Unravelling the paradox of spatial homogeneity: An analysis of land use planning and monofunctional development in Wroclaw, Poland

Processes of urban development progressing across Europe, with built-up areas expanding at a faster rate than the population, especially in the Central and Eastern Europe region. The importance of ensuring a high quality of urban life and effective environmental planning is widely acknowledged for the sustainable development of functional urban areas. While the literature extensively covers the implementation stage of monofunctional development in Polish suburban zones, the origins of spatial homogeneity in planning have received limited attention in research. This paper aims to assess local zoning plans and examine the diversity of urban planning in the subregion of Wroclaw, Poland. Employing exploratory experts interviews and landscape metrics such as Patch Richness Density and Simpson Diversity Index, along with spatial statistics as the Hot Spot tool and Cluster and Outlier analysis, the findings reveal that monofunctional residential development in Polish functional urban areas may result from a complex interplay of various economic, institutional, educational, professional responsibility, and political, social, as well as historical factors on the urban planning stage. These results contribute to a deeper understanding of the extent and spatial distribution of planning diversity, opening paths for further discussions on the professional requirements of urban planners.