Revitalizing American Cities

Susan M. Wachter (Edited by), Kimberly A. Zeuli (Edited by)

9780812245554

Hardback, published 5 December 2013

312 pages, 4 illus.
22.9 x 15.2 x 1.5 cm, 0.666 kg

"If you're a mayor, economic developer, city builder, scholar, or student who wants to understand how small and medium-sized cities have fared in our rapidly changing economy, then Revitalizing American Cities is the book for you. Wachter and Zeuli bring together a wide range of scholars to consider how and why these cities have combated decline and revitalized and become more resilient, the role of neighborhood factors in urban revitalization, and how cities can best adapt to the new economy." (Richard Florida, author of The Rise of the Creative Class) "America's older industrial cities once powered the nation's economy. Now these places must adapt to a new reality in which the U.S. manufacturing industry is no longer ascendant. Required reading for anyone working to stabilize and strengthen America's industrial cities." (Manny Diaz, former Mayor of Miami and past President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors) "Taking a timely look at the struggles of America's smaller, older cities, Wachter and Zeuli have assembled a group of accomplished scholars to consider how these cities can adapt and thrive in an economy very different from the one in which they matured. These essays provide what policymakers and practitioners need: practical strategies for reinvention based on well-documented evidence and compelling examples." (Sarah Rosen Wartell, President of The Urban Institute) "Wachter and Zeuli have created an invaluable resource for anyone involved in reinvigorating our struggling cities. This volume offers important insights into the practices needed to create the kinds of vital cities necessary for broader economic opportunity for all." (Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League) "The American economy's success resides in its ability to continually remake itself. This is clearest in our cities. Read this book to understand why some cities succeed at this and others fall short." (Mark Zandi, Chief Economist of Moody's Analytics)

Small and midsized cities played a key role in the Industrial Revolution in the United States as hubs for the shipping, warehousing, and distribution of manufactured products. But as the twentieth century brought cheaper transportation and faster communication, these cities were hit hard by population losses and economic decline. In the twenty-first century, many former industrial hubs-from Springfield to Wichita, from Providence to Columbus-are finding pathways to reinvention. With innovative urban policies and design, once-declining cities are becoming the unlikely pioneers of postindustrial urban revitalization.
Revitalizing American Cities explores the historical, regional, and political factors that have allowed some industrial cities to regain their footing in a changing economy. The volume discusses national patterns and drivers of growth and decline, presents case studies and comparative analyses of decline and renewal, considers approaches to the problems that accompany the vacant land and blight common to many of the country's declining cities, and examines tactics that cities can use to prosper in a changing economy. Featuring contributions from scholars and experts of urban planning, economic development, public policy, and education, Revitalizing American Cities provides a detailed, illuminating look at past and possible reinventions of resilient American cities.
Contributors: Frank S. Alexander, Eugenie L. Birch, Paul C. Brophy, Steven Cochrane, Gilles Duranton, Sean Ellis, Kyle Fee, Edward Glaeser, Daniel Hartley, Yolanda K. Kodrzycki, Sophia Koropeckyj, Alan Mallach, Ana Patricia MuÑoz, Jeremy Nowak, Laura W. Perna, Aaron Smith, Catherine Tumber, Susan M. Wachter, Kimberly A. Zeuli.

Introduction
PART I. CITY DECLINE AND REVIVAL
Chapter 1. The Historical Vitality of Cities
-Edward Glaeser
Chapter 2. The Growth of Metropolitan Areas in the United States
-Gilles Duranton
Chapter 3. The Relationship Between City Center Density and Urban Growth or Decline
-Kyle Fee and Daniel Hartley
Chapter 4. Central Cities and Metropolitan Areas: Manufacturing and Nonmanufacturing Employment as Drivers of Growth
-Steven Cochrane, Sophia Koropeckyj, Aaron Smith, and Sean Ellis
PART II. DISCOVERING RESILIENCE
Chapter 5. Lessons from Resurgent Mid-Sized Manufacturing Cities
-Yolanda K. Kodrzycki and Ana Patricia MuÑoz
Chapter 6. Revitalizing Small Cities: A Comparative Case Study of Two Southern Mill Towns
-Kimberly Zeuli
Chapter 7. Parallel Histories, Diverging Trajectories: Resilience in Small Industrial Cities
-Alan Mallach
PART III. LAND AND NEIGHBORHOOD POLICY
Chapter 8. A Market-Oriented Approach to Neighborhoods
-Paul C. Brophy
Chapter 9. Transformation Is Messy Work: The Complex Challenge of Spatial Reconfiguration in America's Legacy Cities
-Alan Mallach
Chapter 10. Tactical Options for Stable Properties
-Frank S. Alexander
PART IV. THE NEW ECONOMY AND CITIES
Chapter 11. Anchor Institutions in the Northeast Megaregion: An Important but Not Fully Realized Resource
-Eugenie L. Birch
Chapter 12. Fields, Factories, and Workshops: Green Economic Development on the Smaller-Metro Scale
-Catherine Tumber
Chapter 13. Promoting Workforce Readiness for Urban Growth
-Laura W. Perna
Afterword
-Jeremy Nowak
Notes
List of Contributors
Bibliography
Index
Acknowledgments