Urban Affairs Review

In differentiating urban regime analysis from pluralism, this article argues that the politics of bringing together governing arrangements poses challenges that are much greater than the “retail” politics of pressuring government officials regarding particular decisions. Agenda setting, coalition building, resource mobilization, and devising schemes of cooperation are central elements in a model of governing. Seen in structural context, particularly of the system of social stratification, these elements in combination can explain why it is so difficult to give priority to policies to overcome social exclusion. Furthermore, because the impact of social-reform initiatives depends greatly on how governmental actions mesh with nongovernmental actions, sustained efforts depend on contributions from nonelites as well as strategic supports from elites.

Census 2000 figures reveal broad demographic changes in America's cities during the 1990 to 2000 period. Although considerable analysis has been devoted to trends in the largest cities, there has been less attention to what is happening in smaller cities, which comprise 97% of cities nationwide. Data for 100 small cities (population less than 50,000) are drawn from the 1990 and 2000 Census Summary Files. The analysis reveals that growth is occurring faster in these smaller cities than in any of their larger cohorts. Other findings are that small-city growth is fastest in the West and Midwest, is occurring more rapidly in small cities within metropolitan areas, and is spurred by increases in Hispanic, Black, and Asian populations.

Since the early 1990s, there has been a very large growth in mortgages made by so-called subprime lenders, which specialize in lending to borrowers with credit history problems. One reason for concern about this trend is that it has been associated with a large and simultaneous rise in foreclosures, which can entail significant costs not just for those directly affected but also for surrounding neighborhoodsand larger communities. This study usesmultivariate estimations to quantify the impact of subprime lending on neighborhood foreclosure levels. After controlling for neighborhood demographics and economic conditions, the authors find that subprime loans lead to foreclosures at far greater rates than do prime loans. Moreover, subprime lending appears to account for a substantial share of foreclosure activity in high-foreclosure neighborhoods.

This article examines the changing approaches to historic preservation of half-timbered houses in Quedlinburg, Germany. Under the East German (GDR) regime, the scarcity of funds and materials limited preservation measures. After the German reunification, the conditions improved significantly, and Quedlinburg became the largest historic preservation project in the country. The difficulties in enforcing the high preservation standards and the conflicts arising over certain aspects of the project clearly demonstrate the need for integrating historic preservation projects with general urban planning to meet the needs of both preservationists and inhabitants of the city.