Clusters in formation in a deindustrialized area: urban regeneration and structural change in Porto Marghera (Venice)

Purpose – This paper aims to provide a comprehensive vision of the formation of intra-metropolitan clusters triggered by the deindustrialization of an urban area, namely, the district of Porto Marghera in the metropolitan area of Venice and propose possible regeneration scenarios based on intra-metropolitan clustering. Design/methodology/approach – This paper adopts a multi-disciplinary approach and relies on both descriptive and qualitative evidence to show the economic transition that occurred in the area of Porto Marghera in recent years. Findings – Evidence shows the rise of two potential clusters in the KIBS and the creative industries in a well-delimited fringe area placed at the boundary between the urban centre and the core of the deindustrialized zone. Such clustering processes have been, however, characterized by two different and in some way alternative paths. The former stems from the combination of two autonomous entrepreneurial ideas that complemented one to each other. The latter relies on university-industry collaboration and on the presence of places of informal exchanges that proved to support personal networking, knowledge exchange and business opportunities. Research limitations/implications – This paper suggests that local development policies could leverage the presence of social entrepreneurs to substitute the creation of amenities and the provision of public goods in fragile territories. Originality/value – This paper shows that, in presence of specific spatial conditions, deindustrialization can stimulate the formation of new intra-metropolitan through both top-down and bottom-up agglomeration processes.