastructure
institutional economics
Interviews
Perth
Political institutions
Power
Primacy
regional development
Settlement patterns
Urban primacy
Western Australia
Australia
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Summary:Australian non-capital cities are overshadowed by their state capitals. High state-level urban primacy is especially true of Western Australia. Various theories in economic geography might explain the west Australian settlement pattern. Few are grounded in the experience of those with power over and/or knowledge of development. To study this experience and compare it with theory we conducted 37 in-depth interviews with decision-makers and subject matter experts to understand their explanations of Western Australia's settlement pattern. In addition to well-known determinants of settlement, such as environmental constraint and first-mover advantages, a majority of participants attributed Perth's dominance to centralised political institutions, poor infrastructure provision to non-capital city regions, few bottom-up growth avenues, and an unmet need to devolve power. Most participants believed centralisation in Perth warrants intervention. The most reoccurring ideas are presented and discussed.
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ISSN:0004-9182
1465-3311
DOI:10.1080/00049182.2022.2076578