TECHNIQUES FOR INVESTIGATING THE ECONOMIC BASE OF CITIES

Economic-base analysis is applied to 15 small towns of Vologda Oblast in northern European Russia in an attempt to analyze the provision of services in these urban places. The employment structure of the town of Kadnikov, based on a “firm-by-firm” approach, is used as the standard to prorate total employment into basic and nonbasic components. The Kadnikov standard is then applied to the other towns and any excess in employment beyond the nonbasic Kadnikov standard is allocated to the basic sector. The higher proportion of basic employment in some of the study towns is interpreted as reflecting inadequate development of service activities. The analysis suggests that the small towns of Vologda Oblast are relatively well served by education, public health and retail trade-at any rate they are no worse off than the standard town, Kadnikov-but lag in the provision of housing and repair services. Economic-base concepts developed by J. W. Alexander and G. Alexandersson in the 1950s are used as a point of departure.     

GOVERNMENT AND THE CANADIAN URBAN SYSTEM: INCOME TAX,TRANSFER PAYMENTS,AND EMPLOYMENT

The impact of government on the Canadian urban system is explored using Revenue Canada data from personal income tax returns. Variations in taxes and in certain forms of government expenditure among urban places are linked with city size, economic base, per capita income, and rate of growth. It is found that many locations are heavily dependent on the public sector and that, overall, government programmes redistribute income toward smaller and less prosperous places. The most significant effect, however, is the stabilization of local economies by means of a large and relatively constant public sector. L'impact du gouvernement sur le système urbain canadien est étudié en utilisant des données de Revenu Canada qui proviennent des déclarations d'impǒt sur le revenu des particuliers. Les variations de taxes et de certains types de dépenses publiques parmi les régions urbaines sont associés avec les variables de taille urbaine, base économique, revenu per capita, et taux de croissance. Il est démontré que plusieurs régions sont fortement dépendantes du secteur public et que, globalement, les programmes gouvernementaux redistribuent le revenue vers les régions les plus petites et les moins prospères. Mais l'effet le plus significatif est celui de la stabilisation des économies locales par le biais d'un large et relativement constant secteur public.     

SOCIAL UPGRADING IN SIX CANADIAN INNER CITIES

This paper examines social upgrading in the inner neighbourhoods of six major Canadian cities between 1971 and 1981. The extent of social status change is assessed, and hypotheses are considered to account for neighbourhoods likely to experience social upgrading. Maps of status change are discussed and suggest further general principles. These are assessed in a correlation analysis where the dependent variable is an index of social status change for each inner city tract. Most of the independent variables show significant associations; the most consistent correlation is with proximity to an existing elite area. Implications of these findings for models of neighbourhood transition are considered.
Cet article examine le phénomène du renouveau social à I'intérieur des secteurs d'habitation de six grandes villes canadiennes entre 1971 et 1981. Le changement de statut social fait I'objet d'une évaluation dans son étendue, et des hypothèses sont formulées pour rendre compte des quartiers qui ont de grandes chances de connaître un phénomène de renouveau social. La carto-graphie des changements de statut social permet de dé-gagerde nouveaux éléments d'explication. La vérification des hypothèses est faite au moyen d'une analyse corrélative où la variable dépendante est un in-dice du changement de statut social survenu en chaque division des secteurs couverts. La plupart des variables indépendantes montrent des associations significatives; la corrélation la plus marquée a rapport à la proximité d'un secteur où réside l'élite. La signification de ces ré-sultats pour la formulation de modéles de quartiers en transition retient notre attention.     

LOCAL ECONOMIC POLICIES AND SOCIAL CITIZENSHIP IN SPANISH CITIES

This paper examines the restructuring of the local economy in Spain's largest cities, particularly Barcelona, but also Madrid and Seville, in relation to the main changes that have taken place in the urban environment since local democracy was re-established after the elections of 1979. This involves an analysis of the real capacity and impact of local council intervention in the economy and in the extension of the social dimension of citizenship. Despite their relatively small resources, local administrations have in the last few years attempted to create a more dynamic approach of leading, or at least collaborating in, economic and social reconstruction. The increasing role of localities in the economy has been particularly important since, in addition to counteracting a strong centralist tradition, it has coincided with the emergence of a new urban democratic arena which permits more social participation. However, the restructuring of state political and administrative power remains problematic at the local level due not only to the historical will of central government to apply a homogeneous pattern to heterogeneous urban realities, but also to the control that new regional governments seek to exercise over cities.