NOTE: Free essay sample provided on this page should be used for references or sample purposes only. The sample essay is available to anyone, so any direct quoting without mentioning the source will be considered plagiarism by schools, colleges and universities that use plagiarism detection software. To get a completely brand-new, plagiarism-free essay, please use our essay writing service.
One click instant price quote
Urban Problems and Solutions Urbanization is one of the global trends that is followed by almost all of the states and nations through out the globe. This trend brings up many environmental and other issues that concern with life of societies living in urban areas. There are many positive and negative affects that follow the trend of urbanization and in this report we are going to talk about problems and possible ways of solutions faced by American cities. In particular we are going to talk about general problems faced by American urban areas such as transportation and environmental hazards, as well as we are going to get some deep insights into particular urban problems of Washington City and Bronx neighborhoods. Almost 40 percent of Americas 522 central cities are programmed to fail. State government helped create the crisis, and only state government can solve it.
If the nations ailing inner cities - and ultimately their suburbs-are to be saved, cities and suburbs must be reunited. They must have either common governments or common arrangements to share the burdens of urban poverty. But both approaches run headlong into society's darkest fears about race and class. Reinventing urban governance is not a task for the federal government. Washington, D. C. , cannot use its traditional levers of money and mandates.
The federal treasury is broke, and there wont be billions of dollars in new federal aid for intergovernmental purposes. And the federal government doesnt have the constitutional power to reform local governance. How local governments are organized and what they do is the constitutional responsibility of state government. (Harter) The urban problem is severe economic and racial segregation. This segregation has created an urban underclass of poor blacks and poor Hispanics in the heart of many of Americas cities.
Since World War II, urban growth everywhere has been low density, suburban-style development. What happened to a central city depended on the citys elasticity. Elasticity is a citys ability to expand geographically to cope with low-density, suburban-style growth. Elastic cities expand their boundaries. Most, like Ann Arbor, Mich. ; Charlotte, N.
C. ; Columbus, Ohio; Houston, Phoenix and San Diego, annex territory. A few, like Jacksonville, Fla. ; Nashville, Tenn. ; and Indianapolis, consolidate with their surrounding county to form a unified government. (Harter) Elastic cities capture their share of new growth. They secure a broad tax base. They can match tax revenues to service needs better and maintain high credit ratings. Elastic cities are almost always successful cities. Inelastic cities are trapped within existing city limits.
They do not capture their share of new residential development. In fact, they contribute to their own suburbs growth as middle class families desert old city neighborhoods for new suburban subdivisions. City budgets shrink relative to rising needs as greater proportions of city residents are poor. Fiscal crisis grows; credit ratings plummet. Even at the center of seemingly prosperous regions, inelastic cities are failing. Inelastic cities are, in great part, the victims of bad state laws.
Many state annexation laws cripple cities ability to expand into developing areas. In New England, New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, the political map is cast in concrete; there are no meaningful annexation laws. Too many states also allow new urbanizing areas to easily incorporate as municipalities. Many older cities are hemmed in by a multitude of smaller cities, villages and towns. Finally, though states are under few constitutional limitations, most states abdicate their responsibilities to organize metropolitan areas effectively. Typically state legislatures give local voters in every affected jurisdiction veto power over any local government consolidation.
In this century only the consolidation of Indianapolis and Marion County was accomplished by direct legislative act without a popular referendum. (Harter) By contrast, in the 19 th century state legislatures often reshaped major cities (for example, New York, Philadelphia and New Orleans). Canadian provincial parliaments regularly reshape local government in metropolitan areas, though their legal powers typically are no greater than American state legislatures. Mayors cannot make their own cities elastic again. They have neither the legal tools nor the political clout to drag suburbs into new arrangements. Only state governments can remake Americas metro areas.
State legislatures must adopt better annexation statutes. North Carolina gives its cities the power to annex contiguous land zoned for industrial, commercial and higher-density residential use without owners consent. The Legislatures philosophy is that all who benefit from living in an urban environment must also share in the full responsibilities as citizens and taxpayers. Furthermore, North Carolina (like 15 other states) empowers existing cities to veto the incorporation of new municipalities within up to five miles of their boundaries. City-county consolidation would be a strategic step for many medium and smaller metro areas.
Though 14 states authorize city-county consolidation, championing a model authorizing law is almost irrelevant. Suburban voters will almost always oppose consolidation. Like Canadian parliaments, state legislatures ought to follow the Nike slogan (Just Do It). (Harter) Larger, complex metro areas dont have to be one government, but their many local governments must begin acting like one government. Local officials might sometimes negotiate intergovernmental compacts covering fire protection, road maintenance, regional sewage treatment and airport authorities. But local elected officials never reach local agreements dealing with inner-city poverty.
Again, state legislatures must set up ground rules for sharing responsibility. Key areas are: State housing policy: The Connecticut General Assembly requires all of Connecticut's 169 towns to accept a fair share of affordable housing. A new state appeals process allows frustrated developers to appeal local zoning rejections to a special state court. Connecticut's new law shifts the burden of proof to local town councils to show why rejecting the proposal should outweigh the states priority for affordable housing. Metro-wide public housing: Federal public housing policy now emphasizes using rent vouchers in private apartments rather than building new public housing projects. New federal rules allow portability (using vouchers outside a local authority's jurisdiction).
However, states need to establish metro-wide housing authorities to carry out the new flexibility. Metro-wide tax sharing: State governments themselves serve as revenue-sharing vehicles through local government aid. However, more local plans should be enacted. An example is Minnesota's Fiscal Disparities Plan. For more than 20 years, 188 Twin Cities governments have shared 40 percent of new commercial and industrial property taxes. (Harter) Why should suburbanites care about the health of central cities? For that matter, why should a majority of state legislators care?
One reason is that all state residents pay a tremendous price for inner-city poverty. Crime, drug abuse, school dropouts and welfare dependency are compounded when poor minorities are highly concentrated in inner-city ghettos. The price paid by state taxpayers for enduring racial and economic segregation is far greater than the cost of ending it. But more importantly, suburbanites have a vital economic stake in the health of the central city. A vigorous central city is an economic engine driving the growth of the whole region. By contrast, when the central city is ailing, the whole region lags.
Its suburbs might think they are prospering, but they are doing well only as compared to their central city - not to other regions. During the 40 -year period, real median family income increased in zero-elastic cities about 55 percent, while family incomes in their metro areas doubled (100 percent). But in hyper-elastic cities the standard of living improved 113 percent, and 142 percent throughout their metro areas. Strong cities drive regional economic development. Overcoming the growing segregation of Americas metro areas by economic class is the toughest political problem in America. Beyond fulfilling our society's commitment to equality of opportunity, bridging the gap between city and suburb is essential to Americas competitiveness in a global economy.
Only courageous and far-sighted governors and legislators can do the job that must be done. (Rusk)
Free research essays on topics related to: state legislatures, urban areas, affordable housing, metropolitan areas, low density
Research essay sample on Affordable Housing Metropolitan Areas
