Small City and Rural Governance: The Changing Environment

Determinants of Conflict on Wisconsin Town Boards

“…onflict among political actors, particularly those who serve on elected boards or councils, can be seen as one component to understanding how communities adapt to the pressures of change. Scholars have recently noted the population migration patterns favoring smaller communities as a choice of residence over cities and suburbs (Cigler 1984;Johnson and Beale 1995;Wolf 1999;Fetto 1999;Russo 2001). What is less emphasized in the literature is the effect of these migration patterns on the governance of smaller communities.…”

The relationships between public finance issues, financial management issues, and conditions of fiscal stress in small and rural governments: the case of west Virginia

“…Population trends in recent years have indicated a reversal in the historical movement of people from rural to urban areas in virtually all areas of the United States. Rural (nonmetropolitan) areas grew faster than urban (metropolitan) areas, and migration from cities exceeded migration to cities in the 1970s (Cigler, 1984). This reversal of population migration patterns has been characterized as a "rural renaissance" or the "new ruralism."…”

Problems, Attractions, and Chief Executive Priorities in Small Towns

“…Diversity is now the key term used to describe the economies of small towns. High technology, tourism, and service occupations are helping to create "postindustrial or advanced industrial rural society" (Blakely and Bradshaw, 1981; see also Schwarzweller, 1979;Schroeder, 1981;Cigler, 1984; Brown and Beale, 1981;Long, 1986).…”