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Over the last several years, new transportation service business platforms like Uber and Lyft have appeared in cities across the U.S. Since these new business models do not fit into existing regulatory and policy frameworks, and their entrance into markets is typically abrupt and sometimes illegal, these companies, which have come to be known as transportation network companies (TNCs), provoke city governance actors and the public to react in many different ways. Some cities take a free market approach, while others opt toward heavy handed regulation. In addition to policy action, there is a great deal of policy narrative swirling around these services and their place in existing mobility systems. There is wide variation in the dominant stories or narratives that emerge about TNCs when they suddenly enter a metropolitan market. Said narratives about these mobility providers also evolve as the companies continually operate in different cities. Some stories are thematically tied to specific interest groups and others seem to originate as a result of specific contextual nuances or incidents that occur. Sometimes stories originate in the context of local, state or national political backdrops and discourse. This dissertation argues that stories emerge in the context of urban regime characteristics. Using urban regime theory along with Mark Bevir and R.A.W. Rhodes decentered theory of governance, I will look at TNC operation in four U.S. cities: Indianapolis, IN, Austin, TX, Portland, OR, and Washington, DC. This dissertation explores the ways in which narratives emerge and change around TNCs, how those narratives are influenced by existing urban regime dynamics, and how they influence policy making. / PHD / Over the last several years, private sector mobility companies like Uber and Lyft have started operating in cities across the U.S. Despite the fact that these companies provide services that already exist with more traditional transportation providers (such as taxi cabs) and their business models are very rote and consistent across locations, city policy actors respond to them in many different ways. There is also wide variation in the sorts of stories or narratives that develop when these companies deploy and operate in different cities. Those stories sometimes reflect local political nuances and characteristics. Using urban regime theory along with Mark Bevir and R.A.W. Rhodes decentered theory of governance, I will use this research to explore the ways in which narratives emerge and change around TNCs in four cities: Indianapolis, IN, Austin, TX, Portland, OR, and Washington, DC. I will look at how those narratives are influenced by existing local nuances, coalitions and characteristics, and how they might influence policy making and responses in those places.

The aim of this thesis is to provide a theoretically informed account of the decision-making process in mega sports events policy in Marseille. This is intended to allow an evaluation of the major theoretical frameworks developed in the Anglo-Saxon literature on urban governance and their applicability to the French local government context, and more specifically to the context of sports policy in Marseille. Following an analysis of the development of the local political culture of Marseille, the thesis undertakes a review of theoretical frameworks developed in the urban policy literature identifying three major approaches / concepts which have dominated Anglo-Saxon literature, namely the growth coalition (Logan and Molotch 1987), policy network (Rhodes 1981; 1988), and urban regime (Stone 1989) approaches. These theoretical frameworks have been little used in French urban policy literature (Le Gales 1995; 2003) and feature rarely, if at all, in French sports policy literature. In reviewing this literature the thesis identifies a set of indicators, which may be used in empirical contexts to differentiate growth coalitions from policy networks and urban regimes. A major question for the research is thus to what extent Anglo-Saxon theoretical frameworks / concepts can be usefully employed to understand French decision-making and that of Marseille in particular. Subscribing to critical realism, the thesis aims to give an account of the mega sport event phenomena in Marseille, and of the actors' understanding and interpretation (in effect their social construction) of the phenomena. The data collected were documents for the period 1991 - 2003 from official sources (minutes and proceedings of local government and event-related bodies, reports, political speeches, and local government publications), local press coverage, and interviewees conducted with the major decision-makers. An ethnographic content analysis was made, partly employing a deductive approach based on the set of common indicators developed from the review of urban policy, and partly inductively from themes, which emerged in the analysis (Altheide 1996). The thesis concludes that while there is some evidence of the development of policy networks the specificity of the French context, and that of Marseille, with its heavily state-led approach to policy, means that the use of urban regime, and still less of growth coalition approaches, is not warranted by the evidence.

abstract: Cities today face new economic, political, and social challenges spurred, in part, by the growth of immigrant and newcomer populations and increasing competitive pressure in the context of contemporary globalization. In the face of these challenges, some U.S. city and county governments have adopted the “welcoming city initiative,” which promotes both immigrant integration and economic growth. To date, little research has explored why different U.S. cities decide to pursue the welcoming city initiatives, what cities really hope to achieve through them, or what governing arrangements emerge to develop and implement these initiatives. In addition to illuminating the emerging discursive, political, and organizational dynamics of welcoming, this dissertation contributes to the literatures in urban asset development, urban regime theory, and political and bureaucratic incorporation. Drawing on 30 interviews with key actors and document analysis, this dissertation employs a multiple case study design to conduct an interpretive policy analysis of the initiatives of four U.S. welcoming cities: Austin, Texas; Boise, Idaho; Chicago, Illinois; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The analysis explores three independent but interconnected themes. The first theme concerns multiple, context-specific framings of “welcoming” and the types of assets cities seek to leverage and develop through the welcoming city initiatives. This investigation finds that while each city puts a priority on developing a certain set of assets based on its unique political, economic, and demographic contexts, welcoming efforts tend to encourage immigrant entrepreneurialism, the leveraging newcomers’ human capital and financial assets, and the development place-based assets to attract and retain newcomers. The efforts to strengthen community capacity seek to institutionalize a new norm of welcoming, structure immigrant-friendly governance practices, and engage newcomers and longer-term residents in their community affairs. The second theme probes the ways in which these four cities create and maintain governing regimes for the initiative. The analysis finds that, while the four cities develop different governing structures, all pursue the creation of mixed types of governing coalitions that combine pro-growth and opportunity expansion regimes by incorporating the goals of economic growth and immigrant integration. The third theme investigates different modes of immigrant incorporation and their contribution to immigrant integration, the final stage in immigrant settlement. The analysis suggests that political leaders and bureaucratic agencies of the welcoming cities tend to build reciprocal relationships, rather than principal-agent relationships, in which political leaders rely on the positional, professional, and technical expertise of bureaucrats. In these early stages on the initiative, political and bureaucratic incorporation aim to create institutional changes that help immigrants and newcomers to be viewed as political constituents and clients of bureaucratic agencies. This dissertation broadly concludes that the welcoming city initiative is a promising new urban economic development framework that could reshape urban space by integrating pro-growth demands with social integration and inclusion. Going forward, however, deeper consideration of the perspectives and rights of immigrants and newcomers themselves is needed in these initiatives. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Public Administration 2017

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<p>Why do municipalities bid for mega-events? Simply bidding for these events, such as the Commonwealth Games, the Olympic Games or a World Expo, can run into the millions of dollars. The cost of hosting such a large-scale international event now runs into the billions of dollars. It would appear to be an economic risk, yet cities, and their respective countries, around the world continue to choose this public policy path. Using urban regime theory, and focusing on the work of Stone, Stoker and Mossberger, this research investigates the actors and their motivations surrounding the Commonwealth Games bids by Melbourne, Australia for 2006, Halifax, Nova Scotia for 2014, and Hamilton, Ontario for 1994, 2010 and 2014. Civic pride, economic development, tourism growth and infrastructure improvements are all motivating factors and a mega-event is seen as a short-cut to achieving these public policy goals. We conclude that strong cooperation between the public and private sectors is necessary, as well as comparable cooperation between the upper levels of government and the host city, for a seriously competitive bid in a Western democracy, and that the weaker the cooperation, the less resolve and likelihood there is to host an expensive event at any cost. This research not only furthers political science knowledge in the sports public policy field, but also confirms the use of urban regime theory as a useful framework in comparative urban analysis as it allows us to categorize actors and motivations as we compare across municipalities.</p> / Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

The issue of indiscriminate urban expansion is not uncommon in Africa. It has created haphazard, unplanned, and unapproved development that negatively affected urban planning for cities in the Niger Delta Region in Nigeria. Using Stone's urban regime theory, the purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore from the perspective of developers, associations, and government agencies (referred to as stakeholders), the roots causes of indiscriminate urban development and their activities in the process in the Niger Delta Region. Data were collected through semi structured telephone interviews with 10 participants who had at least 5 years experience working in public and private organizations in the urban setting. Interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed using Braun and Clarke's procedure for thematic analysis. Findings included six themes of limited knowledge, passive role, recognition of experiencing the problem, contributing to the problem, weakness of regulatory framework, and lack of synergy in the process. The principal theme was limited knowledge of the roles and obligations of participants which impede participation in the planning process. The recommendations, if implemented, may result in positive changes and bring many benefits to city residents such as better housing and traffic systems, adequate sanitation and improved access to public services. To do so, government agencies in the urban sector should engage the stakeholders to create synergy. Following these recommendations may help resolve the issue of indiscriminate urban expansion, promote effective planning and management, and ensure good governance and sustainable development in the urban setting.

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The purpose of this thesis is to broaden and deepen the understanding of the urban regeneration and demolition processes taking place in Swedish cities between the 1940s and 1960s. Special attention is placed on how past and present layers of the city were used, conceptualized and legitimized by influential actors within the framework of urban governance. This is done by studying the function of the open air museum Old Linköping, formed in the 1940s aiming to preserve old houses through relocation, and the role of its administrative organ the Valla Board. The study departs from theories of urban spatio-temporal identity production, urban regime analysis and actor influence, employs the method of qualitative thematical content analysis, and covers the timespan 1944–1967. The research questions concern how Old Linköping’s function is described, legitimized and related to Linköping’s urban identity and urban regime; how processes of preservation, demolition and modernization are related to this function; the role of the Valla Board and its key actors within Linköping’s urban regime; and how the function of Old Linköping and Linköping’s urban regime changed during the studied time in relation to the national development of urban planning. The study shows that Old Linköping was assigned a broad societal function which became a positive identity-marker for Linköping, and a desirable incentive for the urban regime as it brought together several agendas. The objective of preservation became a legitimate part of this function through a focus on practical use and future value of the houses, and adherence to the consensus of modernization. The role of the Valla Board and its central actors, the initiator Lennart Sjöberg in particular, emerges as crucial for this process, and to the stability of the regime. Despite external contestation in the 1960s, the function of Old Linköping and the urban regime remained stable during the studied period. Its function, contestation and surrounding urban regime aligns with, but also nuances the general development.