Please answer one (1) of the following questions in a double-spaced, typewritten essay, with one inch or wider margins, not to exceed six pages in length. A good answer will marshal evidence from the assigned readings and from the lectures to support its argument. You may, of course, draw on outside reading, but to supplement, not to replace, evidence from the assigned reading. Your essay will be judged on the basis of its organization, clarity, and persuasiveness.1. According to Jon Talton, “No other major city suffered the combination of bad luck, poor timing, lack of planning, vision and moneyed stewards, as well as outright civic vandalism” as did Phoenix. How persuasive does Talton document this assertion? Would Grady Gammage Jr. agree? Why or why not?2. In The New Geography of Jobs, Enrico Moretti divided American cities into high-education/high-wage “haves” and low-education/low-wage “have-nots.” Is it possible for Phoenix, with its relatively small college-educated cohort, underfunded educational system, and high proportion of relatively low-wage retail and service industry jobs, to graduate from a “have-not” into a “have” city? If so, how would it recruit good employers paying high wages and, at the same time, build a solid base of human capital?3. According to Grady Gammage Jr., Phoenix has the potential to create a brand-new form of urbanism. What would a sustainable, resilient, and green “suburban city” of the future look like?Reading Resources:Enrico Moretti, The New Geography of JobsGrady Gammage, Jr., The Future of the Suburban City: Lessons from Sustaining PhoenixJon Talton, “Phoenix 101: What Killed Downtown”
