Abstract:The major dimensions to socio-spatial disparities in Warsaw are discussed, in relation to the pre-1989 situation, the study using data from 2002 National Census enumeration areas, for which PCA was carried out. The factors shaping the socio-spatial structure of Poland's capital are seen to have become similar to those observable in Western European cities, the key dimensions underpinning existing differences connecting with family or socio-economic status and social marginalisation. That said, spatial structures that evolved earlier are seen to have manifested marked inertia, not least with the classification of census areas pointing to similarities between individual units, not only as regards the prevalent character of buildings, but also where the time of construction is concerned. The inflow of new residents (including students) into Warsaw has represented a significant dimension to the differentiation, but has not generated any important changes in the capital's social space. In essence, the twin processes of transformation and metropolisation are found to have reinforced yet further disparities which had been discernible earlier, without any visible reshaping of their spatial distribution.

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This paper discusses the specific character of gentrification processes in Polish cities, with a particular focus on Warsaw, Łódź and Gdańsk. It explains the forces and factors behind gentrification, and highlights its types and effects as well as the gentrifiers. It also addresses the problem of the absence of reprivatisation law in Poland. The paper concludes that gentrification processes in Polish cities occur in a different way and less intensively than in Western cities. They often have a localized character, mostly in the form of new-build gentrification carried out by developers and state-led gentrification with significant participation of the public sector.

The paper investigates places of residential segregation and separation in Czech cities and discusses them in the context of new socio-spatial divisions that are emerging in the context of post-socialist transformations in the Czech Republic. It is argued that in post-socialist countries, where patterns shaped in previous decades still apply and new patterns conditioned by the mechanisms of capitalist society are emerging, the current pattern of segregation can be better understood by referring to specific socio-spatial formations. Localities with concentrations of particular social groups (high and low social status populations, Roma and foreigners) are identified using a press survey, a survey of local government and analysis of census data. The concluding discussion is devoted to socio-spatial formations that represent the most distinct forms of segregation and separation in the contemporary Czechia. Copyright (c) 2009 by the Royal Dutch Geographical Society KNAG.

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