Unit 6: Cities and Urban Land Use Patterns and Processes

origin and influences urbanization: refers to the movement of people to towns/cities and the resulting expansion of the rural countryside
of urbanization
influences on urbanization: changes in transportation and communication, population growth, migration, economic
development, and government policies

the presence and site: the actual physical qualities of the place that a city occupies which can influence origin, function, and growth
growth of cities vary e.g. coastal plain, valley, mountains
due to physical
geography and situation: the relative location of a city (what is it near) which can influence origin, function, and growth
resources e.g. located near shipping routes (Hong Kong, Singapore)

spatial outcomes of megacity: a large city with over 10 million people and found increasingly in the periphery and semi-periphery
urbanization that are e.g. LDCs: Mumbai, São Paulo, Jakarta, Lima, Shenzhen,
increasingly located MDC: Paris
in countries of the
meta-city: a large city with over 20 million people and found increasingly in the periphery and semi-periphery
periphery and semi-
e.g. LDCs: Delhi, Mexico City, Cairo, Beijing, Mumbai
periphery
MDCs: Tokyo

new land use forms suburbanization: the transformation of large areas of rural land to urban uses
created by
suburbanization, suburb: a residential area located on the periphery of a city
sprawl, and
decentralization suburban sprawl: unrestricted suburban growth and development over large areas spreading out from a city in which cars
provide primary source of transportation

edge city: a concentration of residential and economic (business, shopping, entertainment) activity located in the suburbs

exurb: a residential area beyond the suburbs, often in more rural areas

boomburb: residential and economic urban area that is not the largest city in their metropolitan area, but has a large
population (100,000+) and tends to be spread along highways (e.g. Irvine, CA)
cities are connected world city: city that functions as a service center of the world economy driving globalization at the top of the urban
globally by networks hierarchy (hamlet, village, town, city, world city)
and linkages and e.g. New York City, London, Tokyo, Paris
mediate global
processes network: a system of interconnected people, goods, information, transportation, communication, finance

globalization: the process of increased interconnectedness among countries most notably in the areas of economics,
politics, and culture

explanations for urban hierarchy: settlements ranked by population, number of services and sphere of influence
distribution, size, and e.g. hamlet, village, town, city
interaction of cities
rank-size rule: the idea that the population of a city or town will be inversely proportional to its rank in the urban hierarchy
if the largest city in a country contained 1 million citizens then the:
2nd largest city would contain 500,00 (1 million/2)
3rd largest city would contain 333,333 (1 million/3)
4th largest city would contain 250,000 (1 million/4)

primate city: a country's largest city, at least twice as large as the next largest city and more than twice as significant (usually
the capital city) and represents national culture e.g. Paris, France and London, England

gravity model: a measure of the interaction of places used to predict the movement of people

Christaller’s Central Place Theory (early 1933)

● explains the distribution, size, location, and interaction of settlements in an urban system
● settlements provide a set of goods and services to their hinterland, which is the surrounding market area
● larger settlements are fewer and farther apart and serve a large market area, providing low order goods as well as
high-order goods
● smaller centers serve smaller market areas generally providing low order goods
● low-order goods: products that are replenished frequently such as
food and other routine household items
● high-order goods: specialized items such as cars, furniture,
fine jewelry, and household appliances that are bought less often
● threshold: the minimum number of people needed for a
business to prosper
● range: the maximum distance people will travel to purchase
goods and services
urban models models that are useful for explaining internal structures of cities

Burgess Concentric a spatial model of the American city that suggests the existence of five concentric rings
Zone Model around a CBD (Central Business District)
E.W. Burgess (1923) ● center circle: the city grows outward beginning with the Central Business District
● second ring: the zone in transition where industry and poorer-quality housing are located
(usually new immigrants to the city in small quarters as well as single individuals in rooming houses)
● third ring: zone of modest older homes typically for the working class
● fourth ring: zone of better residences where more spacious houses for middle-class families
● fifth ring: commuter zone made up of people who work in the center and choose to live in the suburbs

Hoyt Sector Model a spatial model of the American city that suggests that land-use areas conform to a
Homer Hoyt (1939) wedge-shaped pattern focused on the downtown core (CBD)
● focus is on residential patterns and where the wealthy choose to live
● the city develops in a series of sectors
● at the center: Central Business District
● as the city grows, activities expands in a wedge, or sector, from the center
● industrial and retailing activities develop outward from the CBD
● once a district with "high-class" housing is established, the most expensive houses are built on the
outer edge of that district further from the center
● middle class residential sectors develop in proximity to high rent residential and then
low-class residential nearest to industrial and transportation zones

Harris and Ullman a spatial model that shows the mid 20th century American city consisting of
Multiple Nuclei several land-use zones (nodes) arranged around a CBD (Central Business District)
Model ● the CBD acts as the nucleus within the metropolitan area upon which activities revolve in
Chauncey Harris and various land-use zones or nodes
E.L. Ullman (1945) ● examples of these nodes include: ports, neighborhood business centers, universities, airport,
and parks
● some activities go with particular nodes while others do not, for example, a university node
may attract well-educated residents, bookstores, and copy places, or, the airport may attract
hotels and warehouses
● incompatible land use activities will not be clustered together, for example,
industries will not be placed near high-class housing

Galactic City Model a spatial model in which American urban areas consist of a central city surrounded by a large suburban area, shopping
(Peripheral Model) malls, office parks, industrial areas, and service complexes tied together by a beltway, or ring road
updated model by
Chauncey Harris
(1997)

bid-rent theory ● extension of the von Thünen model that implies that rent is
equal to the value of the product minus production and
transportation costs
 ● shows what various land users are prepared and able to pay
for access to the center market (CBD)
● the further from the center market (CBD), the lower
the cost for a site
● intensive and extensive farming practices are in part
by land costs (bid-rent theory)

Latin American City a spatial city model that includes a prestigious, commercial axis (spine)
Model which emanates outward from the CBD and is surrounded by
Griffin-Ford (1980) a peripheral area containing squatter settlements; the city structure
can be attributed to colonialism, the rapid rise of industrialization,
and rapid population increase

Southeast Asian City a spatial city model that includes an old colonial port zone that is the
Model focal point of the city reflecting a city oriented around exports, and
McGee (1967) radiating outward from the port zone are the Western commercial zone
and Alien commercial zone
Sub-Saharan African a spatial city model that is difficult to formulate due to the imprint of
City Model European colonialism, but often consists of a colonial CBD as well as
de Blij a traditional CBD, and a market zone that is surrounded by squatter settlements
(informal satellite townships)

economic, political, housing discrimination: discrimination in the purchase or rental of housing on the basis of race, gender, ethnicity, age,
cultural, social, and national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, or veteran status
environmental
challenges of urban red-lining: a discriminatory real estate practice in North America in which members of minority groups are prevented from
changes obtaining money to purchase homes or property in predominately white neighborhoods
ALSO
a discriminatory banking practice of refusing to loan money to people in “risky” neighborhoods, creating a downward spiral
in which poor neighborhoods became increasingly rundown
ALSO USED BY
insurance companies to refuse coverage or to cancel policies

blockbusting: a real estate technique used to encourage people to sell their property at a very low price by giving the
impression that the neighborhood was changing for the worse, especially in reference to minorities moving in and led to a
significant turnover in housing which benefited real estate agents and led to the “white flight” to the suburbs

affordable housing: residential units that are economical for the section of society whose income is below the median
household income

access to services: measure of people’s ability to pay for services without financial hardship (health services, infrastructure)
 high crime rates: contributing factors include lack of job availability, less access to quality schools, and real or perceived
lack of opportunity

environmental injustice: disproportionate exposure to communities of color and the poor to pollution and its effects on
health and the environment; includes inadequate access to healthy food, inadequate transportation, unsafe neighborhoods with
poor air and water quality

disamenity zone: area located within the city characterized by slums and the homeless and in extreme cases are controlled
by gangs or drug lords

zones of abandonment: areas with lack of jobs, declining land values and falling demand that cause people to leave and
businesses to close

conflicts over land squatter settlements (slum/favela/barrio/shantytown): residential areas characterized by extreme poverty with shelters
within urban areas constructed of found materials (scrap wood, etc.) that usually exist on land just outside of cities that is neither owned or
have increased rented by its occupants with little or no access to water, sewage, garbage removal, or education

land tenure: system regulating the rights to ownership and control and usage of land

responses to inclusionary zoning: planning ordinances that provide affordable housing to people with low to moderate incomes
economic and social
challenges in urban local food movements: food that is produced within a short distance of where it is comsumed, often accompanied by a social
areas structure and supply chain different from the large-scale supermarket system

urban renewal and urban renewal: the redevelopment of areas within an urban area, typically neighborhoods in economic decline
gentrification have
both positive and gentrification: the restoration of deteriorated urban areas by wealthier (mostly middle-income) people who move into,
negative renovate, and restore housing and sometimes businesses
consequences
negative consequences include impact to existing groups:
displaces poorer residents
disregards the needs and interests of vulnerable groups
disregards lawful rights of vulnerable groups (e.g. coercion)
disproportionately improves quality of life

positive consequences include added revenue from increased city productivity:

 new employment opportunities
improved housing
improved infrastructure
increase in visitors/tourism

functional and functional fragmentation of government: refers to the way governmental institutions are dispersed between many local
geographic agencies including state, county, city and neighborhood levels
fragmentation of
governments interaction between local government agencies can be:
presents challenges collaboratively to provide services and reduce common threats
in addressing urban or
issues competitively through taxation and/or land use decisions that can be harmful to an entire region

challenges to urban urban sustainability: the idea that a city can meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
renewal generations to meet theirs in terms of economic, environmental and social impact

challenges to urban sustainability: managing suburban sprawl, sanitation needs, climate change, air and water quality
standards, the ecological footprint of cities, and energy use

responses to urban sustainability challenges: regional planning efforts, remediation and redevelopment of brownfields,
establishment of urban growth boundaries (e.g. greenbelts), and farmland protection policies

residential buildings low density housing: land use pattern meant for a small number of residential homes that include a lot of open space and
and patterns of contain the fewest people per geographic unit
residential land-use
medium density housing: land use pattern in which residential units include multi-unit housing, such as townhomes as well
as single-unit housing

high density housing: land use pattern in which land is occupied by residential units that include multi-unit housing such as
high-rise buildings and contain the highest people per geographic unit

residential buildings and patterns of land use: reflect and shape the city’s culture, technological capabilities, cycles of
development, and infilling (development of vacant areas within existing urban areas)

location and quality of a city’s infrastructure: affects economic development and social development

sustainable design sustainable development: meeting human development goals while sustaining the natural systems that provide the natural
initiatives and zoning resources upon which the economy and society depend
practices
zoning: classifying land and identifying the types of activities that are permitted
e.g. residential, industrial, commercial, agricultural

mixed land use: land development that blends a combination of residential, commercial, cultural, institutional and/or
industrial uses

walkability: a measure of how friendly an urban area is to walking

transportation-oriented development: land use pattern that includes a mix of commercial, residential, office and
entertainment space centered around or located near public transport; dense, walkable, mixed use development near transit
that attracts people to connect communities

smart growth policies: urban planning that avoids urban sprawl and focuses on long term implications with sustainable
design initiatives and guides development into more convenient patterns and into areas where infrastructure allows growth to
be sustained over the long term

new urbanism: smart growth policy that creates walk-able, mixed land use neighborhoods with commercial and residential
areas

green belt: an area of natural land on which building is restricted and whose main purpose is to curb the outward expansion
of a large urban area e.g. London

slow growth cities: smart growth policies that concentrate growth in walkable urban centers to decrease sprawl

effects of urban
design initiatives PRAISE: CRITICISM:
reduction of urban sprawl increased housing costs
improved walkability de facto segregation
improved transportation loss of historical character/place character
improved and diverse housing options
improved livability
promotion of sustainable options

qualitative and quantitative data: census and survey data provide information about changes in population composition and size
quantitative data is
used to show causes qualitative data: field studies and narratives provide information about individual attitudes toward urban change
and effects of change
within urban areas