Much of the discourse about regional andlocal economic development strategiesin the United States over the pasttwenty-five years has looked like asearch for general rules. Very few such rules have emerged,in part because—like all policy debates—there have beenlarge inputs of ideology and...

[...]The focus of my remarks is something else entirely. Mypurpose is threefold: first, to make the case that the study ofhistory is essential to understanding the present and future ofany urban area; second, to suggest that in terms of age, size,density, and demographic patterns, New York has...