Author: Max Olzheim
Bsc Thesis - Legitimation of spatial dispersal strategies in urban tourism management in Amsterdam
By Max Olzheim
As many other European historic cities, Amsterdam is coping with increased pressure of tourism on the city. As a response to this, the Stad in Balans (City in Balance) programme was launched in 2015 to limit the impacts of tourism on the city. Within Stad in Balans, spatial dispersal was identified as a key strategy to limit the negative effects of tourism on especially the city centre. However, there has been little to no consensus in tourism management and research about the right solutions to deal with the increasing pressure of tourism on cities. This absence in consensus therefore calls for an inquiry why spatial dispersal has been selected as a strategy to tackle this issue. This research has explored this for the case of Amsterdam through the concept of legitimation. To gain insights into the legitimation of spatial dispersal strategies a qualitative mixed-methods approach based on the analysis of policy documents and interviews with policy-makers in urban tourism management has been adopted.
Results revealed that spatial dispersal strategies are mainly legitimized by stressing the positive impact it can have on other areas in the cities. Spatial dispersal was initially portrayed as a strategy that could limit the negative impacts of tourism while at the same time accommodating the growth of tourism in Amsterdam. Later, the focus shifted towards coping with growth amid the increasing pressure of tourism on the city. Based on the evidence, narratives and other reasonings that have been presented using van Leeuwen’s legitimation framework, it is shown that the substantive basis for spatial dispersal strategies to managethe increasing pressure of tourism on Amsterdam is lacking. No evidence is provided to substantiate the effectiveness of spatial dispersal to decrease the pressure on the city centre. Rather, legitimation for spatial dispersal strategies continued to rely on the positive implications that are associated with spatial dispersal, such as economic benefits and development boosts for other neighbourhoods.