Preface

The Brookings-Wharton Papers on Urban Affairs is devoted to bringing forward-looking research to bear on urban policy issues in an accessible manner. The collaboration between the Wharton School and the Brookings Institution in this endeavor represents an effort to draw on resources and personnel in both academia and the policy community. We hope and expect that the journal itself will be of interest and use to an even wider audience that includes policymakers and their staffs, interested parties in the private sector, journalists, students, and others.

The existence of this journal owes much to the efforts of key people at Brookings and Wharton. At Brookings, President Strobe Talbott continues to support this project. Bruce Katz, director of the Center on Urban and Metropolitan Policy, has been a tireless and vocal supporter of the journal and its goals and provides major financial support.

At Wharton, Peter Linneman and Joseph Gyourko, former director and current director of the Samuel Zell and Robert Lurie Real Estate Center, have supported this undertaking intellectually and financially from its inception. The dean's office has made its contribution by freeing some of Janet Rothenberg Pack's time to organize the conference and edit the volume. The Department of Business and Public Policy has in numerous ways encouraged her participation in this endeavor.

Several people made vital contributions to the publication of this volume and the conference on which it is based. Saundra Honeysett at Brookings organized conference logistics and managed the paper flow with efficiency and good cheer. Amy Liu and Jamaine Fletcher provided valuable support at many stages. The authors and discussants deserve special thanks for making extra efforts to draft their arguments in a clear and accessible manner.