Beyond Consensus and Conflict in Housing Governance: Returning to the Local State

Ormerod, E.; Macleod, G.

Abstract

This article contends that the de-politicizing tendencies in urban planning that are often interpreted through a post-political frame of analysis might alternatively be investigated via the analytical lens of a transforming local state. Examining the formation of entrepreneurial municipal housing strategies in Gateshead, northeast England, the article reveals a recent history of community consensus being manipulated, a technocratic steering of participatory planning and a de-amplifying of dissenting voices. Amid protracted conditions of austerity, the more recent strategy sees Gateshead municipal authority assuming an increasingly ‘promotional’ role, essentially as a housing developer. Placing critical decisions over housing futures within Gateshead Regeneration Partnership, a potentially rough road towards attaining democratic legitimacy is actively being smoothed. These are all trends that are emblematic of a post-political repertoire. However, a more forensic examination reveals how these anti-democratic processes might be more appropriately understood as political accomplishments on the part of those who have been newly incorporated into a local state in transition. The article thereby offers a conceptual antidote to the post-political narrative.

Citation

Ormerod, E., & Macleod, G. (2019). Beyond Consensus and Conflict in Housing Governance: Returning to the Local State. Planning Theory, 18(3), 319-338. https://doi.org/10.1177/1473095218790988

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jun 29, 2018
• Online Publication Date: Aug 1, 2018
• Publication Date: Aug 31, 2019
• Deposit Date: Aug 8, 2018
• Publicly Available Date: Aug 8, 2018
• Journal: Planning Theory
• Print ISSN: 1473-0952
• Electronic ISSN: 1741-3052
• Publisher: SAGE Publications
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 18
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 319-338
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1473095218790988
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1324037