Urban transformation and urban governance: Shaping the competitive city of the future

Description

Urban renewal, sustainable development, the contribution of our towns and cities to economic competitiveness, along with continuing concerns over social cohesion and social exclusion together present major challenges for policy makers, practitioners and academic analysts alike. Drawing on original research, this study presents information and analysis focused directly on these challenges. Combining a detailed case study of the city of Bristol with wide-ranging information and analysis from other sources, the report looks at: the dynamics of employment and population change including the challenges of household growth, urban expansion and new patterns of edge-city development; urban renaissance, urban renewal and the prospects for a turnaround in the fortunes of urban areas; patterns and processes of social exclusion and social polarisation, persisting even in the face of competitive success; the role of the new knowledge-based sectors including financial and business services and the cultural and media sectors; the changing spatial architecture of urban and regional governance and its capacity to shape the towns and cities of the future. Urban transformation and urban governance is essential reading for practitioners and policy makers with an interest in urban policy, regeneration and renewal; voluntary and community sector workers; and academics and students.

Martin Boddy is Associate Dean and Professor of Urban and Regional Studies in the Faculty of the Built Environment, University of the West of England, Bristol.

"... a useful model for councils wishing to develop a robust understanding of the environment in which they operate." Local Government First "... a coherent approach to the detailed study of urban policy, its strengths lie in empirical description rather than critical analysis and/or theoretical evaluation." Area