Unit 6: Cities and Urban Land Use Patterns & Processes

African City Model (De Blij Model)

a model of urban development depicting a city with three central business districts, growing outward in a series of concentric rings

Blockbusting

a practice by real estate agents who would stir up concern that Black families would soon move into a neighborhood; the agents would convince White property owners to sell their houses at below-market prices

Boomburb

a suburb that has grown rapidly into a large and sprawling city with more than 100,000 residents

Brownfields

abandoned and polluted industrial sites in central cities or suburbs, many of which are today being cleaned and redeveloped

Central Business District (CBD)

the central location where the majority of consumer services are located in a city or town because the accessibility of the location attracts these services

Central Place Theory

a theory used to describe the spatial relationship between cities and their surrounding communities

Concentric Zone Model

a model of urban development depicting a city growing outward from a central business district in a series of concentric rings

de facto segregation

segregation that results from residential settlement patterns rather than from prejudicial laws

Disamenity Zones

a high-poverty urban area in a disadvantaged location containing steep slopes, flood-prone ground, rail lines, landfills, or industry

ecological footprint

the impact of a person or community on the environment, expressed as the amount of land required to sustain their use of natural resources

Edge City

a type of community located on the outskirts of a larger city with commercial centers with office space, retail complexes, and other amenities typical of an urban center

eminent domain

a government's right to take over privately owned property for public use or interest

environmental injustice

the ways in which communities of color and poor people are more likely to be exposed to environmental burdens such as air pollution or contaminated water; also called environmental racism

Exurb

a typically fast-growing community outside of or on the edge of a metropolitan area where the residents and community are closely connected to the central city and suburbs

Filtering

the process of neighborhood change in which housing vacated by more affluent groups passes down the income scale to lower-income groups

food desert

area where residents lack access to healthy, nutritious foods because stores selling these foods are too far away

Galactic City Model

a model of urban development depicting a city where economic activity has moved from the central business district toward loose coalitions of other urban areas and suburbs; also known as the peripheral model

Greenbelt

a ring of parkland, agricultural land, or other type of open space maintained around an urban area to limit sprawl

inclusionary zoning law

law that creates affordable housing by offering incentives for developers to set aside a minimum percentage of new housing construction to be allocated for low-income renters or buyers

Infill

redevelopment that identifies and develops vacant parcels of land within previously built areas

infrastructure

the many systems and facilities that a country needs in order to function properly

land tenure

the legal rights, as defined by a society, associated with owning land

Latin American City Model

a model of urban development depicting a city with a central business district, concentric rings, and sections stricken by poverty; also known as the Griffin-Ford model

Megacity

A city with more than 10 million people

Metacity

A city with a population over 20 million

Megalopolis

a region in which several large cities and surrounding areas grow together

metropolitan area

a city and the surrounding areas that are influenced economically and culturally by the city

mixed-use development (MUD)

a single planned development designed to include multiple uses, such as residential, retail, educational, recreational, industrial, and office spaces

Multiple Nuclei Model

a model of urban development depicting a city where growth occurs around the progressive integration of multiple nodes, not around one central business district

New Urbanism

a school of thought that promotes designing growth to limit the amount of urban sprawl and preserve nature and usable farmland

primate city (urban primacy)

The largest settlement in a country, if it far exceeds the next city in population size and importance

rank-size rule

explanation of size of cities within a country; states the second-largest city will be one-half the size of the largest, the third largest will be one-third the size of the largest, and so on

Redlining

practice by which a financial institution such as a bank refuses to offer home loans on the basis of a neighborhood's racial or ethnic makeup

regional planning

planning conducted at a regional scale that seeks to coordinate the development of housing, transportation, urban infrastructure, and economic activities

Rural-to-urban migration

people are drawn in to cities for opportunities; driven by poverty and hope to do better

Sector Model

a model of urban development depicting a city with wedge-shaped sectors and divisions emanating from the central business district, generally along transit routes

slow-growth cities

city where planners have used smart-growth policies to decrease the rate at which the city grows outward

smart-growth policy

policy implemented to create sustainable communities by placing development in convenient locations and designing it to be more efficient and environmentally responsible

Social area analysis

Statistical analysis used to identify where people of similar living standards, ethnic background, and life style live within an urban area.

Southeast Asia City Model

a model of urban development depicting a city oriented around a port and lacking a formal central business district, growing outward in concentric rings and along multiple nodes

Squatter Settlement

an informal housing area beset with overcrowding and poverty that features temporary homes often made of wood scraps or metal sheeting

transportation-oriented development

the creation of dense, walkable, pedestrian-oriented, mixed-use communities centered around or located near a transit station

suburbs

less densely populated residential and commercial areas surrounding a city

urban area

a city and its surrounding suburbs

Urban growth boundary

a boundary that separates urban land uses from rural land uses by limiting how far a city can expand

urban renewal

the nationwide movement that developed in the 1950s and 1960s when U.S. cities were given massive federal grants to tear down and clear out crumbling neighborhoods and former industrial zones as a means of rebuilding their downtowns

urban sprawl

areas of poorly planned, low-density development surrounding a city

Walkability

a measure of how safe, convenient, and efficient it is to walk in an urban environment

World Cities

cities that wield political, cultural, and economic influence on a global scale

Zones of Abandonment

area that has been largely deserted due to lack of jobs, declines in land value, and falling demand

Zoning

the process of dividing a city or urban area into zones within which only certain land uses are permitted