A 2001-2002 survey designed and implemented by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe, the Large Analysis and Review of European Housing and Health Survey (LARES), provides data on the number of households that had engaged in "do-it-yourself" home improvements within a one year period prior to December 2002 in several European cities. In this research, I use the WHO-LARES data to analyze patterns of home-related "do-it-yourself (DIY)" activities in the post-socialist housing context in 2001-2002, focusing on the city of Vilnius, Lithuania. Based on field work carried out in 2006-2007, I go on to discuss how the influence of these variables might operate, and the degree to which their influence appears to have increased or lessened over the last several years. In particular, I investigate whether DIY activities were/are occurring widely across the population, presumably because of the motivating effect of newly-acquired home ownership, or whether rates are higher in certain subgroups. In particular, I first seek to document whether or not DIY activities are more prevalent in and near the Old Town where officials are encouraging renovation through various policy instruments. I go on to investigate whether or not residents of particular housing types are more likely to engage in DIY activities or whether DIY activity is associated with the condition of buildings and open spaces between buildings, perceived quality of the local area, or the socioeconomic characteristics of residents. The extent to which residents across different parts of the city are improving their dwellings can provide an indication of whether home ownership has conferred a sense of "home pride" and/or responsibility among residents, as well as which neighborhood, building and household-level variables appear to exert an influence in this respect. In general, the findings of this research indicate that in 2001-2002 DIY activity in Vilnius appeared to be influenced by a series of physical, environmental and perceptual variables that are conceptually linked to the post-Soviet socio-political housing context. There were more commonalities across housing types than might be assumed in terms of the distribution of variables of interest, and differences were greater within housing types than across them. Within this context DIY activities were fairly prevalent across Vilnius households in 2000-2001. Of the factors included in statistical models only the resident's perception of the quality of their area was associated with a significant increase in the odds of undertaking DIY activities. Despite housing policies designed to encourage renovation of residences in the Old Town, the rate of DIY activity was no greater in and near the city center than elsewhere in the city by 2001-2002. Lastly, aspects of the physical environment surrounding residential buildings, and the presence of graffiti and the condition of open spaces in particular, appear to be related to the prevalence of DIY activities in housing units, but not necessarily to the extent, nor in the direction, that might be expected. In 2006-2007, an increase in private automobile ownership, lack of parking space in panel block housing areas and the variable quality of newly-privatized municipal management companies also appear to be influencing such housing and neighborhood conditions. I conclude by discussing whether conditions that appear to have been influencing DIY activity in 2001-2002 persist in 2006-2007 and incorporate recommendations for future housing policy directions in Vilnius into our discussion of the findings. / A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Spring Semester, 2008. / February 26, 2008. / Eastern Europe, Home Maintenance, Housing, Former Soviet Union / Includes bibliographical references. / Rebecca Miles, Professor Directing Dissertation; Isaac W. Eberstein, Outside Committee Member; Charles E. Connerly, Committee Member; Elwood D. Carlson, Committee Member.

Tax Increment Financing (TIF) is one of the most popular tools used by state and local governments to foster local economic development. Under this approach property tax revenue generated by development in a TIF designated area is deposited into a special fund and is used to pay for public improvements within that same TIF designated area or zone. When it comes to assessing outcomes of TIF practices, the literature has been preoccupied with the notion of effectiveness typically measured as an increase in property values. Furthermore, these evaluations of TIF have yielded consistently mixed results. There has been little evaluation of the process by which TIF outcomes are a function of a community's redevelopment needs, goals, and adopted policies and projects. First, this study explores the types of redevelopment policies, programs and projects that are being financed through the use of TIF funds in Florida. Second, this study seeks to determine if the selection of TIF supported redevelopment is a rational function of a community's redevelopment needs and goals. Both objectives are achieved through a content analysis of state-mandated TIF-related redevelopment documents for a large sample of Florida TIF districts. More specifically, this research has identified 241 TIF districts in the state of Florida. 108 Findings of Necessity or blight studies and 172 redevelopment plans have been collected as part of this research effort. This research developed a typology of TIF district development that enables a comprehensive assessment of the types of redevelopment activities that are intended to generate investment for local governments. The findings from the content analysis show that the policies, programs, and projects financed by TIF in Florida occur under eight categories: basic services infrastructure, transportation infrastructure, urban design, housing, land development, business development, neighborhood and community development, and destination development. The research findings also suggest that there are few links between the data collected to establish a TIF district and the selection of redevelopment policies, programs or projects. Taken together, the research findings indicate that a reconsideration of the legislative requirements necessary to establish a TIF district is in order. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2008. / August 7, 2008. / Economic Developmement, Tax Increment Financing, Urban Redevelopment / Includes bibliographical references. / Timothy Chapin, Professor Directing Dissertation; Richard Feiock, Outside Committee Member; Charles Connerly, Committee Member.

While city planners have not typically sought the insights of children to inform planning practice, this is beginning to change. Planning activities involving children have cropped up across the country. Such initiatives include involving school-aged children in park design, neighborhood issues, and comprehensive planning activities, among others. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has even set its sights on involving young stakeholders in certain planning processes. Specifically, HUD has begun working together with youth who reside in HOPE VI housing in order to discover their needs. After a national conference involving HUD officials and these youth constituents, efforts have been made by HUD to create planning committees made up of the residents of potential HOPE VI sites. HUD's goal has been to create planning committees which are intergenerational in nature. The primary function of these planning committees is to consider those issues arising in their communities and to make recommendations to HUD about how to appropriately respond to such issues. These intergenerational planning committees are the first of their kind. They merit study because it is imperative that we learn how such participation by youth and adults affects levels of empowerment. This study describes and explains the interworkings of an intergenerational planning committee at the McDaniel Glenn public housing community in Atlanta by employing a grounded theory case study approach. The results of this case study reveal that participation by youth and adults in this sort of intergenerational planning process which is spearheaded by an advocacy planner reduces the pre-relocation grief effects typically experienced by those who are displaced by urban renewal activities. The study further reveals the empowering effects that intergenerational participation may have on all planning process participants. These findings fill a void in planning scholarship and have both practical and ethical implications for the use of such planning strategies in practice. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Fall Semester, 2004. / October 25, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references. / Charles Connerly, Professor Directing Dissertation; Isaac W. Eberstein, Outside Committee Member; Ivonne Audirac, Committee Member.

The Neighborhood Assistance Program (NAP) is a program designed to motivate private corporations to contribute resources to assist community development projects performed by Community Development Organizations (CDOs). In order to stimulate private corporations' participation, state governments provide tax credit incentives to the private sector. Florida's Neighborhood Assistance Program, which is officially named 'the Community Contribution Tax Credit Program (CCTCP)', has operated since 1980. Currently, the program grants 50 percent of tax credits to private partners, who made a contribution to eligible CDOs. This research aims to review whether the decision of the tax credit depends on organizational characteristics. By comparing and contrasting CDOs who created partnerships under the CCTCP and those who did not, this study will explore how successfully the program has been implemented. The followings are the main research questions for this research. 1) What and how do organizational characteristics determine the success of NAP-initiated partnerships? 2) How does social capital influence the ability of community based organizations to attract philanthropic contributions? The main data for this study was collected by conducting a survey of CDOs, which were designated as eligible sponsors for tax credit in fiscal year 2006/2007. A total 68 out of 107 CDOs responded to a mail survey conducted from Oct. 2007 to Dec. 2007. The Executive Governor's Office of Tourism, trade and Economic Development in Florida provided tax credit data including names of projects sponsors (CDOs), names of private firms and the amount of allocated tax credits. Moreover, information on social economic status of CDOs' implemented projects was collected from the U.S. Census Bureau. The information was collected based on ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTA) instead of based on Census Tract information. The results of ANOVA, Chi-square, and Gamma tests illustrate that some organizational characteristics, especially financial and human resource variables, are significantly associated with the success of creating partnerships with private corporations to receive the CCTCP tax credits. Moreover, it is observed that a large number of tax credits are allocated to a small number of CDOs and to certain type of CDOs, especially Habitat for Humanity affiliated organizations. In order to find out the influence of social capital, First, I observed whether board and staff members' activity influence the success of creating partnerships under the CCTCP. Further, this study analyzed more detailed of boards members in a CDO with factor analysis. Logistic regression analysis was utilized to find out the influence of social capital. Specifically, stepwise logistic regression analysis with block entry methods was employed. Based on the findings of previous analysis, this study concludes that first, there were certain variables such as financial capabilities of CDOs and doing housing projects determine the success of partnerships under the CCTCP. However, the success of partnerships and receiving tax grants also were determined by their efforts toward the CCTCP. Board members and Staff members' activity were the key determinants to create successful partnerships. The social capital, measured from CDOs' board members, did not influence the success of creating partnerships. However, examining other proxies of social capital especially board members and staff members activities showed significant influence for the success of partnerships. Thus, this study concludes that in general social capital influence the success of creating partnerships with private corporations under the CCTCP. The implication of this study can be extended to other states to introduce flexible Public-Private Partnership programs. Moreover, finding out how successfully the NAP has been implemented along with its goals and how social capital between CDOs and private firms has affected creation of partnerships with the NAP will provide references for generating future Public-Private Partnership policy frameworks for enhancing benefits of low-income communities. For the improvement of the quality of the program, firstly, this study advocates more educational efforts from the controlling agency. The survey results showed that many CDOs do not really understand the program thoroughly. Presumably, if CDOs do not fully understand the program, it will be really hard for them to convince private corporations to donate contributions. Secondly, it is strongly recommended that there be technical assistances for CDOs, those who do not have abundant financial and human resources to access the program. Since the tax credits are granted based on first come first serve standard, CDOs without resources are disadvantageous to apply tax credits. Lastly, it is recommended that there be more public awareness of the program. Not many CDOs as well as private corporations really know about the program. There should be more efforts to advertise the program to recruit private corporations who are willing to contribute donations to CDOs. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of Urban and Regional Planning in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. / Summer Semester, 2008. / March 31, 2008. / Public-private Partnerships, Tax Credits, Community Development Organization, Neighborhood Assistance Program, Social Capital / Includes bibliographical references. / Charles E. Connerly, Professor Directing Dissertation; James H. Cobbe, Outside Committee Member; Petra L. Doan, Committee Member.

From being "South Africa's Premier Holiday Resort", Muizenberg today presents a picture of a depressed resort suburb. This Thesis will study the physical, social and economic characteristics of the area and by relating them to present and likely future patterns of social activity, identify the problems that beset the area and gauge Muizenberg's future as a holiday resort. The Thesis will then put forward proposals for the relief of these problems and present a redevelopment plan within the general framework of which detailed physical form could be planned.

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JoEllen Lukavec Koester Abstract This thesis aims to demonstrate that recent trends in immigrant integration efforts in selected North American cities can be applied to European cities with the expectation of success. The first section of this thesis considers recent trends in immigrant integration theory, emphasizing those directed at host or receiving populations, and summarizes the approach the Welcoming America organization takes in terms of the integration of immigrants. The second major section of the thesis compares immigrant integration strategies used in Austin, Nashville, Dayton, and Halifax, and speculates as to which of these strategies could be applied with the expectation of success to the European cities of Birmingham and Prague. These European cities have been chosen for comparison specifically because Prague and Birmingham are presently at a critical juncture in the reception and integration of their immigrant populations. Immigration strategy employed in Birmingham and Prague in the next several years will determine, for better or worse, future trends in immigrant integration in these cities. This thesis concludes that by adopting models used in North American cities such as Nashville, Austin, Dayton, and Halifax, the European cities of Prague and Birmingham would strengthen the success of...

On June 10, 1692, Bridget Bishop was hung as a witch in the community of Salem Village of the Massachusetts colony. Bishop was the first of twenty that died, all of whom professed their innocence. By the end of the madness, more than two hundred persons stood accused of witchcraft. They attempted to prove their innocence or they falsely admitted guilt in order to save their own lives. Citizens did not discuss the episode for many years after the trials were ended. The whole episode was an embarrassing blemish on the history of the state, and there was little atonement for the unjust hangings of those who had proclaimed their innocence. Three hundred years later, Salem, Massachusetts is very different. The image of the witch on a broomstick has been commercialized, and the city has become known as the "Witch City." The city makes over $25 million a year in tourism and is one of the largest tourist attractions in all of New England. This change raises some very important questions, such as how did this change occur? Why did it occur? Is Salem unique? How did perceptions change over time, and why? This thesis attempts to answer these questions by examining a variety of sources. This thesis strives to explain how a tiny New England town that experienced the tragic phenomenon of the witch trials and hangings, evolved into the present-day Witch City. / Master of Arts

In this dissertation, I investigate the organization of urban activities in Early Bronze Age cities of Northern Mesopotamia. I combine evidence from archaeological survey, magnetometric studies, and excavations to demonstrate that cities were broadly integrated in terms of function and use of space: inhabitants in outer cities, lower towns, and extramural areas all pursued a range of diverse activities. The organization of urban life in Northern Mesopotamia is best described as "distributed," a conclusion at odds with the prevailing belief that public institutions were concentrated in city centers and outer city areas were solely residential. I analyze new excavations and surveys from two major cities--Tell Mozan and Tell Chuera--and compare those remains with information from other excavated cities across third-millennium BCE Northern Mesopotamia. I identify nine individual components of urbanism within third-millennium cities: city walls, water resources, roads and streets, agricultural and pastoral land, houses, workshops, temples and shrines, burials, and administrative buildings. The spatial distribution suggests regular correlations between certain components, particularly houses/workshops, houses/burials, city walls/administrative buildings, and extramural workshops/roads. This overall pattern reveals multifunctional neighborhoods with a range of ceremonial, domestic, and production-related activities situated within the stable boundaries of city walls, water courses, and major roads. Single-function areas often occur alongside other activity or mixed-use areas. I found the distribution of activities to be similar across cities, despite variations in overall layout and size. Widespread co-occurrence, especially of houses and workshops, indicates a kind of "dual economy" of elite and non-elite production, with lower-class inhabitants producing their own lithics, ceramics, and agricultural/pastoral products. Furthermore, although large temples and palaces are located in city centers, the existence of smaller shrines and non-domestic buildings in lower towns indicates that religious and administrative functions also occurred beyond the city center. The surveys and excavations illuminate two important patterns: first, that administrative, productive, and religious activities took place throughout the city; and second, that social rank did not preclude the pursuit of a range of activities. The stability afforded by this broadly integrated organization and heterarchical social organization may have been instrumental in a city's longevity.

This thesis is composed of five oil paintings and four synthetic paintings. The works are arranged in a sequence beginning with distant over views of the city and progressing toward more immediate views. Techniques change also, from the suggestive impressionistic mode, a style I explored in my early years of art education, to a studied application of large, solid, simplified shapes of color. In my work, realism is sacrificed for a decorative arrangement of color patterns. From this creative experience I have reached conclusions about art education and my responsibility as an art instructor. Motivation is essential when introducing all art projects. Students presented with interesting background material are more likely to present an acceptable work of art. Critical thinking plays an important role in the teaching of art. I conclude that if the students consider all possible alternatives before making a final decision, there will be a higher degree of artistic quality. A general knowledge of the development of art and its great men is a vital part of art instruction. I feel that a student with an awareness of the past and its influence upon today’s art movements is better equipped to deal with artistic problems or demands. Last, my research has aided me in establishing this educational objective: to involve the students in learning experiences which would cause a deeper understanding of both art media and subject matter.