The Promise of Paradise

In the first geographic and environmental analysis of the recreational and retirement community industry Hubert B. Stroud shows how and why certain communities had positive impacts on the surrounding region while others did not. Focusing on well-known developments in Arizona New Mexico Florida Arkansas and Tennessee he finds that most developments were poorly planned resulting in environmental damage overtaxing of public services and social and economic problems. Yet Stroud acknowledges that future development is inevitable as recreational and retirement communities continue to lure urban America with the promise of paradise.