Norton Long Career Achievement Award, APSA (2016); Robert Park Award, ASA (1989)
Steven P. Erie (born January 28, 1946) is an American political scientist and urban studies scholar known for his work on infrastructure politics, water policy, urban and regional governance and development, and ethnic and racial incorporation in American cities. He is Professor Emeritus of Political Science and former Director of the Urban Studies and Planning Program at the University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego).[1]
Erie was born in Glendale, California. He earned his Bachelor of Arts (1967), Master of Arts (1969), and Ph.D. (1975) in Political Science from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).[2] His doctoral dissertation, The Development of Class and Ethnic Politics in San Francisco, 1870–1910: A Critique of the Pluralist Interpretation, examined how ethnic and class conflicts shaped the rise and fall of local labor parties.[3]
Erie joined the Department of Political Science at UC San Diego in 1981, where he served as Assistant, Associate, and then full Professor until his retirement in 2016.[1] He concurrently held an adjunct appointment in the Department of History (1991–2016) and was Director of the Urban Studies and Planning Program from 2000 to 2014.[5]
Research and publications
Erie's research focuses on the political economy of cities and metropolitan regions, examining the impact of infrastructure and governance on economic development. His work emphasizes how the politics of water supply and trade infrastructure (such as ports and airports) shaped the growth of cities like Los Angeles and San Diego.[6]
He served on the Governor’s Commission on Building for the 21st century and played an active role in California's water and airport policy debates.[8] Erie also participated in civic efforts for governance reform in San Diego, including the adoption of a strong-mayor system. He has advised public officials, business groups, and civic organizations and authored numerous opinion pieces in the Los Angeles Times, The San Diego Union-Tribune, and other newspapers.[9]
Beyond Chinatown: The Metropolitan Water District, Growth, and the Environment in Southern California (Stanford University Press, 2006)[13]
Paradise Plundered: Fiscal Crisis and Governance Failures in San Diego (with Vladimir Kogan and Scott A. MacKenzie, Stanford University Press, 2011)
Selected journal articles
Erie, Steven P. (1992). "How the Urban West Was Won: The Local State and Economic Growth in Los Angeles, 1880–1932". Urban Affairs Quarterly, 27(4): 519–554.
Erie, Steven P., et al. (2002). "Fiscal Constraints and the Loss of Home Rule: The Long-Term Impacts of California’s Post-Proposition 13 Fiscal Regime". American Review of Public Administration, 32(4): 423–454.
Erie, Steven P., et al. (2010). "Redevelopment, San Diego Style: The Limits of Public–Private Partnerships". Urban Affairs Review, 45(5): 644–678.
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