Managing The City Economy

In a world increasingly organised as networks of cities, this book offers the first full-length treatment of the subject of managing the city economy. It explores key challenges and strategies, particularly in developing countries, where developmental deficits are greatest and almost all urban growth up to 2050 will take place. Adopting a practitioner’s perspective, theoretically grounded and international in scope, this book is unique in its focus and endeavours to connect theory with practice. Through an interdisciplinary and strategic approach, this book explores the challenges and options in managing the contemporary city economy. It aims to illustrate the extent to which appropriate policy interventions in the city economy could offer effective solutions to some of the most difficult social and environmental challenges facing cities. The book comprises five main parts. Part I sets the scene and examines contemporary processes that affect cities and explains the challenges they pose for city managers. Part II presents a selection of conceptual frameworks commonly used in urban economic analysis. Part III examines the management of sectoral growth, covering manufacturing, exports of services, transport and logistics, and real estate. Part IV addresses urban poverty, low-carbon transition and the informal economy. Part V focuses on laying the foundation for long-term city development, exploring the roles of city development strategies, municipal finance, investment in people and appropriate infrastructure. This book is designed for graduate courses in urban economic development, urban planning, urban policy and public administration, and for professionals who are involved in the management of city economies or/and conducting research, consultancy or policy advocacy for cities. Through critical review of relevant debates and a dozen case studies this book will equip city managers with the knowledge required to strengthen the performance of their city economy while delivering authentic and sustainable development.

Urban experts consider the future of night-time economies’ governance during the pandemic and beyond in this scholarly and accessible guide. They use global case studies to illustrate a range of socio-economic issues in cities after dark, and investigate the role of public and private sectors and leaders in shaping urban planning and policy.

'It is always a nice experience reading his [Meine Pieter van Dijk's] works, including this book. This important addition to the existing literature comes at the right time. . . the book is a valuable guide to those interested in understanding the dynamics of urban management.' - M. Mahadeva, Journal of Social and Economic Development

Globalization affects urban communities in many ways. One of its manifestations is increased intercity competition, which compels cities to increase their attractiveness in terms of capital, entrepreneurship, information, expertise and consumption. This competition takes place in an asymmetric field, with cities trying to find the best possible ways of using their natural and created assets, the latter including a naturally evolving reputation or consciously developed competitive identity or brand. The Political Economy of City Branding discusses this phenomenon from the perspective of numerous post-industrial cities in North America, Europe, East Asia and Australasia. Special attention is given to local economic development policy and industrial profiling, and global city rankings are used to provide empirical evidence for cities’ characteristics and positions in the global urban hierarchy. On top of this, social and urban challenges such as creative class struggle are also discussed. The core message of the book is that cities should apply the tools of city branding in their industrial promotion and specialization, but at the same time take into account the special nature of their urban communities and be open and inclusive in their brand policies in order to ensure optimal results. This book will be of interest to scholars and practitioners working in the areas of local economic development, urban planning, public management, and branding.

This book, first published in 1987, addresses questions which have gained new importance in the light of the continuing erosion of the economic base and social stability of cities. The recurring riots in inner cities are but the outward manifestation of the profound collapse of the civic societies of our cities. This book addresses three main issues: What has gone wrong? What successes and failures have changes in policy had? And what should be the shape of future urban policy? This book will be interest to students of sociology, urban studies and human geography.

In the age of globalization, some claim that where you live doesn't matter: Alaska, Idaho, and Alabama are interchangeable. The world is, after all, flat. Not so fast. Place, argues the great urbanist Richard Florida, is not only important, it's more important than ever. In fact, choosing a place to live is as important to your happiness as choosing a spouse or career. And some regions, recent surveys show, really are happier than others. In Who's Your City, Creative Class guru Richard Florida reports on this growing body of research that tells us what qualities of cities and towns actually make people happy - and he explains how to use these ideas to make your own choices. This indispensable guide to how people can choose where to live and what those choices mean to their lives and their communities is essential reading for everyone from urban planners and mayors to recent graduates.

The cultural economy forms a leading trajectory of urban development, and has emerged as a key facet of globalizing cities. Cultural industries include new media, digital arts, music and film, and the design industries and professions, as well as allied consumption and spectacle in the city. The cultural economy now represents the third-largest sector in many metropolitan cities of the West including London, Berlin, New York, San Francisco, and Melbourne, and is increasingly influential in the development of East Asian cities (Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore), as well as the mega-cities of the Global South (e.g. Mumbai, Capetown, and São Paulo). Cities and the Cultural Economy provides a critical integration of the burgeoning research and policy literatures in one of the most prominent sub-fields of contemporary urban studies. Policies for cultural economy are increasingly evident within planning, development and place-marketing programs, requiring large resource commitments, but producing – on the evidence – highly uneven results. Accordingly the volume includes a critical review of how the new cultural economy is reshaping urban labour, housing and property markets, contributing to gentrification and to ‘precarious employment’ formation, as well as to broadly favorable outcomes, such as community regeneration and urban vitality. The volume acknowledges the important growth dynamics and sustainability of key creative industries. Written primarily as a text for upper-level undergraduate and Masters students in urban, economic and social geography; sociology; cultural studies; and planning, this provocative and compelling text will also be of interest to those studying urban land economics, architecture, landscape architecture and the built environment.