GROWTH POLITICS AND DOWNTOWN DEVELOPMENT - THE ECONOMIC IMPERATIVE IN SUN-BELT CITIES

Urban areas dominated by growth do not follow the same progrowth strategies for development. Some cities have adopted development policies that seek to redistribute the costs and benefits of downtown economic development. This is not necessarily, however, an antigrowth strategy but is, rather, a progressive growth agenda. In this comparative study, the characteristics of growth politics are examined through downtown development strategies that affect commercial development and neighborhood housing. The distribution of costs and benefits of such development to commercial and residential sectors indicates different public/private relationships that can be found within growth politics.