Share
Land Use Planning
The Ballot Box Revolution
- Roger W. Caves - San Diego State University, California
Volume:
187
December 1991 | 264 pages | SAGE Publications, Inc
Increasingly, people are turning to the ballot box to decide
questions of land use policy in many parts of the United States.
Have the citizens lost faith in the decisions of their elected
officials? Are they turning to the ballot box as a last resort
or do
they simply want to participate more in deciding matters that
will
impact their lives?
In this timely volume, Roger Caves discusses how direct
democracy has
evolved in the United States, the reasons for its use in a land
use
planning context, and some of the legal issues surrounding its
use.
The topic of ballot box planning has never been treated in such
detail as Caves does in this original examination. Case studies
of
Barnstable County, Massachusetts; Portland, Maine; San Diego,
California; and Seattle, Washington illustrate both successful
and
unsuccessful ballot measures concerned with land use issues.
Political, socio-economic, and environmental concerns are
profiled
throughout the case studies.
Professionals and students in public policy, American politics,
urban
studies, and planning will enjoy this insightful volume.
"I found Cave's book an especially welcome contribution because
it
fills a significant gap in the literature on the relationship
between
direct democracy and growth management. It is the only book that
I
know of on the subject."
--Journal of Planning Education and Research
USED AS A WHOLE, THIS QUOTE IS REDUNDANT/CUT WHEN USING
"Roger Caves' work describes the efforts of citizens to use
direct
democracy in growth management efforts. . . . The book is unique
in
both its focus on local, substate use of this tool, and in its
analysis of the direct democracy movement as it applies to the
regulatory processes of local government. . . . the book
specifically
addresses the issues and techniques used in the direct democracy
movement as applied to growth management and land use.
Organized in
a progressive manner from general to specific, the book's
structure
enhances its usefulness. . . . highly readable. . . . It does
aid in
understanding the processes and tools of direct democracy and
their
applications in modern society. Further, the author puts to
rest
some of the myths surrounding the concept of voter activism."
--APA Journal
Preface
Direct Democracy and Its Place in Democratic Theory
Ballot Box Planning in the United States
Legal Considerations in Ballot Box Planning
Barnstable County, Massachusetts
Portland, Maine
San Diego, California
Seattle, Washington
Conclusions