Book description
One hundred years ago, the City of Brantford advertised itself as the
most important manufacturing centre in Canada. During the century that
followed, its industrial economy boomed, faltered, and finally
collapsed. By the end of the twentieth century, Brantford was known
for unemployment, hard luck, and the infamy of having "the worst
downtown in Canada." For twenty years the downtown was in steep
decline. Significant attempts at urban revival had failed until
Wilfrid Laurier University decided to locate a campus in the heart of
Brantford's crumbling city centre.
Leo Groarke revisists the grandeur of the city's past, explores the
economic downfall, and tells the story of the arrival of the
university, its early struggles, its commitment to historic
restoration, and its ultimate success as a catalyst for urban renewal.
The compelling story he recounts will engage anyone interested in the
plight of the North-American city core and the role that universities
and colleges can play in re-establishing downtowns as vibrant centres
of historical and contemporary importance.
"Dr. Groarke tells the story well in Reinventing Brantford. His
passion is obvious, as is a measure of pride in what was achieved. For
every reader, especially those living in small cities that need a new
direction, this book cannot help but inspire."
Leo Groarke,
Principal of the Brantford campus of Wilfrid Laurier University, has
been the senior administrator of the campus since 2000. He has studied
at the University of Calgary, Simon Fraser University, the University
of Helsinki, and the University of Western Ontario, and received a Ph.
D. in Philosophy from Western in 1982. He has published many articles
on the history of ideas, the theory of argument, social issues, peace
and conflict, visual argument, and the role of higher education in
contemporary society. His previous books include Greek
Scepticism (McGill-Queen's), Good Reasoning Matters!
(Oxford, with Christopher Tindale), and The Ethics of the New
Economy (WLU Press).
