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The nighttime economy, or NTE—the combination of nocturnal specialties and the extension of the diurnal economy into the night—has been implemented as an effective boosting instrument set to “revitalize the urban space”. The instrument, applied in regions around world, develops new socioeconomic dynamics and poles of growth within cities. Although some cases emphasize the functional success of NTE practices, disequilibrium between urban elements—social groups, communities, and the cultures in which they live—are ongoing. The present article argues that urban nights must be considered within a broader reflection on the question of sustainability because a closer integration between brands, cultural elements, employment, and capital in different scales is demonstrated at night. Based on growth pole theory, this study combines data mining, spatial modeling, and other complementary approaches, and successfully (1) identifies the growth poles of the NTE in Lanzhou City, a postindustrial city transitioning towards a nighttime economy that forms dotted and non-uniform nocturnal zones through its geography and demography; (2) characterizes their socioeconomic organization, and (3) analyzes various causes and manifestations of the disequilibrium.

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