Atlanta: Race, Class, and Urban Expansion, and: Sprawl City: Race, Politics and Planning in Atlanta (review)

REVIEWS149 Atlanta: Race, Class, and Urban Expansion. Larry Keating, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, 2001. 248 pp., index, maps, tables, figures, notes and refs. $22.95 paper (ISBN 1-56639-821-5). Sprawl City: Race, Politics and Planning in Atlanta. Robert D. Bullard, Glenn S. Johnson, and Angel O. Torres, Island Press, Washington D.C, 2000. 236 pp., tables, figures, maps, index, references. $30.00 paper (ISBN 1-55963-790-0). John B. Strait A number of scholars from a wide range of disciplines have concluded that race matters in the United States, a fact that is perhaps most evident within the nation's larger metropolitan areas. Few metropolitan areas have a history that is so intertwined with the complexities ofracial relations as does Atlanta, Georgia. The scholarly treatment of the relationships between racial issues and the urban experience of Atlanta is substantial and the two books reviewed here—Larry Keating's Atlanta: Race, Class, and Urban Expansion and Robert Bullard, Glenn Johnson, and Angel Torres's Sprawl City: Race, Politics, and Planning in Atlanta—add considerably to that literature. One major strength that both books share is that they outline the complex and varied ways in which racial concerns have impacted overall life in the "capital of the New South." Consequently, the two books would be valuable resources for those teaching graduate or advanced undergraduate courses in urban studies, urban geography, race relations, or those focused specifically on the Atlanta region Keating's Atlanta: Race, Class, and Urban Expansion is part of the Comparative American Cities series edited by Joe T. Darden. Keating's premise is that the exceptional economic growth and development that have transformed Atlanta from a provincial capital to a "global city" have exacerbated racial and class inequalities that have always defined the urban region. The author's considerable experience working with neighborhood groups and community development corporations within Atlanta is clearly evident in his poignant description of the political arrangements and interactions that have contributed to such abundant growth and the inequities that have resulted from it. An introductory chapter is followed by seven substantive chapters that focus on the racial and class dimensions behind specific aspects of Atlanta's growth. The first three of these chapters review the racial and class dimensions associated with the growth of the region's economy, the operation of the housing market, and the Dr. Strait is Assistant Professor of Geography in the Departments of Geography and Sociology at the University ofNew Hampshire, Durham, NH 03824. Email :jstrait@cisunix. unh. edu. 150REVIEWS various political regimes that have formally and informally dominated "public" decision-making. The last four chapters focus on political processes behind specific forms ofurban development the region has undergone, such as the development of a mass transit system (MARTA), various urban renewal projects, public housing initiatives , and other planning projects associated with urban development before and shortly after the 1996 Summer Olympic Games. In the book's initial chapters, Keating essentially synthesizes the previous research focused on Atlanta. This portion of the book would be very useful for casual readers, but would most likely function as a general review for scholars familiar with issues ofracial segregation, class disparities and the transformation of urban economies. The most significant contribution of this book comes in the last four chapters, as it is the arena of urban planning where Keating's expertise and his unique familiarity with Atlanta both come into play. It is within these latter chapters that Keating effectively describes the "behind-the-scene" interactions among Atlanta's significant political actors, both individuals and institutions, that have historically been most responsible for the specific nature and direction of the region's urban development. His focus on the coalition of white business interests and middle -class African-Americans that dominated developmental decision-making in Atlanta is both thorough and insightful. The more contemporary period has seen this governing regime evolve into a new biracial coalition comprised of a similar group of downtown White business elite and a newly emerged African Americandominated city government. Whether the specific action taken by these regimes involves the use ofurban renewal funds to remove lower-income housing from the downtown area, or the construction of...