Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

Interlocal Contractual Arrangements In The Provision Of Public Safety, Simon A. Andrew

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

The range of interlocal contractual arrangements in the realm of public safety in Florida provides a research site to examine the extent to which these arrangements have been used by local governments. We developed a contractual perspective on interlocal contractual arrangements as relational contracts by arguing that their institutional designs are partly an effort of involved parties to reduce transaction costs that are the product of the properties of the services themselves; and partly by state statutes that allowed mix approaches to contractual arrangements. A relational contract is advantageous because it specified the activities to be rendered without unnecessarily intruding …

Characteristics Of Service, Structure Of Networks, And Forms Of Inter-Local Cooperation In Local Service Production: Evidence From Florida, Manoj Shrestha

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

This paper empirically examines the interrelationships between service characteristics and the structure of networks among local jurisdictions using relational data across a set of diverse services from Pinellas County in Florida. In metropolitan areas, cities as well as counties work together to become increasingly efficient in public service delivery, and hence, engage into a variety of cooperative arrangements such as bilateral or multilateral service agreements. Increasing restraints on jurisdictions’ fiscal capacity have further forced them to look for cooperative avenues. Extant literature suggests that types of public goods and services determine the choice of service production. Policy/management network scholars argue …

Which Local Governments Cooperate On Public Safety?: Lessons From Michigan, Jered B. Carr, Kelly Leroux

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

Despite the increased interest in voluntary services cooperation, little is known about the factors that encourage local governments to enter into collaborative services arrangements with each other. This paper addresses this question through an analysis of interlocal contracting arrangements for police and fire services reported by 464 local governments in Michigan. While the contracting of public services is increasing common in local governments across the country, collaborations on police and fire services have proved far more difficult to achieve. Public safety contracting presents a dilemma for public managers. On one hand, local governments devote a substantial part of their budgets …

Cooperative Municipal Service Provision: A Political-Economy Framework For Understanding Intergovernmental Cooperation, Elisabeth R. Gerber, Clark C. Gibson

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

We develop and apply a theoretical framework for understanding how local governments respond to the perceived costs and benefits of intergovernmental cooperation. Our theory connects local government decisions to economic and political costs and benefits at both the local and regional levels, as well as the institutional context in which collaborative decisions take place. We develop and test hypotheses with data from a sample of regional councils. We find preliminary support for our institutional, local, and regional hypotheses

Elements Of Successful Interlocal Agreements: An Iowa Case Study , Kurt Thurmaier

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

This paper explores the factors that contribute to successful interlocal agreements. Success is defined in terms of achieving agreement objectives, increasing the effectiveness of the public service, and increasing the efficiency of the public service. Influential factors of interest include the reason the interlocal agreement was created, the estimated costs and benefits of participation in the agreement, and the types and levels of communication between the parties to the agreement. The paper reports results from a survey of local governments (including cities, counties, school districts) in Iowa that have filed an agreement with the state. The sample of about 1250 …

Cooperation Costs And The Economics Of Intergovernmental Partnerships, Soji Adelaja, Laila A. Racevskis

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

Increasingly, state and local governments are promoting intergovernmental coordination, cooperation, and/or outright consolidation (3Cs) based on the perceived economies of scale advantages of such joint actions. However, the growing public finance and political science literature on interregional cooperation highlights the fact that transactions or other cooperation costs may preclude the realization of economies of scale benefits. Despite this evidence, some proponents go as far as to view such collaborative actions as effective policy tools for enhancing regional economic development and competitiveness. The role of cooperation costs and their relationship to economies of scale are not well documented in the literature. …

Institutional Collective Action And Local Goverance, Richard C. Feiock

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

This paper elaborates the institutional collective action framework and its applications to cooperative interlocal service agreements among governments in metropolitan areas. It begins by outlining the information, negotiation, enforcement and agency cost that pose obstacles to cooperative interlocal arrangements. Next it identifies how these transaction costs, and the ability of local actors to overcome them, depend on: 1) characteristics of services; 2) characteristics of communities; 3) political institutions; and 4) structures of policy networks. Specific propositions regarding evolution and effectiveness of interlocal cooperation are advanced and an agenda to investigate institutional collective action among local governments is presented.

Beyond The Economic Catalyst Debate: Can Consumption Benefits Justify A Municipal Stadium Investment?, Charles Andrew Santo

Dissertations and Theses

The issue of public investment in sports facilities has garnered a great deal of attention from economists and public affairs researchers; however, relevant empirical research has become mired in a stagnant discussion of whether sports stadiums can serve as economic catalysts. A host of empirical studies have indicated that stadiums and arenas have no significant impact on metropolitan area income or employment. In light of this evidence, the continued proliferation of public investment in sports facilities, begs the question: is there some other justification for this spending, or are policymakers simply acting against the public interest (either irrationally, or in …

Facilitating Interlocal Collaboration: Community And The Soft Skills Of Public Management, Ricardo S. Morse

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

This paper explores the issue of interlocal collaboration in non-metro areas and argues that the concept of community and related "soft skills" that go along with it are critical to understanding how increased collaboration can be encouraged. An action research process piloted in two Iowa counties provides the basis for this study and offers rich qualitative insight into some of the factors that influence non-metro interlocal collaboration.

A Transaction Costs Explanation Of Interlocal Government Collaboration, Skip Krueger, Michael Mcguire

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

No abstract provided.

Patterns Of Interlocal Services Collaboration: A Preliminary Analysis, Jered B. Carr

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

Presentation of preliminary findings of the Citizens Research Council of Michigan's survey of public services arrangements in Michigan.

Catalog Of Local Government Services In Michigan, Eric Lupher

Working Group on Interlocal Services Cooperation

The Citizens Research Council announces the release of the Catalog of Local Government Services. The Catalog is the result of a survey sent to the governments of 670 counties, cities, villages, and counties in 24 Michigan counties. The surveys asked which services are provided to residents of each community, and if the services are provided, whether they are provided by the units themselves, through cooperative arrangements, by another unit, or by contract. Responses were received from about 70 percent of the units contacted. The data show that Michigan cities, villages, and townships cannot be characterized in simple terms. The menu …

Occupation Analysis For The Greater Cleveland Area, Jun Koo

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

Occupation is an important aspect of regional economy; it has been forgotten, however, in most studies of regional economies. We developed a set of benchmark occupation clusters that share similar knowledge and skills and examined the Cleveland metropolitan area based on the derived occupation clusters.

Getting Grounded In The Post Hometown World, Hedley Burrell, David E. Drew

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

Remember when Americans had hometowns? "Where are you from?" we'd ask one another.

And the answer would come back: New York City. St. Joseph, Mo. Atlanta. Santa Barbara, Calif. Chattanooga, Tenn.

But odds are that now we'd get a more complicated response. It'd go something like this: "Well, I was born in Atlanta but we moved to Baltimore when I was 11 and in my junior year of high school, we went out to L.A. I've been in Chicago for a year."

And even this might not be quite accurate. The speaker may have been born in an Atlanta exurb …

Ecolopolis: Making The Case For A Cascadian Supercity, Portland State University

Regional Planning and Metropolitan Growth Management Research Projects

This is a working document and is the first product of an ongoing project focused on the existence of and prospects for Cascadia. The document is organized into three main sections. In section one we consider Cascadia from an economic point of view using the cluster model developed by Michael Porter and others. In section two we look at the Cascadia through the lens afforded by high speed rail. In the third section we revisit the questions that launched this study, and discuss the next steps. For those you new to Cascadia, we append some basic background information on the …

Time-Series Analysis Of Clusters In City Size Distributions, Ahjond S. Garmestani, Craig R. Allen, K. Michael Bessey

Nebraska Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit: Staff Publications

Complex systems, such as urban systems, emerge unpredictably without the influence of central control as a result of adaptive behavior by their component, interacting agents. This paper analyses city size distributions, by decade, from the south-western region of the United States for the years 1890–1990. It determines if the distributions were clustered and documents changes in the pattern of clusters over time. Clusters were determined utilizing a kernel density estimator and cluster analysis. The data were clustered as determined by both methods. The analyses identified 4–7 clusters of cities in each of the decades analysed. Cities cluster into size classes, …

Portland Public Schools Enrollment Forecast, 2005-2015, Based On October 2004 Enrollments, Portland State University. Population Research Center, Barry Edmonston, Risa S. Proehl, Sonoko Endo, Richard Lycan

School District Enrollment Forecast Reports

The Population Research Center has prepared district-wide and individual school Enrollment Forecasts for the Portland Public Schools (PPS) for the past 6 years. This year’s forecast relies on October 2004 PPS enrollment figures. It considers several factors that are likely to affect the school district's enrollments between the October 2004 and 2015, including the future number of births, net migrants, and the proportion of school-age children and youth enrolled in the public schools. The forecasts do not take into account local factors such as changing school programs or future school reorganizations that may have a significant effect on an individual …

A Comprehensive Comparison Of The Growth-Management Programs Of Oregon And Florida, And The Possible Implications For Tennessee's Growth-Management Programs, Steven Lampkins

Masters Theses and Doctoral Dissertations

The state of Tennessee adopted The Comprehensive Growth plan in 1997 in an effort to coordinate and control growth. The state legislative assembly recognized that coordinated and controlled growth is essential to maintain the quality of life thatTennessee residents expect.The creation of growth-management legislation is a significant step in the right direction; the adoption of a bottom-up management method has seriously compromised the effectiveness of the growth-management program in the state. The state has failed to allocate the necessary funding and has not established an effective incentive program to facilitate compliance with a bottom-up growthmanagement method.The state has also placed …

Beachwood's Economy: Analytical Report, Iryna Lendel, Ziona Austrian

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

No abstract provided.

Northeast Ohio Manufacturing Analysis: A Working Paper In Support Of Global Northeast Ohio Manufacturing Roadmap Initiative, Ziona Austrian, Iryna Lendel

All Maxine Goodman Levin School of Urban Affairs Publications

This report presents the results of a study of manufacturing activities in Northeast Ohio (NEO). The report’s purpose is to provide an understanding of recent trends in regional manufacturing industries in the context of longer-term trends and the national economy.

Effects Of Comprehensive Plan Amendments On Interchange Traffic In Oregon, James G. Strathman, Thomas J. Kimpel, Paul Roland Leistner, Kenneth Dueker

Center for Urban Studies Publications and Reports

In this paper we examine the effects of amendments to local comprehensive plans on interchange performance. Plan amendments over a 15-year period in Oregon resulting in changes to industrial or commercial land use were reviewed to identify those that occurred within one mile of an interchange. Regression analysis was then performed to estimate the impact of nearby plan amendments on subsequent interchange ADT. Plan amendments were found to have a substantial ADT effect on rural interchanges, but their incidence was very limited. In urban core areas, the estimated effect of plan amendments was negligible, possibly due to interchange congestion or …

Boys & Girls Clubs Of Portland Targeted Outreach Program: Year One Evaluation Report Of Program Participation And Outcomes, Portland State University. Population Research Center, Barry Edmonston, Risa Proehl, Renee Ramey

Publications, Reports and Presentations

This is the first of two evaluation reports. It offers a preliminary evaluation of the Portland Metropolitan Area Boys & Girls Clubs Targeted Outreach program. It assesses whether program participation and outcome goals have been met in the first year of a 2- year review period. The review period covers the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 school years. This report is intended to document the success of the program during the first year, and to suggest ways to improve the process of measuring and documenting the success of the program during the following year. The second and final report will be a …

Periodic Atlas Of The Metroscape: Pattern Recognition: Migration And The Identity Of The Region, Alton Straub

Metroscape

This version of the Periodic Atlas investigates migration in Oregon and the Metroscape using recently available data. It maps not just how many people are in-migrating and out-migrating, but where they come from and where they are going. This, of course, raises a fair question-does it really matter where new residents come from or where current residents go? Despite the fact that we are justifiably proud of our traditional freedom to move among states and communities seeking more opportunity and better lives, most states and communities have unique cultural icons (often stereotypical) with which they identify. If we sense that …

Medford School District 549: School Enrollment Forecast, 2005 To 2015, Portland State University. Population Research Center, Irina V. Sharkova, Kenneth Radin, Richard Lycan

School District Enrollment Forecast Reports

The Population Research Center at Portland State University was asked by Medford School District to prepare an Enrollment Forecast for the 2005-2015 period. The District asked the Center to develop forecasts by grade for the District as a whole, as well as for its elementary, middle, and high schools. This report presents these forecasts, including a discussion of the data and methods used and an overview of population and housing trends and patterns.

A Legacy In Land: A Primer On Realty And Reality, Mateusz Perkowski

Institute of Metropolitan Studies Publications

In depth look at the history and impact of Oregon's Measure 37, approved by the voters in 2004. Examines all sides of the debate around land use, property rights, and conflicts between property rights and preservation activists.

The Burden Of Oregon History: The Historian As Prophet, John P. Rosenberg

Institute of Metropolitan Studies Publications

In the latter part of his public career, after a lifetime of studying and thinking about the region and its people, Dodds began to write about “the tragedy of the lack of tragedy” in the lives of Pacific Northwesterners. Life had been relatively easy and perhaps “too successful” for the region’s citizens, “especially if one were a Caucasian,” wrote Gordon Dodds in the epilogue to his 1986 regional history, The American Northwest: A History of Oregon and Washington. Pacific Northwesterners had mastered their few difficulties with relative ease and their undemanding past may have left them unprepared for the adversities …

River Of No Return: The Willamette Regenerates, Gabriel Boehmer

Institute of Metropolitan Studies Publications

Brief article takes a look at the history and possible future of the Willamette River, with special focus on controlling pollution, restoration, and activities of groups like Willamette Riverkeeper.

The Landscape: Forest Park, Sarah Heinicke

Metroscape

A brief overview of the history, current status and threats to Forest Park, a 5,000 acre park located in the west hills of Portland, Oregon.

On Mccomiskey And Ryan's City Comp: Identities, Spaces, Practices, Matthew Ortoleva

Reconstruction: Studies in Contemporary Culture

[First paragraph]

City Comp: Identities, Spaces, Practices is a collection of essays that address the intersections of composition studies and place studies. But don't look for any sublime vistas or sweeping landscapes in this volume. Rather, City Comp is an engagement with urban spaces and the citizens, teachers and students who write, work and live in these spaces. The (auto)ethnographic, narrative style of the collection is common to composition studies, but this volume resists the kind of self-therapeutic tendencies that are often found with such an approach. Rather, City Comp makes a critical exploration of the historical, political, cultural and …

Homesteading On The Extraterrestrial Frontier, Carl Abbott

Urban Studies and Planning Faculty Publications and Presentations

Many science fiction writers depend on the multiple narratives of the American West as templates for framing their understandings of the future. This essay examines the ways in which the western homesteading story has been adapted in fictions about future planetary settlement. It argues that the increasing complexity of these treatments reflects the deepening awareness of the ambiguities of the American homesteading experience and parallels many of the insights of the 'new western history.' Key texts discussed include Ray Bradbury's The Martian Chronicles, Robert Heinlein's Farmer in the Sky, Philip K. Dick's Martian Time-Slip, Kim Stanley Robinson's Blue Mars, Jonathan …