ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses two topics. First, the reactions to urban decline in two cities are studied. Second, the changes in local government occurring in the process of transformation are documented. The hypothesis guiding the analysis is that cities in the process of coping with decline or urban revitalization are forced to transform both their political and administrative structure from urban government to urban governance. Dortmund and Duisburg started from a similar economic base viz. employment structure, although the share of secondary-sector employment in 1980 was higher in Duisburg than in Dortmund. Cities are forced to change their urban government under the threefold impact of a dwindling tax base, increasing competition, and revitalization, the latter also serving to increase their competitiveness. One of the main causes of change from urban government to urban governance is the fiscal situation of cities in distress. Urban revitalization has primarily been viewed as a trajectory of the urban economic and socio-demographic structure.
