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Full-Text Articles in Urban Studies and Planning
Making American Cities Work, Chester Smolski
Making American Cities Work, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"Visiting a city in a foreign country can be revealing about the culture of that country, can make one realize that cities are places of enjoyment and fulfillment, and that people prize living in them. From such experiences one has to ponder why American cities cannot be viewed in the same manner."
Providence's Unending Quest For Cash, Chester Smolski
Providence's Unending Quest For Cash, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"The mayor of Providence has a big problem. How can he balance a budget that addresses the needs of an increasingly large number of people, yet deal with a declining tax base that is less able to pay for theses extra services?"
Why Not 'Soak' The Visitors?, Chester Smolski
Why Not 'Soak' The Visitors?, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"Providence Mayor Vincent Cianci has a financial problem, which is not uncommon these days for just about any mayor. Center cities are faced with a host of problems that require sizable expenditures to address. And with the downturn in an economy making a feeble effort to recover, available resources are in scarce supply."
What's In Store For Social Security?, Chester Smolski
What's In Store For Social Security?, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"Health-care costs are commanding considerable attention these days. From Washing, D.C., to Providence and state capitals across the nation, the burning questions are, "How much?" and "Who pays?""
How Goes The American Dream?, Chester Smolski
How Goes The American Dream?, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"Americans are a hard-working lot. The ambitious American worker has fewer holidays, less vacation time and other benefits than Western Europeans. They are well-rewarded for their pursuit of the American dream. Home ownership rates in this country are among the highest rates in the world. The typical American worker has more cars and more kitchen gadgets, electronic hardware, recreational gear and more computers in his home than any other worker in the world."
Cooperating For Economic Development, Chester Smolski
Cooperating For Economic Development, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"This small state has an advantage over larger states because its size allows it to share ideas more easily. With only 39 cities and towns, and no county governments, it is possible to have a meeting in Providence, attended by representatives of these communities within less than a one-hour drive."
Smaller Homes May Spark Recovery, Chester Smolski
Smaller Homes May Spark Recovery, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"On the surface, it looks good: The stock market has recently broken through the 3200 level, the Federal Reserve Board has cut the discount lending rate by half over the past year to a 27-year-low of 3.5 percent, the average 30-year, fixed-rate mortgage has reached an 18-year low, and the housing affordability index has reached its highest level in 17 years. So why is housing still in the doldrums?"
Labor Should Join Right Now, Chester Smolski
Labor Should Join Right Now, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"RIght Now is a coalition of business, religious and community leaders trying to bring changes to the political structure of Rhode Island. This is good, but the most disquieting note of this announcement is the absence of labor leaders from its membership."
Some Thoughts On Regionalization, Chester Smolski
Some Thoughts On Regionalization, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"New Englanders pride themselves on their self-reliance, their fortitude, their independance and, some would say, their obstinacy. Generally good qualities, but they come at a price: not cooperating with others around you. And this has been a tradition in this part of the country since its founding.
But now the 39 cities and towns are faced with severe cutbacks in funding from federal and state sources, and major questions are being raised by taxpayers who are expressing their anger by voting to reduce all types of programs, especially the biggest expense in most communities--the schools."
Land Costs Make For High-Cost Housing Starts, Chester Smolski
Land Costs Make For High-Cost Housing Starts, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"Here in the Northeast, where housing prices are among the highest in the nation, it is difficult to find measures to reduce the price of housing to make it more affordable. Even with talk of an impending recession, house prices have moderated only slightly, and the real estate business finds itself in a very troubled state."
New Development Is In For A Difficult Decade, Chester Smolski
New Development Is In For A Difficult Decade, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"There is little question that during 1990s, proposed new development--whether residential, commercial or office--is going to be in for some rough going. Community aversion to development and what is perceived to be the resulting overcrowding, traffic and extra budget for schools, roads, water and sewage lines and other items pose major obstacles that developers are not encountering. It will likely worsen in the years ahead."
Who Are Nation's Poor? Census Pores Over Stats, Chester Smolski
Who Are Nation's Poor? Census Pores Over Stats, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"A wise old Englishman once said, 'The governments are keen on gathering statistics; they collect them, add them and raise them to the nth power, but you must never forget that in the first instance they are given by the village watchman who just puts down what he damn well pleases.'"
Eight Communities Meet To Find And Foot Housing, Chester Smolski
Eight Communities Meet To Find And Foot Housing, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"When resources are provided to local cities and towns to address housing problems, the results can be both innovative and productive. This was aptly demonstrated at a recent workshop on affordable housing.
The 150 attendees who went to Newport, one of the eight cities and towns that received grants to study the problem, were there to share recommendations on how to best address the Providence metropolitan area's lack of affordable housing."
The Governor And The High Price Of Homes, Chester Smolski
The Governor And The High Price Of Homes, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"The recent well-publicized Cranston land sale that put the governor of Rhode Island in the spotlight, has raised questions about the ethics of a public figure being involved in a highly profitable real estate deal."
The Same Numbers Can Add Up To Various Sums, Chester Smolski
The Same Numbers Can Add Up To Various Sums, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"It was Benjamin Disraeli, supposedly, who first used this truism: 'There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies and statistics.' At a time of great interest in house prices and the growing field of demographics, it is incumbent on the reader to be aware of this when reading stories in these areas that are substantiated by numbers."
Union Traditions And Economic Policy In Ri, Chester Smolski
Union Traditions And Economic Policy In Ri, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"When compared with the rest of the nation, Rhode Island stands out as a highly unionized state. A recent study released by the Department of Labor shows that 108,000 of the 398,000 employed in the state in 1978 were union members. Membership in associations such as the National Education Association and others adds a further 11,000 persons to the list. This total of 119,000 union and association members represents 29.9 percent of total employment on non-agricultural payrolls, ranking Rhode Island 13th in the nation and highest in New England which, as a region, averages 26.6 percent, and the same figure, …
Energy Conservation For Cities And States, Chester Smolski
Energy Conservation For Cities And States, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"During this winter season the 68 percent increase in the price of fuel oil has made us painfully aware of our dependance on foreign oil."
The Most Disheartening Example Of City Decay, Chester Smolski
The Most Disheartening Example Of City Decay, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"It has to be seen to be believed. And yet, two days after viewing it, one wonders if it were just a terrible dream that will somehow disappear with time. Is the South Bronx, that most devastated area of New York City, really as bad as they say it is?"
City Need Is Jobs For Young, Chester Smolski
City Need Is Jobs For Young, Chester Smolski
Smolski Texts
"The federal Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 was a landmark piece of legislation which continues to benefit communities in need. Over the past three years Providence has received close to $27 million which has been spent to improve housing, parks and historic buildings in addition to building and servicing community centers. The focus of this major legislation was on physical and social improvement of the community. The one unprovided area was economic development."