The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Minority Business Enterprises program in the City of Atlanta, and to determine the extent to which this program can be modelled to adequately address the plight of minority businesses in other cities. Attempts have been made to analyze the economic performances of minority businesses at the national level, and, also, attempts have been made to ascertain the extent to which a local Minority Business Enterprise program, such as the one in the City of Atlanta can be targeted to industries whose products and services the city requires. In addition, the techniques which the City of Atlanta utilizes to attract minority businesses in its purchasing and contracting activities show an upward trend since the inception of this program. This case study is important because it demonstrates an attempt by a municipal government, to grapple with, to utilize the techniques for, and to devise solutions to problems besieging minority businesses in the free market economy. The descriptive analysis method was used in this research effort. The researcher employed direct observation, interviews, and trend analysis techniques to gather, to evaluate, and to analyze relevant data. The data utilized in this research were obtained from secondary sources, particularly a study by James H. Lowry, on MBEP in the City of Atlanta; United States Congressional Records; the U.S. Department of Commerce; City of Atlanta; a U.S. Supreme Court Case; a State of Georgia Supreme Court case and the local mass media.

Measuring disparities in Quality of Life (QOL) can be challenging due to the vast amount of factors to be included. This study attempts to measure disparities in QOL using a newly developed Urban Health Index (UHI). Using 128 census tracts in City of Atlanta in Georgia as an example, this study selects six variables that are related to QOL. Their geometric mean is then used to construct a single numeric value for each census tract. The QOL disparity ratio is then determined by the upper and lower 10% of the data. The slope of disparity is calculated using the remaining 80% of the data. The results show that urban health index may be an affective indicator of QOL in a city.

Thesis (B. Arch.)--Roger Williams University, 2007. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references. Also available online via Digital Commons @ RWU.