The Autonomous Industrial Park: A Global Model with Local Variations

The Autonomous Industrial Park (AIP) is a planned concentration of firms and factories that is spatially and administratively detached from its surrounding localities. It is situated in suburban or peripheral locations, often in proximity to regional, national and international transport networks. The development of AIPs model can be traced to processes of decentralization and agglomeration as well as to the rise of the global economy and neoliberal ideologies. The AIP has two goals: maximizing effi ciency and creating a coherent image that will distinguish the place in the face of rising global competition. However, this model also triggers regional competition, fragmentation and local resentment. Highlighting the spatial implications of these processes, this paper aims to characterize the AIP's spatial profile and to identify its local variations. To do so, it analyses three parks in Israel: Airport City Business Park, located near an international airport between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem; Migdal-Tefen Industrial Park, located on the northern periphery and surrounded by villages; and Caesarea Industry and Business Park, located in northern Israel next to north–south arteries. Based on four key categories (position, spatial organization, landscape and management), the paper characterizes the AIP's spatial profile as distinct, legible, regulated and specialized. It then identifies three variations: the 'insular bubble', the 'horizontal carpet' and the 'fading borders'. The paper concludes with a discussion on the dynamics between city and industry and highlights the possible opportunities that emerge from the AIP's variations.