Spring 2007

GOV 370L • 11- Urban Politics

Course Description

This course will explore the development of the metropolitan political environment in America. It will explore how our cities developed and their early political pressures, focusing particularly on machine governments. The course will then explore the growth of national urban policy and their legacy. The course will cover the rise of the sunbelt, the fracturing of cities, and suburban growth. Finally, the course focuses upon smart growth initiatives, new urbanism, and mechanisms cities use to attract and maintain businesses and residents. There is a strong historical component to the course with an emphasis upon understanding the development of issues and reactions to them.

Texts

City Politics, by Judd and Swamstrom Inside Urban Politics, by Dick Simpson

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