Local Elite and Urban Development – the Outlook of Economic and Social Processes

Abstract

Opinions and expectations about the economic and social development and the premises of a liveable city can be usually considered as a useful tool for measuring the satisfaction with life or the attachment to the town. It might be even more interesting if these opinions come from the local elite, a group that has the ability to form the image of the city to some extent and plays an important role in the local development and competitiveness. The aim of this paper is the complex analysis of a survey taken among the prominent actors of the political, economic and cultural life in Gy őr. The survey was focused on two major dimensions. The economic development and competitiveness was examined by exploring the existance of prerequisites necessary for a town to be 'European', positioning Gy őr in the Central-European economic and cultural space and analysing the recent and future changes in the structure of local economy. The second dimension is the sphere of human and symbolic factors. In this case we made an attempt to describe the 'personality' of Gy őr, gathering the opinions on the physical and social environment and the possible symbols of the city.