Suchergebnisse

Increased citizen participation in policy processes through voluntary civic associations warrants an analysis of their effectiveness, which this article undertakes using a multiple constituency framework. We find a gap in the literature on nonprofit effectiveness where theoretical and empirical studies have mainly focused on organizations that directly provide tangible goods and services. We propose a multiple constituency approach to evaluate and understand the implications for assessing the organizational effectiveness of community-based advisory civic associations. We empirically analyze the evaluation of Los Angeles neighborhood councils by three different constituency groups—citizen participants, street-level bureaucrats, and city council staffs. We find that the effectiveness ratings of the constituency groups are dissimilar on different dimensions of effectiveness. These findings suggest that the multiple constituency framework holds theoretical and practical value for understanding the organizational effectiveness of voluntary associations, where the different goals of various stakeholders lead to different views on effectiveness.

Intro -- Contents -- List of Tables -- Preface - Clarence N. Stone -- List of Abbreviations -- 1. Change Afoot - Martin Horak, Juliet Musso, Ellen Shiau, Robert P. Stoker, and Clarence N. Stone -- 2. Contents for Neighborhood Revitalization: A Comparative Overview - Harold Wolman and Martin Horak, with the Assistance of Camille A. Sola and Diana Hincapie -- 3. Neighborhood Policy in Baltimore: The Postindustrial Turn - Robert P. Stoker, Clarence N. Stone, and Donn Worgs -- 4. Standing in Two Worlds: Neighborhood Policy, the Civic Arena, and Ward-Based Politics in Chicago - John Betancur, Karen Mossberger, and Yue Zhang -- 5. Professionalized Government: Institutionalizing the New Politics in Phoenix - Marilyn Dantico and James Svara -- 6. City Fragmentation and Neighborhood Connections: The Political Dynamics of Community Revitalization in Los Angeles - Ellen Shiau, Juliet Musso, and Jefferey M. Sellers -- 7. The New Politics in a Postindustrial City: Intersecting Policies in Denver - Susan E. Clarke -- 8. Policy Shift without Institutional Change: The Precarious Place of Neighborhood Revitalization in Toronto - Martin Horak and Aaron Alexander Moore -- 9. Contending with Structural Inequality in a New Era - Robert P. Stoker, Clarence N. Stone, and Martin Horak -- References -- List of Coauthors -- Index.

For decades, North American cities racked by deindustrialization and population loss have followed one primary path in their attempts at revitalization: a focus on economic growth in downtown and business areas. Neighborhoods, meanwhile, have often been left severely underserved. There are, however, signs of change. This collection of studies by a distinguished group of political scientists and urban planning scholars offers a rich analysis of the scope, potential, and ramifications of a shift still in progress. Focusing on neighborhoods in six cities--Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Toronto--the authors show how key players, including politicians and philanthropic organizations, are beginning to see economic growth and neighborhood improvement as complementary goals. The heads of universities and hospitals in central locations also find themselves facing newly defined realities, adding to the fluidity of a new political landscape even as structural inequalities exert a continuing influence. While not denying the hurdles that community revitalization still faces, the contributors ultimately put forth a strong case that a more hospitable local milieu can be created for making neighborhood policy. In examining the course of experiences from an earlier period of redevelopment to the present postindustrial city, this book opens a window on a complex process of political change and possibility for reform.