Este trabalho busca compreender o processo de urbanização de seis pequenas cidades do Nordeste do estado de São Paulo por meio de uma abordagem que assume a interdependência entre duas escalas como método analítico: a escala regional e a escala intra-urbana. São objetos de estudo desta pesquisa os municípios paulistas de Orlândia, São Joaquim da Barra, Guará, Ituverava, Aramina e Igarapava. O recorte territorial proposto localiza-se na mesorregião de Ribeirão Preto e, especificamente,junto ao eixo de transportes e comunicações que liga a chamada Alta Mogiana (SP) ao Triângulo Mineiro (MG). A urbanização é analisada em perspectiva histórica ampliada de modo a evidenciar os fatores que orientaram o planejamento das vias de transportes e comunicações - a ferrovia e a rodovia -, a relação entre os diferentes padrões dessas vias e a estruturação regional e intra-urbana de cada cidade, e os momentos de ruptura e continuidade na lógica de produção e reprodução do espaço urbano analisado. / This work aims to understand the process of urbanization of six small cities located in the northeast region of São Paulo State, through an approach that assumes the interdependence between two scales as its analytical method: the regional and the intra-urban scales. The subject of analysis of this research are the São Paulo\'s counties of Orlândia, São Joaquim da Barra, Guará, Ituverava, Aramina and Igarapava. The proposed territorial delimitation lies inside the mesoregion of Ribeirão Preto and, specifically, along the transportation and communication axis that connects the Alta Mogiana (SP) to the Triângulo Mineiro (MG). The urbanization is analyzed in an extended historical perspective in order to highlights the factors that guided the planning of the transportation and communication routes - the railroad and the highway -, the relation between the different patterns of these routes and the regional and intra-urban structuring of each city and the moments of rupture and continuity in the logic of production and reproduction of the analyzed urban space.

De fysiska modebutikerna står inför stora utmaningar och man spår en massiv butiksdöd framöver. Främst drabbas detaljhandlarna i småstäder som idag står inför en ökad konkurrens från e-handeln som är tillgänglig dygnet runt och som kan erbjuda ett överlägset produktutbud. Den ökade tillgängligheten som finns online har bidragit till att dagens konsumenter har förändrat sitt köpbeteende och handlar på andra sätt än förut. På grund av detta har antalet fysiska butiker i Sverige minskat och var sjunde butik har försvunnit mellan år 2011 och 2017. Detta har skapat en oro i samhället och främst för de lokala detaljhandlarna i småstäder, eftersom handeln har en stor inverkan på den lokala ekonomin. Trots att e-handeln växer i snabb takt visar forskning att butikshandeln fortsättningsvis kommer att stå för en stor del av handeln i många år framöver, fast med ökad konkurrens. En småstad som har märkt av den ökade konkurrensen från e-handeln och konsumenternas förändrade köpbeteende är Ulricehamn. Där finns en pågående avveckling av butiker i stadskärnan. Utifrån tidigare forskning har ett forskningsgap identifierats gällande studier som undersöker hur företagen i småstäder agerar utefter konsumenternas förändrade köpbeteende. I denna studie är syftet att undersöka hur fysiska modebutiker i småstäder påverkas av den ökade konkurrensen från e-handeln. För att undersöka detta används Ulricehamn som ett verktyg. Genom en kvalitativ metod har empiriskt material samlats in genom intervjuer med Fastighetsbolaget som äger butikslokalerna i Ulricehamn, Handelsliv Ulricehamn som arbetar med cityhandeln och butikschefer för modebutikerna. Genom en analys av det insamlade empiriska materialet och teorier kring hur de fysiska butikerna påverkas av strukturomvandlingen konstaterar denna studie att strukturförändringen påverkar modebutikerna i småstäder på olika sätt beroende på vilken butik det är. Gemensamt är att alla modebutiker känner av det förändrade konsumentbeteendet. Modebutikerna arbetar främst med att erbjuda personligt bemötande och service till sina kunder för att stärka de fördelar som de har gentemot e-handeln. Resultatet mynnar ut i rekommendationer till hur modebutiker i småstäder bör arbeta framöver för att behålla och förstärka sin position på marknaden. Denna studie är skriven ur ett företagsperspektiv och till framtida forskning föreslås bland annat intervjuer alternativt enkäter till människor bosatta i småstäder. På så sätt kan det bidra till att studien kan få ytterligare en dimension angående konsumentens tankar och åsikter om handelns strukturförändringar. / The fashion stores face major challenges and a massive store death is predicted in the future. Mainly, retailers in small cities are affected and they are today facing increased competition from e-commerce that is available around the clock and which can offer a superior product range. The increased availability online has contributed to today's consumers have changed their buying behavior and acting in other ways than before. Because of this, the number of stores in Sweden has decreased and every seventh store has disappeared between 2011 and 2017. This has created anxiety in society and mainly for the local retailers in small towns because the stores has a major impact on the local economy. Despite the fact that e-commerce is growing at a rapid pace, research shows that store shopping will continue to account for a large part for many years to come, though with increased competition. A small town that has noticed the increased competition from e-commerce and the consumers' changing purchasing behavior is Ulricehamn. There is an ongoing settlement of stores in the city. Based on previous research, a research gap has been identified regarding studies that studies how the companies in small towns act alongside the consumers' changing purchasing behavior. In this study, the purpose is to investigate how fashion stores in small towns are affected by the increased competition from e-commerce. To investigate this, Ulricehamn is used as a tool. Through a qualitative method, empirical material has been collected through interviews with a property company, a company that works with city shopping in Ulricehamn and store managers for the fashion stores. Through an analysis of the collected empirical material and theories about how the stores are affected by the structural change this study notes that the structural change influence fashion shops in small towns in different ways depending on which store it is. Common is that all the fashion stores are aware of the changed consumer behavior. The fashion stores mainly work with offering personalized service and service to their customers in order to strengthen the benefits they have towards e-commerce. The result results in recommendations for how fashion stores in small cities should work in the future to maintain and strengthen their position in the market. This study is written from a business perspective and for future research, interviews or surveys are proposed to people living in small towns. In this way, it can help the study to have an additional dimension regarding the consumer's thoughts and opinions about the structural changes of commerce.

The main purpose of this research study was to investigate the perceived economic implications that broadband Internet has made on three small Kentucky cities. Perceptions were chosen to be studied, because it appears that perceptions, and not economic indicators, determined the economic viability of each Kentucky city that was researched.This study examined the perceptions of the association of broadband Internet to economic growth through a single-case study approach. Data were collected through multiple, semi-structured interviews with the city's municipal utility, economic development and workforce development sectors. Results from each city were then analyzed by coding and placing the data into themes that emerged from each city.One common theme that appeared throughout small cities in Kentucky was minimal collaboration between the different sectors (broadband Internet provider, Economic Development, and Workforce Development). Closely associated with this theme was a lack of communications between these same sectors in some of the cities. Finally, there was a lack of racial diversity within each city that discouraged innovative ideas and methods.Recommendations included using predictive analysis to plan and track economic development modeling and continue to develop the businesses and industries that are already established, instead of courting new business. Additional recommendations involve the development of a partnership between the municipal utility and private broadband Internet carriers, a relationship between the municipal utility and the rural cooperative, and establishing a technology committee that would include all broadband Internet providers, a economic development representative, a Workforce Development Representative, a city government representative, a county government representative, and a local small business representative. / Department of Educational Studies

A Internet vem transformando a maneira como as pessoas compram e buscam por informações sobre produtos. Para locais onde as ofertas físicas apresentam algum tipo de restrição, os canais online podem trazer mudanças ainda mais significativas, já que oferecem aos consumidores um sortimento virtualmente ilimitado. O objetivo deste trabalho foi o de analisar a influência do número de habitantes de uma cidade em relação à predisposição à seleção e compra de produtos de uma empresa que administra campanhas de divulgação pela Internet para venda por atacado. As cidades foram divididas em três grupos conforme o número de habitantes e as principais métricas de performance das campanhas online foram comparadas entre os grupos através de análises de estatísticas descritivas, ANOVA e testes post hoc. Os grupos apresentaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre si em todas as etapas do processo de busca e compra. A principal diferença encontrada foi no momento em que os usuários preencheram cadastros no site, demonstrando interesse nos produtos. Nesta etapa, os consumidores de municípios de menor porte se cadastraram proporcionalmente mais do que o dobro dos de cidades de porte intermediário e mais de três vezes em relação ao grupo das maiores, o que impactou diretamente no custo por venda realizada e nas taxas absolutas de vendas. / The Internet has been changing the way people buy and search for new products. In places where the assortment in brick-and-mortar stores is restricted, online channels may represent a significant change in the landscape, due to the fact that they carry virtually unlimited offers. The aim of this study is to analyze the influence of the number of inhabitants of a city on their likelihood of selecting and purchasing products from a company which runs online marketing campaigns for resellers. The cities were divided in three groups according to the population size. In addition, the main metrics for online campaigns were compared among groups through descriptive statistics, ANOVAs and pot hoc tests. There was a statistically significant difference among the groups in all steps of the search and purchase process. The main difference was found when the users fill in the forms in the website, demonstrating interest in the product. In this stage, customers from smaller cities showed a registering rate which was more than twice as much higher than the medium-sized cities group and more than three times the amount of the larger cities group, which led to a direct impact on the cost-per-sale and absolute sales rates.

abstract: The boom in publicly-funded sports facility construction since the 1980s resulted in studies that generally found the economic benefits accruing from facility construction do not justify the costs. However, focusing narrowly on economic costs in large cities leaves out an important part of the story. The author is interested in the possible non-economic benefits to a city from having a sports team and stadium, and focuses on determining any relationship between minor league teams and stadiums and community self-image. The methodology for this review is an assessment of the websites – primarily the website's front page – for 42 cities with minor league baseball teams. In addition, a survey of local government officials provides a layer of corroboration for the website review results. Through this assessment, the author brings together elements that contribute to three different fields – facility financing, e-government, and small and mid-sized cities. The website reviews have two elements. First, the author assesses the extent to which the website provides information about the team and stadium on the front page or a website page within two links from the front page. The result is that a relatively low amount of information about teams and stadiums is available on the 42 city websites. Second, the author assesses all the active links on the website front page and categorize the links regarding whether they are primarily directed toward residents, businesses, or tourists. On average 67 percent of the links on the 42 city websites' front pages are directed toward residents. In addition to the website reviews, the author reports on a survey of local government executives and managers regarding the city websites. The key findings from the survey are that residents are the group of most interest to the website creators; the websites' content and appearance generally are intended to reflect the communities' self-image, and; in general, the low amount of information about the teams and stadiums on the website front page accurately represents the importance of the teams and stadiums to communities' self-image. The survey results generally corroborate the website reviews. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Public Administration 2012

A Internet vem transformando a maneira como as pessoas compram e buscam por informações sobre produtos. Para locais onde as ofertas físicas apresentam algum tipo de restrição, os canais online podem trazer mudanças ainda mais significativas, já que oferecem aos consumidores um sortimento virtualmente ilimitado. O objetivo deste trabalho foi o de analisar a influência do número de habitantes de uma cidade em relação à predisposição à seleção e compra de produtos de uma empresa que administra campanhas de divulgação pela Internet para venda por atacado. As cidades foram divididas em três grupos conforme o número de habitantes e as principais métricas de performance das campanhas online foram comparadas entre os grupos através de análises de estatísticas descritivas, ANOVA e testes post hoc. Os grupos apresentaram diferenças estatisticamente significativas entre si em todas as etapas do processo de busca e compra. A principal diferença encontrada foi no momento em que os usuários preencheram cadastros no site, demonstrando interesse nos produtos. Nesta etapa, os consumidores de municípios de menor porte se cadastraram proporcionalmente mais do que o dobro dos de cidades de porte intermediário e mais de três vezes em relação ao grupo das maiores, o que impactou diretamente no custo por venda realizada e nas taxas absolutas de vendas. / The Internet has been changing the way people buy and search for new products. In places where the assortment in brick-and-mortar stores is restricted, online channels may represent a significant change in the landscape, due to the fact that they carry virtually unlimited offers. The aim of this study is to analyze the influence of the number of inhabitants of a city on their likelihood of selecting and purchasing products from a company which runs online marketing campaigns for resellers. The cities were divided in three groups according to the population size. In addition, the main metrics for online campaigns were compared among groups through descriptive statistics, ANOVAs and pot hoc tests. There was a statistically significant difference among the groups in all steps of the search and purchase process. The main difference was found when the users fill in the forms in the website, demonstrating interest in the product. In this stage, customers from smaller cities showed a registering rate which was more than twice as much higher than the medium-sized cities group and more than three times the amount of the larger cities group, which led to a direct impact on the cost-per-sale and absolute sales rates.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-14T12:09:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 parte2.pdf: 3113421 bytes, checksum: b704ffa7fd1d396215acb511fc38d8de (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-03-29 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior - CAPES / In order to adequate town planning and architecture to the climate in a certain place it is necessary to build spaces that offer comfortable conditions for human beings. As the hot and dry climate presents more challenges regarding higrotermic comfort in the environment, it implies a major need to create micro-climates and, thus, town planning and construction solutions that ease the climatic conditions and attend human needs of environmental comfort. To be able to understand the environmental problems that result from the town planning in a certain region it is essential to study the urban climate in that region. The definition of the study object in this dissertation is, in this context, the interaction between town planning phenomena and the climate in the towns, specifically the town of Monteiro, localized in the semi-arid region in the interior of the State of Paraíba in North-Eastern Brazil. The issue put as the problem is how to elaborate urban and architectonic plans for towns with semi-arid climate, that respond to the human needs of environmental comfort. With the purpose to answer this question, a field study was realized with five portable climatologic stations distributed in different points in the town. These climatologic stations measured the velocity and the direction of the wind, the temperature and the relative humidity of the air during November, historically considered the hottest month of the year. The climatic data and the environmental variables of the town, such as soil use, density, forestation, orientation of the streets, etc, were studied using the methodology proposed by Monteiro (1976) and Bustos Romero (2001). The first part of this work presents the climatic data from every measuring point, comparing its external and internal behaviour, with the purpose to understand how different kinds of buildings, and the space around them, contribute to smoothen the climatic conditions within every building. The second part analyses and compares the data from all the points with the climatic data from the closest meteorological station, localized in the neighbouring municipality of Sertânia, State of Pernambuco. After having analyzed the configurations of the urban climate in question and having correlated the possible problems that can have influenced the climate in every measuring point, the study indicates guidelines for town planning and constructions that can improve the environmental comfort in the town of Monteiro. / Adequar o urbanismo e a arquitetura ao clima de um determinado local significa construir espaços que possibilitem ao homem condições de conforto. O clima quente e seco, por apresentar maiores adversidades quanto ao conforto higrotérmico do ambiente, implica uma necessidade maior de criação de microclimas e, portanto, adaptações urbanísticas e construtivas que amenizem e atendam o ser humano no que diz respeito ao conforto ambiental. Realizar um estudo sobre o clima urbano de uma região é essencial para a compreensão dos problemas ambientais resultantes da urbanização desta região. A definição do objeto de estudo desta pesquisa se inscreve neste contexto de interação entre fenômenos da urbanização e o clima das cidades, especificamente a cidade de Monteiro, localizada em uma região de clima semi-árido, no Estado da Paraíba. Portanto, a questão que se coloca como problema é a de como elaborar o planejamento urbano e arquitetônico em cidades de clima semi-árido, que atendam as necessidades do conforto ambiental para o ser humano. No intuito de responder essa questão foi realizada uma pesquisa de campo na cidade, utilizando cinco estações climatológicas portáteis distribuídas em regiões distintas da cidade, as quais mediram a velocidade e direção dos ventos, temperatura e umidade relativa do ar, durante o mês de novembro, mês historicamente considerado o mais quente do ano. Os dados climáticos e as variáveis ambientais da cidade, tais como uso do solo, densidade, arborização, orientação das vias, entre outras, foram estudadas seguindo a metodologia proposta por Monteiro (1976) e Bustos Romero (2001). Na primeira fase do estudo são apresentados os dados climáticos de cada ponto de medição comparando o seu comportamento externo e interno, no intuito de compreender de que forma a edificação e seu entorno contribuem para a amenização das variáveis climáticas internas em cada edificação. A segunda fase analisa comparativamente os dados de todos os pontos em relação aos dados climáticos da estação agrometeorólogica mais próxima, localizada no município vizinho, Sertânia/PE. Após analisar as configurações do clima urbano estudado e correlacionar os problemas que podem ter influenciado o clima em cada ponto de estudo, são indicadas diretrizes urbanísticas e construtivas, de forma a auxiliar na melhoria do conforto ambiental na cidade de Monteiro/PB.

Made available in DSpace on 2015-05-14T12:17:26Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 arquivototal.pdf: 3773665 bytes, checksum: 50a2ef3bf2630f06fbd017bd20277539 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2010-08-27 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / The present work intends to analyze the dynamics of Nova Cruz and its relationships with the cities of Montanhas and Lagoa d Anta placed in the south portion of the State of Rio Grande do Norte. Besides, it evaluates the situation of the tertiary activities and the articulations among those cities, verifying the changes happened with the established urbanization process and the expansion tendencies and consolidation of the tertiary section for the economy of the central city. Context in that inserts Nova Cruz space of larger dynamicity than it reflects regional centrality, where significant portion of the public investments of the State converges in urban equipments in the area, in way to absorb and to make possible a better development of activities linked to the commercial enterprises and the services, what generates interaction with populations of other cities and it provides functionality and conditions to the society for the accomplishment of the consumption. That reality has originated relationships starting from the economical dynamics and of the productive capacity of the which the small cities are part. It is evident that each city is different and it presents its own specificity, influential or dependent. Accordingly, they should be understood as integral elements of the capitalist system where prevail singularities that they are expressed through the economical structures, politics, social and of their space interrelations. / O presente trabalho pretende analisar a dinâmica de Nova Cruz e suas relações com as cidades de Montanhas e Lagoa d Anta situadas na porção sul do Estado do Rio Grande do Norte. Além disso, avalia a situação das atividades terciárias e as articulações entre essas cidades, verificando as mudanças ocorridas com o processo de urbanização estabelecido e as tendências de expansão e consolidação do setor terciário para a economia da cidade central. Contexto em que se insere Nova Cruz, espaço de maior dinamicidade que reflete centralidade regional, para onde converge significativa parcela dos investimentos públicos do Estado em equipamentos urbanos na região, de modo a absorver e viabilizar um melhor desenvolvimento de atividades ligadas aos empreendimentos comerciais e aos serviços, o que gera interação com populações de outras cidades e proporciona funcionalidade e condições à sociedade para a realização do consumo. Essa realidade tem originado relações a partir da dinâmica econômica e da capacidade produtiva da qual as cidades pequenas fazem parte. É evidente que cada cidade é diferente e apresenta sua própria especificidade, seja ela influente ou dependente. Nesse sentido, devem ser entendidas como elementos integrantes do sistema capitalista onde predominam singularidades que se expressam através das estruturas econômicas, políticas, sociais e de suas inter-relações espaciais.

In recent years, small towns have experienced declining levels of retail activity attributable to a variety of factors. Previously conducted research identifies a number of these factors such as changing population dynamics, continuously evolving retail practices, locational factors, and an assortment of other macroeconomic factors. Although retail decline is common for many small towns, there are some small towns that have been able to maintain their viability in an ever-changing economic climate. The primary purpose of this research is to better understand what spatial and socio-economic characteristics contribute to retail growth and decline in a series of small towns. This research highlights a selection of small towns across a 14 county area within east Texas. The selection of small towns includes a number of towns with an increasing number of retail establishments as well as a number of towns with decreasing retail establishments over the 14 year study timeframe. Contained within this research is a discussion of small town economic and retail development, as well as findings regarding spatial and socio-economic characteristics as they relate to retail growth and decline in small towns. This research finds that locational characteristics do have an effect on retail growth and decline. The research also supports the literature, which states retail growth and decline is more pronounced within certain retail categories.

<div> <p>Public transportation is vital for many people who do not have the means to use other forms of transportation. In small communities, transit service is often limited, due to funding constraints of the transit agency. In order to maximize the use of available funding resources, agencies strive to provide effective and efficient service that meets the needs of as many people as possible. To do this, effective service planning is critical.</p> <p> </p> <p>Unlike traditional road-based transportation projects, transit service modifications can be implemented over the span of just a few weeks. In planning for these short-term changes, the traditional four-step transportation planning process is often inadequate. Yet, the characteristics of small communities and the resources available to them limit the applicability of existing transit demand models, which are generally intended for larger cities.</p> <p> </p> <p>This research proposes a methodology for using population and demographic data from the Census Bureau, combined with stop-level ridership data from the transit agency, to develop models for forecasting transit ridership generated by a given geographic area with known population and socioeconomic characteristics. The product of this research is a methodology that can be applied to develop ridership models for transit agencies in small cities. To demonstrate the methodology, the thesis built ridership models using data from Lafayette, Indiana.</p> <p> </p> <p>A total of four (4) ridership models are developed, giving a transit agency the choice to select a model, based on available data and desired predictive power. More complex models are expected to provide greater predictive power, but also require more time and data to implement. Simpler models may be adequate where data availability is a challenge. Finally, examples are provided to aid in applying the models to various situations. Aggregation levels of the American Community Survey (ACS) data provided some challenge in developing accurate models, however, the developed models are still expected to provide useful information, particularly in situations where local knowledge is limited, or where additional information is unavailable.</p> </div> <br>