Free Delivery Over $100
|
|
|||
|
||||
OverviewBefore the interstates, Main Street America was the small town’s commercial spine and served as the linchpin for community social solidarity. Yet, during the past three decades, a series of economic downturns has left many of the great small cities barely viable. American Hometown Renewal is the first book to combine administrative, budgetary, and economic analysis to examine the economic and fiscal plight currently facing America’s small towns. Featuring a blend of theory, applications, and case studies, it provides a comprehensive, single-source textbook covering the key issues facing small town officials in today’s uncertain economy. Written by a former public manager, university professor, and consultant to numerous small towns in the Heartland, this book demonstrates the ways in which contemporary small towns throughout the nation are facing economic challenges brought about by the financial shocks that began in 2008. Each chapter explores a theme related to small town revival and provides a related tool or technique to enable small town officials to meet the challenges of the 21st Century. Encouraging local small town officials to look at the economic orbit of communities in a similar manner as a town’s budget or a family’s personal wealth, examining its specific competitive advantages in terms of relative assets to those of competing communities, this book provides the reader with step-by-step instructions on how to conduct an asset inventory and apply key asset tools to devise a strategy for overcoming the challenges and constraints imposed upon spatially-fixed communities. American Hometown Renewal is an essential primer for students studying city management, economic community development, and city planning, and will be a trusted handbook for city managers, geographers, city planners, urban or rural sociologists, political scientists, and regional microeconomists. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Gary MattsonPublisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd Imprint: Routledge Weight: 2.250kg ISBN: 9780765639325ISBN 10: 0765639327 Pages: 492 Publication Date: 03 October 2016 Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly , Undergraduate Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: In Print  This item will be ordered in for you from one of our suppliers. Upon receipt, we will promptly dispatch it out to you. For in store availability, please contact us. Table of ContentsSection 1: The Contemporary Small Town 1. New Troubles for American Towns 2. The Main Street Community 3. The Small Town Policy Domain Section 2: Policy Planning and the Community 4. Community Visioning and Strategic Thinking 5. Thinking About Demographics 6. Community Demographic Tools 7. The American Dream and Social Mobility Section 3: Thinking About Economic Opportunities 8. The Heartland and the New Global Economy 9. Small Towns as Economic Engines 10. Meltdown from Wall Street to Main Street. 11. Housing Policy and the American Dream 12. Community and Housing Tools Section 4: Labor Force Analysis 13. Labor Market Dynamics 14. Employment and Workforce Analysis 15. Where the Jobs Are 16. Is Your Community Competitive? 17. Main Streets as Commercial Hubs Section 5: Main Street’s Fiscal Component 18. Where is the Money? 19. Small City Municipal Service Framework 20. Municipal Services and Fiscal Stress 21. The Small Town Budget Process 22. Public Debt Financing 23. Comprehensive Planning and Fiscal Policy 24. Rebooting Community in the New EconomyReviewsGary Mattson's American Hometown Renewal is an overdue analysis of small towns' predicaments and prospects. The sweeping methodical work testifies to the author's knowledge of all facets of small-town life from budgets to building codes' impacts. In a land where anecdote and ideology have blinded observers of countryside, the author demonstrates clarity of sight and presence of mind. He captures the actors, organizations, instruments, and systems that define this America, and he offers hope to those who seek changes. Mattson complements a solid theory- and numbers-based approach with much-needed color including literary references and cultural anecdotes. The result is an indispensable compendium for any scholar, official, or activist interested in the American small towns. The book should be mandatory foundational reading for all policymakers and all students in public administration programs. -Anthony J. Amato, Southwest Minnesota State University, USA Gary Mattson's American Hometown Renewal is an overdue analysis of small towns' predicaments and prospects. The sweeping methodical work testifies to the author's knowledge of all facets of small-town life from budgets to building codes' impacts. In a land where anecdote and ideology have blinded observers of countryside, the author demonstrates clarity of sight and presence of mind. He captures the actors, organizations, instruments, and systems that define this America, and he offers hope to those who seek changes. Mattson complements a solid theory- and numbers-based approach with much-needed color including literary references and cultural anecdotes. The result is an indispensable compendium for any scholar, official, or activist interested in the American small towns. The book should be mandatory foundational reading for all policymakers and all students in public administration programs. -Anthony J. Amato, Southwest Minnesota State University, USA This book provides a comprehensive account of the challenges facing small town America in the early 21st century. What sets this book apart from others is the thoroughness of the background provided, enabling city officials to fully understand the forces and policies that have given rise to the current situations that they are facing. In addition, the book provides the reader with useful tools-methods of Community Asset Assessment Analysis-that enables planners and city officials to analyze their community's situation and thus, better understand what actions to take to bring about positive change in the future. -Susan Bradbury, Iowa State University, USA Author InformationGary A. Mattson, Ph.D. AICP, is a charter member of the American Institute of Certified Planners, was a practitioner for 15 years, has served on several state commissions or boards, and was a college professor of public management and city planning for more than 20 years. He is currently Associate Professor of Public Administration at Northern Kentucky University, USA. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
||||
