The role of a small town in rural development: a case study of the City of Prelog

Grad Prelog, u čijem je sastavu osam naselja – gradsko naselje Prelog te ruralna naselja Cirkovljan, Čehovec, Čukovec, Draškovec, Oporovec, Hemuševec i Otok, smješten je na prostoru Donjeg Međimurja. Analizom procesa i pojava na prostoru Grada Preloga istražene su veze između grada i okolice. Prostor istraživanja je proširen i na prostor lokalne akcijske grupe Mura-Drava čiji je Grad Prelog sastavni dio. Istraživanje veza između grada i okolice u velikoj je mjeri bazirano i na intervjuima koji su provedeni sa raznim akterima s područja čitavog LAG-a te na projektima koje provodi Grad Prelog, ali i LAG Mura-Drava. S obzirom da Grad Prelog spada u kategoriju malih gradova proučeni su parametri određivanja veličine takvih gradova u Hrvatskoj s osvrtom na neke druge europske države poput Češke i Rumunjske.The City of Prelog, which consists of eight settlements - the town of Prelog and the rural settlements of Cirkovljan, Čehovec, Čukovec, Draškovec, Oporovec, Hemuševec and Otok, is located in the area of Donje Međimurje. The connections between the city and its surroundings were investigated by analyzing the processes and phenomena in the area of the City of Prelog. The research area was also extended to the area of the local action group Mura-Drava, of which the City of Prelog is an integral part. The research of the connection between the city and its surroundings is largely based on interviews presented with various actors from the entire local action group Mura-Drava, on projects implemented by the City of Prelog, but also the local action group Mura-Drava. Considering that the City of Prelog belongs to the category of small towns, the parameters of determining the size of such towns in Croatia were studied with reference to some other European countries such as Czech Republic and Romania