Criteria for spatial development of territories in the agglomeration influence zone

Abstract

The article presents the results of a study of urbanization processes occurring around large cities and the formation of agglomerations around them. Modern trends in the spatial development of territories confirm the importance of large cities. Cities act as centers of gravity of adjacent settlements that gravitate towards each other on the principles of complementarity and balance and form a single system with them - an agglomeration. A morphological model of an agglomeration has been compiled. In the urban planning context, an agglomeration is considered as an object of planning and designing the interconnected functioning and development of settlements that are part of it, inter-settlement territories, and infrastructure. Therefore, the most important characteristic is precisely understanding the essence of the concept of "agglomeration", determining the criteria by which it is possible to distinguish a territory as an agglomeration and determining its boundaries. Based on the research of domestic and foreign specialists, criteria have been formulated by which it is possible to distinguish a territory as an agglomeration and use them when determining the boundaries of the agglomeration influence zone. The definition of the boundaries of the agglomeration influence zone is of fundamental importance for assessing the spatial structure of the agglomeration, managing urbanization processes occurring around large cities. The reflection of signs and criteria in legislative and regulatory documentation is given. The relevance of this issue is of particular importance within the framework of the administrative-territorial reform carried out in Ukraine. In connection with the change in the administrative-territorial structure of Ukraine, at the present stage, the development of a methodology for defining agglomerations is of important practical and theoretical importance. The issue of interaction between territorial communities within the framework of such a formation as an agglomeration is open.