Partnerships in Urban Governance : European and American Experiences

These essays explore the utility of thinking about public-private partnerships for local economic development. A theoretical examination of theories of governance, institutions and policy instruments is supplemented by empirical analysis and comparisons of their operation in the United Kingdom, Sweden and the United States in the context of debates about the 'limits of politics' and dependence on the institutions of civil society. Front Matter....Pages i-xii Public-Private Partnerships and Urban Governance: Introduction....Pages 1-10 ‘With a Little Help From Our Friends’: Public-Private Partnerships as Institutions and Instruments....Pages 11-33 Public-Private Partnerships and Urban Governance....Pages 34-51 Public-Private Partnerships as Historical Chameleons: The Case of the United States....Pages 52-70 Public-Private Partnerships in the UK....Pages 71-92 Local-to-Local Partnerships among Swedish Municipalities: Why and How Neighbours Join to Alleviate Resource Constraints....Pages 93-111 Local Industrial Partnerships: Exploring the Logics of Public-Private Partnerships....Pages 112-139 Bridging Multiple Worlds: Central, Regional and Local Partners in Rural Development....Pages 140-162 Commentary: Public-Private Partnerships in the United States from a European Perspective....Pages 163-174 The Ecology of Public-Private Partnerships: Europe....Pages 175-186 Conclusions....Pages 187-199 Back Matter....Pages 200-206

Urban governance in most western democracies has seen various forms of public-private concerted actions becoming increasingly important instruments for local governments. These new features of urban governance are often seen as local governments trying to enhance their "capacity to act" by fusing their capabilities with those of other major societal actors. At the same time such transgressions of the border between the public and the private spheres of society make local governments more susceptible to political pressures from those actors. This volume looks at the historical development and present performance of public-private partnerships for local economic development in western Europe and the United States. The theoretical framework applied in the volume is derived from theories of governance as well as from institutional theory.