Local Policy, Global Cities

Local controversies around particular proposals from Mayor Bloomberg's new long-term plan for New York City have emerged recently, ranging from congestion pricing to zoning, and others. These proposals would entail immediate local repercussions if enacted and, therefore, should obviously be of concern to residents and other local stakeholders. However, what I think has been missing from the debate is the following: how does New York's long-term development affects its standing as a significant node in the network of global cities? Should the global economy be concerned about the specifics of New York's development?

Particular constellations of cultural, transportation, educational, and other infrastructures in New York attract and sustain the global components within the city that connect directly to global flows; examples of those global components being the finance industry, corporate headquarters, and such. In other words, many of the individuals who have chosen to live in New York in order to work in Wall Street do so in large part because of the cultural vibrancy, excellent transit options, and related amenities the city offers, and, in the same token, many of the institutions headquartered in Wall Street have done so in large part because of the communications and transportation infrastructures, and the cadre of highly educated individuals concentrated in the city. In recognition of this point, Hong Kong's chief executive said recently of New York and London:

"It’s not only merchant bankers and the Financial Times. You need art, you need the West End, you need Wimbledon. They all need the Yankee Stadium and Broadway – that’s all in the make-up of a good city.”

The policy decisions that made possible these city amenities, like "the Yankee Stadium and Broadway," were taken at the local level, yet their implications have outgrown the local and national scale to become enmeshed in a global scale. The growing significance in global affairs of cities has entailed the increasing globalization of urban policy, as urban policy has global repercussions and global trends influence the direction of urban policy. So, debates surrounding congestion pricing in Lower Manhattan should matter not only to New Yorkers, but to all concerned about the global economy.