AP HuG Chapter 13

annexation

the legal act of adding land to a city

census tract

This is an area that is delineated by the U.S. Bureau of the Census, in order to gather statistics that will later on be published, from urban areas, and census tracts that correspond primarily to neighborhoods. 

concentric zone model

This urban model was developed by E.W. Burgess in 1923 which displayed the internal structure of a city through spatially arranged social groups in a series of concentric rings.

council of government

This is a cooperative agency that consists of representatives from local governments in an urban area in the U.S., in order to resolve the problems of inefficient planning in cities. 

density gradient

This is a change in density in cities that is seen from the center to periphery, typically illustrating how the population decreases as sprawl is followed.

edge city

This is a large node of office and retail activities on the edge of an urban area, typically along a major highway, and typically containing a substantially-size shopping mall.

filtering

This is the process of change in the use of a house from single-family owner occupancy to simple abandonment due to possession by successively lower income families.

gentrification

This is the process of converting an urban neighborhood from a primarily low-income, renter-occupied area, to a primarily middle-class, owner-occupied area.

greenbelt

These are purposely preserved spaces in cities that are maintained as parks, agricultural land, or other types of open space in order to limit the sprawl of an urban area.

metropolitan statistical area (MSA):

This is an urban area classified as having at least 50,000 residents, located within the county which the center city is located within, and is surrounded by adjacent counties where a large percentage of residents are employed within the center city.

Micropolitan statistical area:

These are urban areas containing between 10,000 and 50,000 residents where it is an urban clustering, and strong economies and social ties are exhibited as a result.

multiple nuclei model

This urban model developed by C.D. Harris and E.L. Ullman in 1945 illustrates the internal structure of cities as having social groups which are arranged around a collection of nodal activities.

peripheral model

 This urban model developed by Chauncey Harris is used specifically to model North American urban areas that consist of an inner city that is surrounded by large suburban residential and business areas that are tied together by a beltway road. 

public housing

This type of housing is one which is owned by the government in the U.S., which is rented to residents with low incomes, and the rents are set to 30% of the families’ total incomes.

redlining

This is the process in which banks draw lines on maps and refuse to lend money to purchase or improve property within the boundaries, historically known to have been used as a racially-discriminatory practice. 

rush hour

These are the four consecutive 15-minutes periods in the morning and evening with the heaviest volumes of traffic, typically attributing to 40% of a city’s total trips.

sector model

This urban model developed by Homer Hoyt in 1939 illustrates the internal structure of cities where social groups are arranged around a series of sectors or wedges that radiate out from the central business district.

smart growth

These are legislative acts and regulations that look to limit suburban sprawl, minimize gapping in residential patterns, and preserve farmland. 

sprawl

This is the development of new housing sites at relatively low densities and at locations that are not contiguous to existing built-up areas, which causes urban areas to continue to sparsely expand outwards.

Squatter settlement

These are areas within cities in LDCs in which people illegally establish residences on land they do not own or rent, and erect homemade structures to live in using found materials.

underclass

This is the group in society that is prevented from participating in the material benefits of a more developed society due to various social and economic characteristics that support discrimination.

urbanization

This is the process by which greater populations begin to reside in cities, typically driven by new job opportunities that arise through industrialization and development, or affordability in clustered housing as well as availability of services. 

urbanized area

This is a dense core of census tracts, densely settled suburbs, and low-density land that links the dense suburbs with the densely populated core.

urban renewal

This is when cities remove residents from low income areas in order to rebuild them in attempts to attract higher-income residents.

zoning ordinance:

These are laws that limit the permitted use of land and the maximum density of development in communities.