Unit 7- Urbanization

suburb

a highly residential area adjacent to an urban area, less-densely populated and less-ethnically diverse than inner cities

urbanization

The process of people moving to cities and towns, NOT complete once a city is formed and continues as the city continues to grow

percent urban

the proportion of an area’s population that lives in cities and towns (instead of in rural areas)

city

 a higher-density area with territory officially inside officially recognized political boundaries

metropolitan area

 a collection of adjacent cities economically connected, across which population density is high and continuous

metropolitan statistical area

in the U.S., this term refers to a city of at least 50,000 people, the county in which the city is located, and adjacent counties that have a high degree of social and economic integration with the urban core

social heterogeneity

variety of people among the population, high in cities, when compared to rural areas

reasons for social heterogeneity

People are drawn to cities from different areas, Cities are centers of immigration, Diversity attracts more diversity

periphery and semi-periphery

most rapid rural-to-urban migration occurs in (mostly internal migration)…

central place

People will go to a location to purchase goods and services

market area

zone that contains people who will purchase goods and services.

central place theory

explains the distribution of cities across space, place is surrounded by market area, higher-order services have larger market areas than lower-order services, threshold and range determine what services are available and how far apart places will be, cities that are the same size will be evenly spaced apart, smaller cities are spaced closer, larger cities are spaced further apart, depicted using hexagonal hinterlands

threshold

the minimum size of population necessary for any particular service to exist and remain profitable

range

the maximum distance that people are willing to travel to obtain specific goods or services

limitations of central place theory

Assumes a flat, featureless plain, doesn’t take into account effects of natural features, the effect of transportation networks and how they can expand a market area

functional zonation

the idea that portions of an urban area (i.e., regions or zones within a city) have specific and distinct purposes

cbd, industrial/commercial zone, residential zone where people live

Urban areas around the world share…

central business district

 the commercial heart of a city, Often located near the physical center of a city, the focus of transportation and services, transportation networks are often connected to here and higher-order services

 Industry, commerce businesses, commercial zones

Outside of CBD zones will be… (3)

inner city

residential area immediately surrounding the CBD, high population density, residences primarily being apartments, rowhomes, duplexes, etc.

filtering

neighborhoods change as one social group (usually wealthier) moves out and another social group (usually less wealthy) moves in

invasion and succession

neighborhoods change as one ethnic group moves out and another moves in (may see evidence of this sequent occupancy on the cultural landscape)

residential density gradient

As one moves further away from the inner city, population and housing density declines

urban infill

 process of increasing the residential density of an area by replacing open space with higher density housing such as apartments, condominiums, and townhouses

zoning ordinances

regulations that define how property in specific geographic areas many be used, to balance competing interests for land use

urban planning

a process of promoting growth and controlling change in land use

concentric zone model

cities grow outwards from a central area in concentric rings. The original model was designed with 5 rings. The width and exact number of rings varies from city to city, but the basic types of rings appear in cities in the same order

sector model

model developed by economist Homer Hoyt, cities grow in a series of sectors, as certain areas of the city are more attractive for various activities. As a city grows, activities expand outward in a wedge from the center, all were originally located near the city center and then grew outward

multiple nuclei model

views a city as a complex structure that includes a CBD, but which also has other nodes around which activities occur, states that some activities are attracted to certain nodes, while others try to avoid them

galactic model

 states that an urban area consists of an inner city, which is surrounded by large (although smaller than the city itself) suburban residential and service nodes (or nuclei) that are tied together by a beltway or a ring road known as edge cities

griffin-ford model

reflects that in many Latin American cities, wealthy people push out from the center of the city in a well-defined elite residential sector that forms along either side of a narrow spine that contains amenities used by the wealthy. Along the spine is also the zone where water and electricity services are more readily available, cities include favelas

favelas

neighborhoods marked by extreme poverty

disamenity zones

zones that are not connected to city services like water, electricity, sewage, garbage collection, etc. and are often under the control of criminals such as gang members, often physically unsafe locations, such as on steep hillsides, with structures that are poorly constructed (often by the residents themselves) and densely packed together

mcgee model

used to describe the land use of many large cities in Southeast Asia , port zone is an export-focused zone similar to a CBD in North American cities, The city may also have a separate government zone, a commercial zone dominated by foreign merchants, and a market gardening zone that surrounds and supplies the city,  importance of industry

urbanization

 process of people moving from rural to urban areas, leading to a growth of those urban areas into larger cities)

suburbanization

the process of people moving, usually from cities, to residential areas on the outskirts of cities, form communities that are connected to the city for jobs and services

Economic growth in the US, car-centered lifestyle allowing workers to commute from their city jobs to suburban homes, Federal Housing Administration, G.I. Bill, White flight

Reasons for US suburbanization after world war II

federal housing administration

provided mortgage loans for families to move to the suburbs, which were newly zoned for single-family housing

gi bill

made it easier for soldiers returning home from the war to receive mortgages to purchase homes

white flight

as many African Americans moved North in search of jobs and better education during and after World War II, many White Americans moved to the suburbs 

sprawl

the rapid expansion of the spatial extent of a city.

us sprawl

has been most common in fast-growing areas in the Southeast and West, the urban footprint of American cities grew larger than those of more populated cities in other regions of the world

deurbanization

the counter-flow of urban residents leaving cities

exurbs

prosperous residential districts beyond the suburb, contributions to this  is the ability of people to work remotely via technology, relative affordability of land in these areas and cultural preferences, people here want tranquility and privacy while still having connections to an urban area.

megacity

 cities that have a population of more than 10 million people

metacity

continuous urban area with a population greater than 20 million people

meta and megacities

can spread across political borders and exert an influence that is felt regionally, and even worldwide, due to the size of their populations, influence is derived from the city's political, economic, and cultural power

megalopolis

a chain of connected cities

 high birth rates and increased rural-to-urban migration

megacities have become more common in less developed countries because…

Social problems between ethnic groups, joblessness, lack of infrastructure, inadequate housing, and environmental problems

challenges of megacities

world cities

 cities that exert influence far beyond their national boundaries, are currently media hubs and financial centers with influential stock exchanges, banks, and corporate headquarters. Many are the headquarters of international organization

nodal cities

cities that are not as influential as world cities, have influence on a regional and national scale, have some corporate headquarters and regional offices for transnational companies, also serve as major entertainment, cultural, and economic centers, have developed road systems, large airports, and advanced communication networks that connect to smaller cities in their regions and to world cities.

urban hierarchy

 ranking of urban areas based on influence or population size

rank-size rule

describes one way in which the sizes of cities within a region (or country or possibly world) may develop. It states that the nth largest city in any region will be 1/n the size of the largest city, the rank of a city within a region will predict the size of the city

higher-order services

services that are usually expensive, need a large number of people to support, and are only occasionally utilize

lower-order services

services that are usually less expensive than higher-order services, require a small population to support, and are used on a daily or weekly basis

Limitations of rank size rule

does not explain the distribution of cities, doesn’t take into account the distance or interactions between cities, places define cities differently. 

primate city

the largest city in an urban system is more than twice as large as the next largest city,  more developed than other cities in the system, disproportionately more powerful, social, political, and economic hub, offer a wider range of services than smaller cities, medium sized cities are not present, often countries that follow a unitary form of government or extremely strong central government

gravity model

states that larger and closer places will have more interactions than places that are smaller and farther from each other, can be used to predict the flow of workers, shoppers, vacationers, migrants, information, mail, products, economic activity, and nearly any other flow between cities,  there are more numerous flows to bigger cities and between nearer cities, no barriers to flow between cities.

gravity model limitations

cities are also complicated by factors beyond size and distance, barriers do exist

infrastructure

facilities and systems that serve the population, which include transportation  communications features, distribution systems for water, gas, and electricity, buildings, collection systems, entertainment venues

municipal

 the local government of a city or town and the services it provides

municipality

a local entity that is all under the same jurisdiction (governmental authority), responsible for managing infrastructure at the local scale, although the federal government often subsidizes large expenses

annexation

process of adding land to a city's legally defined territory, generally requires a vote by residents in the affected areas.

incorporation

act of legally forming a new city, often the reason for this is that the newly-created municipality is smaller and political representation is more "local" than if the residents had opted for annexation

bedroom communities

commuter suburbs, within the larger metro area. Usually a nearby municipality provides their services and administration, through some higher division of local government such as a county, borough, parish, or province.

educational opportunities and health care for women, helping to strengthen society

Infrastructure improvements expand…

air pollution, congested roads and long commute times, valuable real estate being used for parking areas

Negatives of increased automobiles due to infrastructure (3)

public transportation

buses, subways, light rails, and trains that are operated by a government agency

poor quality, not enough, unaffordable

housing challenges

there are many women, women get less money, trying to find amenities for children

Challenges of housing for women (3)

redlining

the process by which banks refuse to loan money (a mortgage) to those who want to purchase properties in certain urban areas, historically a form of discrimination, reduced homeownership, causing higher poverty rates

racial segregation in housing

occurs when people live in separate neighborhoods based on race or ethnicity. It can be voluntary, but oftentimes it occurs involuntarily based on discriminatory laws and practices as well as violence

blockbusting

When a racial or ethnic minority move into a majority white neighborhood, a landlord instilling fear in people to sell their property so that the landlord can have racial or ethnic minorities rent out that house

financial subsidies, rent control policies, inclusionary zoning practices, construction if public housing

government efforts for affordable housing

urban renewal

Many of the government public housing projects were built in the 1960s and 1970s during a period of…

eminent domain

the ability of the government to seize private property from an individual, pay that property owner “just compensation”, and then use the property for some public good

gentrification

 the process of a lower income urban neighborhood becoming a higher-income neighborhood with improved housing and amenities as wealthier people purchase and renovate homes in the area 

land tenure

ownership of the land on which they live

zones of abandonment

areas of a city that have been deserted by their owners, most commonly for economic reasons

environmental injustice

the disproportionate exposure of minorities and the poor to pollution and its impacts, particularly in urban settings where poor communities are located near high-polluting activities

 homelessness, lack of services, food deserts

Challenges of lower income urban communities

smart-growth policies

 policies that are designed to combat urban sprawl and to create a more sustainable and equitable city

edge city

a suburban area that functions as a regional hub for business, recreation, and other commercial activities, often connected by a beltway and characterized by a lower population density than the central city.

compact centers

Encourage a mix of building types and uses, Provide a variety of transportation options within communities, Create attractive residential neighborhoods that are walkable, Develop a strong sense of place among residents, Increase livability by making the city easy and safe to navigate, Involve residents in decisions that affect their community

greenbelt

area of protected undeveloped land around an urban area, created to limit a city’s growth and to preserve farmland

concentration in compact centers, green belts, small growth cities, new urbanism and urban infill, transit oriented development

Small growth policies that target urban sprawl

slow growth cities

aim to slow a city’s population growth through tactics such as limiting the number of building permits (approvals) that they will grant

urban infill

 the process of building up unused land within a city, includes numerous green building practices like solar panels, greenery, and electric vehicle charging stations

transit-oriented development

refers to building mixed-use residential and commercial communities that are located next to mass transit stops, results in less need for automobiles, includes multiple modes of transportation, such as train, bus, and light rail

Criticism of smart growth policies

expensive, Contributes to congestion and noise in cities, limits choices, high-population density areas with less privacy, increase in crime, economic segregation, displacement of lower income people, transit systems incomplete and inaccessible

urban canyons

created by streets lined with tall buildings that can channel and intensify wind

urban flooding

this results from paving over soil to create streets, buildings, parking lots, etc., with the result that rainfall isn’t absorbed into the ground

urban heat islands

the concentration of buildings and concrete in the center of a city leads to warmer temperatures in the city than in surrounding areas

availability and use of automobiles, interstate systems and other roads,inexpensive land outside of urban areas

factors have contributed significantly to urban sprawl since the mid-20th century (3)

quantitative data

Data that can be counted, measured or sequenced

us census

 conducted every 10 years,  provides quantitative data about the U.S. population and the composition of this population

qualitative data

Data that provides personal perceptions and descriptions, such as can be gathered through surveys, field studies, photos, videos and interviews