ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the heterogeneity in localized economic growth patterns in the Netherlands in general and South-Holland in particular. This heterogeneity concerns growth over industries and sectors, spatial structures of growth and growth over stages in firm life-cycles. The chapter discusses the potential influence of industry classification on testing sectoral and spatial growth spillovers and externalities. It focuses on spatial labor demand developments on several spatial levels in the Netherlands. When these spatial classifications are related to economic growth and innovation patterns, the urban field is probably not the preferred spatial structure to speak of in the Netherlands. The chapter introduces spatial classifications on regional (Netherlands) and local (South-Holland) spatial levels in which spatial observation units are not necessarily conjunct to each other. It presents descriptive analysis of national zoning and commuting-based connectedness regimes. The chapter also focuses on the life-cycle aspects of economic developments in industries.
