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An urban place is characterised by:
Pop. size
specific regions such as CBD and residential zones
predominant economic activities
an administrative function
Site
land on which a settlement is built
Situation/position
lands relationship with the surrounding area
Desirable factors for agriculture and housing
readily available water
freedom from flooding
level sites to build on
local timber for construction and fuel
sunny, sought facing slopes
proximity to rich soils
the potential to trade and commerce
How land may be used for
residential
industrial
for services
open space
for recreation
transport routes
Vertical zoning
Same building is used for different things depending on the floors, e.i. shops on first floor —> housing on second
Settlement hierarchies
tresholds
range
high-order goods
low-order goods
sphere of influence
Different-order centres distinguishers
type
number of functions
market area
employment
population size
Conurbation
When two cities merge together
Metacity
large-scale city where many cities merge
Megalopolis
where cities sprawl and merge together
Generalisations about hierarchy of settlements
more small settlements than large
at bottom of the hierarchy small villages provide low-order goods to low amount of people
small urban areas provide more low- and high-order goods to a larger population from surrounding areas
at top of the hierarchy large urban areas provide a lot of high - and low-order goods to low amount of people
Important functions in the process of development
commercially
industrially
politically
socially
administratively
The deterioration of cities is manifested in:
high rates of un- and underemployment
insufficient housing and shelter
overloaded and over crowded transport systems
air, water and noise pollution
deteriorating infrastructure
growing inequalities between areas in terms of access to infrastructure and services
inadequate sanitation
increasing prevalence of social problems, i.e. crime rates, suicide rates, drug and alcohol abuse
general deterioration in quality of life
Settelments
have greater potential for range and growth if they are located well = not harsh climates i.e too dry, wet, hot, cold
Mission of the Puryaja Corpiration is to provide:
effective and affective administration
quality of services to ensure customer satisfaction
infrastructure and amenities to create an ideal living and working environment
Corporations functions include:
local government in the Putrajaya area
promoting, stimulating, facilitating and undertaking commercial infrastructure and residential development in the area
controlling and coordinating the performance of their activities in the area
Example of a scheme
Putrajaya in Malaysia = a totally new city designed 25 km from the capital. Established in 1995, it is being built according to a series of comprehensive policies and guide lines for land use, transportation systems, utilities, infrastructure, housing, public amenities, information technology, parks and gardens.
Bid rent of land
The value of land varies for different purposes such as commercial, manufacturing and residential
A central place-type hierarchy of retailing
low order goods in neighbourhood stores and super markets
high order goods in high street shops, department stores
out of town superstores and retail parks
Central shopping areas / high streets
department, chain, specialist stores, pedestrianised malls
Shopping parades
clusters of shops : small super market, off-licences, newsagent and other low-good outlets
Superstores
large outlets close to residential areas with 2500> m2 of shopping area, parking and good road access
Retail park
may be formed from hardware, electrical and furniture superstores clustering
Causes for changes in shopping habits
demographic change = i.e. falling population growth
sub- and counter urbanisation
technological change = i.e. increased standards of living
congestion and inflated land prices in city centres
increased accessibility to suburban sites
social changes, i.e. more women work
Renovating retails may include:
full scale development
creation of traffic free zones
large scale redelopment schemes
Characteristics of CBD
multi-storey development
concentration of retailing
public transport
offices
functional segregation
vertical zoning
few people living there
traffic restriction are greatest
the CBD changes over time
CBD (the central business district)
most connected by public transport, heart of the city, location with highest land values
Examples of locations for industrial zones
inner-city areas close to railways/canals
brownfield suburban areas close to airports
sites away from residential locations
Industries in cities include:
those needing skilled labour i.e. medical instruments
those needing access to the CBD i.e. fashion accessories and clothes
those needing the whole urban market for distribution i.e. newspapers
all have a central location
Why large cities are attractive for industries
capital cities are often largest manufacture centres of the nation
largest markets
port cities have good access to international markets
major centres of ideas, innovation and fashion
a variety of labour is available i.e. skilled and unskilled workers
Factors affecting the location of urban residential areas
physical factors
land values
ethnicity
urban residential planning
Physical factors
HICs, wealthy people live in scenic areas, while in LICs, poor communities occupy risky locations due to lack of options and regulations.
land value
In HIC cities, high land values in inner-city areas lead to low residential density, while suburban areas have lower land values and lower density, with wealthier people living further out and poorer households in inner-city locations close to jobs
Ethnicity
Groups may form neighbourhoods for mutual support and services, but negative segregation can occur when certain groups are excluded from specific areas due to cost or discriminatory practices
Urban residential planning
Aims for a social mix, but wealthier communities may resist affordable housing, leading to segregation by wealth, race, and ethnicity
positive segregation
where populations of given groups concentrate in areas for increasing their access to jobs and other social benefits
negative segregation
where populations become excluded from socio-economic functions
Induces used to measure deprivation
physical and social indicators i.e. quality of housing and crime
ecological and political induces i.e. access to employment and oppurtunity to vote
Slums typical location
what planners don’t want
steep slopes
flood plains
edge of town locations
industrial zones
Un defines something a slum when the area has up to 3 of these criterions
durable housing
sufficient living space
access to improved water
access to improves sanitation facilities
secure tenure
Dual economy
formal economy (offices, factories commercial buildings)
informal economy (gardeners, maids, taxi drivers)
Division of informal economy
bazaar economy
street economy
Bazaar economy
consists of small trade and trade astablishments
Street economy
shoe-shiners, beggars, prostitutes
Urbanisation
An increase of habitants within an urban area i.e. rual-to-urban migration
Natural increase
When the birth rate is higher than the death rate in a country or a place
Rural-urban migration
movement of people from rural areas to cities
Push factor
negative features which cause a person to leave a certain place
Pull factor
attractions that exist in another place
Gentrification
reinvestment of capital into inner-city areas
Brownfield sites
abandoned, derelict or underused industrial buildings and land
REurbanisation / urban renewall
revitalisation of urban areas and the movement of people back to them
Centrifugal population movements
suburbanisation
counter-urbanisation
urban sprawl
urban system growth
suburbanisation
outward expansion of towns and cities thanks to improvements in transport systems
counter-urbanisation
The movement of people from large cities to smaller towns or rural areas due to high costs, congestion, pollution, and a desire for better community and environment
Urban sprawl
Uncontrolled growth at city edges, but greenbelts can limit this expansion
Urban system growth
As urban areas grow, inadequate infrastructure like clean water, sanitation, and transport can lead to health risks and hinder economic development
Deindustrialisation
Long term absolute decline in employment in the manufacturing sectors of an economy
Causes for deindustrialisation
exhaustion of resources
increasing cost of minerals
automation and new technology
the introduction of rival product
fall in demand
overseas competitions from NIC’s
rationalisation
a rise in costs
the removal of subsidy
lack of capital
Positive deindustrialisation
When industries reduce workforce to increase productivity trough mechanisation and rationalisation
Negative deindustrialisation
When particular industries decline without any compensating rise in productivity or mechanisation
Urban microclimates
The local atmospheric conditions within urban areas that differ from the surrounding areas, often with a slight but sometimes substantial difference in temperature
Resultant processes from urban microclimates
Radiation and sunshine (higher absorption of long light waves by CO2, reduces visibility)
Clouds and fog (thick clouds in summer fog in winter, day temp. +0.6 from average
Temperatures (+1.5 warmer in winter nights, heat “islands”, heating from below, contrasts between sunny and shaded areas
Pressure and winds (severe gusting and turbulence around tall buildings causes high pressure gradients, “canyon effect”
Precipitation (more intense storms especially during hot summer evenings, higher thunder, less snow fall
Urban heat island
An urbanised area usually 2-4 degrees warmer than surrounding rural areas
In urban heat islands:
Wind speeds are lower
Urban pollution
Buildings have low albedo and high heat capacity
Heat island effect
Maximum heats in city centre, otherwise depending on amounts of open spaces, industries, rivers/canals, etc.
Causes for heat island effect
Heat produced by human activity
Changes of energy balance
The effect of air flow
Reduced number of open bodies of water
The composition of the atmosphere
The reduction of thermal energy required for evaporation and evapotransmition
reduction of heat diffusion
Air pollution patterns
LICS have higher population demand thus needing more vehicles or other air polluting devices whilst the opposite goes for HICS
Reducing air pollution from transport emissions
burning less fossil fuels and using energy more efficiently
using public transport instead of private cars
car pooling scheme
cycling or walking more
using catalytic conventors to reduce emissions of NOx
increasing enforcement of emissions standards
Urban tree and green spaces
Help reduce effects of the urban heat island, reduce noise levels and clean the air
Managing urban crime
More police patrol
Greater use of CCTV
Improved street lighting
Buildings designed to reduce dark/poorly lit areas
Greater availability of taxi services around the closing times of bars and clubs
More women-only taxis
Adopting zero crime policies (like NYC)
Urban crime
Mostly in industrialised, poor and working class neighbourhoods
Influences on a crime hot spot
Lack of a police station
Lack of health centres, schools and recreational locations
High level of residential land use
Percentage of a high number of offenders
Site features: easy to access and low security
Traffic congestion patterns
More prevalent on weekdays, start of the school year, festivals, and national holidays, with morning and evening peaks
Depletion of urban green spaces
Often have little economic value and are not favored by developers
Compensatory afforestation projects do not necessarily decrease air or noise pollution
Contested land
Due to events e.g. Rio de Janeiro Olympics, anti-capitalist protests, potential development projects that may displace people living in slums
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