Long-range Public Investment

In this comprehensive survey combining architectural and social policy studies, Leighninger reappraises the enduring achievements of public investment during the New Deal era and argues that, though these initiatives produced the lasting backbone of the U.S. infrastructure, the value of these long-range investments are now being forgotten. In response, he systematically assesses the schools, housing, bridges, roads, power plants, courthouses, hospitals, museums, stadiums, zoos, parks, and other public facilities built under the auspices of the New Deal, most of which are still in use today. Leighninger's study concludes that the physical accomplishments of the New Deal have served as the core of the U.S. education, health, recreation, transportation, justice, and civic administration facilities for decades. These findings, he contends, will not only remind current generations of their indebtedness to the New Deal programs but also spark renewed debate about the long-range implications of public works versus pork barrel politics.