The concept of “the city” – as well as “thestate” and “the nation state” – is passé, agreecontributors to this insightful book. The new scale for consideringeconomic strength and growth opportunities is “themegaregion,” a network of metropolitan centers and theirsurrounding areas that are spatially and functionally linked throughenvironmental, economic, and infrastructure interactions.
Recently a great deal of attention has been focused on the emergenceof the European Union and on European spatial planning, which hasboosted the region’s competitiveness. Megaregions applies theseemerging concepts in an American context. It addresses criticalquestions for our future: What are the spatial implications of local,regional, national, and global trends within the context ofsustainability, economic competitiveness, and social equity? How can weaddress housing, transportation, and infrastructure needs in growingmegaregions? How can we develop and implement the policy changesnecessary to make viable, livable megaregions?
By the year 2050, megaregions will contain two-thirds of the U.S.population. Given the projected growth of the U.S. population and theaccompanying geographic changes, this forward-looking book argues thatU.S. planners and policymakers must examine and implement themegaregion as a new and appropriate framework.
Contributors, all of whom are leaders in their academic andprofessional specialties, address the most critical issues confrontingthe U.S. over the next fifty years. At the same time, they examine waysin which the idea of megaregions might help address our concerns aboutequity, the economy, and the environment. Together, these essays definethe theoretical, analytical, and operational underpinnings of a newstructure that could respond to the anticipated upheavals in U.S.population and living patterns.
