Business Urban Sprawl. A Financial Evaluation of Enterprises in Poland

The aim of the article is to assess the costs and benefits of enterprises situated in urban sprawl areas in Poland. The main hypothesis is that urban sprawl is beneficial for the businesses located within the urban sprawl area. The synthetic control method used is based on the results of surveys and financial data provided by the Central Statistical Office in Poland for the enterprises located within the urban sprawl area. The object of the research is therefore the finances of those enterprises that are based around the largest Polish cities. The main hypothesis was positively verified. The results of the investigation indicate that lower wage costs are not more significant compared to those of the economic entities in the control group. The benefits for enterprises located in the urban sprawl zone were also diagnosed, including lower burdens resulted from real-estate taxes, energy, foreign services. The added value of the research is also the indication of the financial mechanism of benefits from the location of business entities in the urban sprawl zone. This mechanism is based on the reduction of spatial costs, more efficient use of fixed assets and more intensive use of production factors.