Section 4: Cities & Urbanization

Fundamental human institutions

– Cities 

* Locations of innovation 
* Home of a growing majority of world’s ppltn 


* Marked by social/cultural diversity, + contrasts of wealth and poverty 
* Facing array o. planning and environmental challenges 

Urban studies: 

 Understand: 

* How cities function 


* Current (& future) Issues 
* How cities r (/should be) planned 

Study of cities as form of

humans settlement

…. + …. perspectives 

Historical + contemporary

Urban Geography

– Understanding the spatial dimensions of cities; 


1. Urban systems (networks), and 


2. Human geographic patterns & interactions within cities 

* Interdisciplinary, varying perspectives, etc. 

Urbanization

spread + growth of cities; an increase proportion of a population living in urban areas (cities & towns) 

* Mirrors industrialization & economic development 
* Today – over ½ of world’s ppltn is urban 

Ppltn growth in urban areas, most growth – …

urban areas in LDW 

Emergence of cities – approx…., 1st city? followed by?

3500 BCE – gradual 

Region of 1st cities: Mesopotamia 

* Followed by other areas: urban hearths 

Hearth?

area where a particular cultural trait originates 

Explains cities emergence? (1st part)

The Agricultural Surplus Theory – Agricultural surplus: agricultural production that exceeds the sustenance needs of the producer and is sold to, or exchanged w, others 


1. Foraging (nomadic, hunter-gathering) societies 

* Mills/100s of 1000s of years 


2. Agricultural societes: Agricultural revolution – 12 000 y.a. 

* Human substinenance gradual transistion, dependence on foraging – food production thru plant and animal domestication 
* Key transformation: permanent settlements 
* Further discoveries led to – surplus of food 


3. Urban societies – 5500 y.a. 

* Labour specialization: producation (I.e. manufacturing) - tools, goods, etc., Services - I.e., administration, religion, military, education, etc. 
* Agglomeration economies; clustering of goods & services - 1st cities (villages, towns) - 5500 y.a. 

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Emergence of cities – 1st Urban Revolution (social/cultural & economic transformation) 

* Diff forms of settlement 


* New forms of economic activity 
* New forms of social organization 
* New social institutions 
* Ppl relied on others 4 survival 
* Sedentary (now living same place everyday) vs. Nomadic 
* Small, growing ppltn in towns/cities 

Towns & cities: b/w 5500 y.a. (Mesopotamia) to 1700s (industrial revolution) 

* Small & compact 
* Local & regional trade, education, religion, and/or governance 

Lvl of urbanization: low (10%) 

Explains cities emergence? (2nd part)

4. Industrial societies: industrial revolution – late 1700s & 1800s (in MDW, start England) (rural – urban) 

* Critical changes in methods of production & social “way of life” - (urbanism): explosive growth of cities 
* Agricultural productivity via green revolution 
* Mass production 
* Global trade 


* Demographic change (decr. Mortality rate – ppltn growht) 
* Rural to urban migration – lvl of urbanization: rapid increase (10% to 50%) 
* Emergence of lrg industrial cities 
* Diffusion from England to Europe to North America, etc.  

These new industrial cities represent 2nd Urban Revolution (social/cultural & economic transformation) 

* Proportion of ppl living in cities (incr.) 
* Proportion of ppltn working in agriculture vs. Factories (incr. In factories) 
* Size of urban places (small to large) 
* Homogeneous vs. Heterogeneous societies (same culture vs. Many different cultures) 

This revolution continues today, where?

Much of it in LDW (rather than MDW – since most alr. Highly urbanized) 

Urban/Urban Area? criteria?

spatial extent of built-up area surrounding & including an incorporated municipality, such as a city; typically assessed by some combination of population size, density, & nature of residents’ employment 

* Typically, towns, cities and suburbs 

2 criteria 


1. Demographic – c urban areas exceed some threshold. Ex. Ppltn size, density 


2. Economic – urban economic activity, exceed threshold of proportion of population that employed in urban economic activities ovr rural ones (ex. Agriculture) 

Variations around world, definitions of urban areas: 

Canada: ppltn > 1000; density > 400 km2 – demographic criteria 

U.S.: ppltn > 2500; density > 500 mile2 

Japan: ppltn > 50 000; density >60% of housing in ‘built-up’ areas; employment >60% in manufacturing, trade, etc. - economic criteria 

Botswana: ppltn > 5000; employment >75% in non-agricultural work 

Norway: ppltn > 200 

Urban Areas – villages, towns, or cities – same, vary in.. & ….

size (& complexity) & political status 

* Nucleated settlements w distinct residential & non-residential areas 
* Containing CBD (Central Business District) e.g., “downtown”/”main street” - nucleus 

City

spcfc term, refer to a particular form of an urban area – a legally incorporated self-governing unit; an inhabited place of greater size, ppltn, or importance than a town or village 

Suburb

a residential or mixed-use (residential & employment) area on the periphery of the city, typically displaying some degree of homogeneity in terms of economic status, socio-cultural characteristics, or built form 

* Dependant upon & integrated w, its neighbouring (adjoining) urban areas (city) 

Metropolitan Area

a region compromising 2 or more functionally connected urban areas & the less densely populated (or built-up) areas b/w them 

CMAs? CAs?

CMAs (Census Metropolitan Areas): e.g., toronto, montreal, vancouver, ottawa, etc. (incl. Hamilton) 

* 1/more adjacent urban areas/municipalities 
* Total ppltn > 100 000/ ppltn of “urban core” > 50 000 

CAs (Census Agglomerations): e.g., Belleville, stratford, etc. 

* Same as CMAs but the urban core ppltn >10 000 (instead of 50 000) 

Urban growth vs urbanization

Urban growth: incr. In abs. Size of urban area/city  

* # of ppl 
* Sometimes, incr. In total area of land 

Urbanization: Spread & growth of cities; an incr.g proportion of a population living in urban areas (cities/towns) 

* Fundamental re-organization of human society ( rural to urban) 


* De-urbanization: becoming less urbanized thru decreasing proportion of a population living in urban areas 

Urban growth – incr. Urban population, decr. rural population, (# of ppl) 

Urbanization – incr. Proportion living in urban areas 

* Not always occur at same time 
* Urban growth without urbanization 


* Urbanization without urban growth 
* Deurbanization 

MDW vs LDW in urbanization

MDW highly urbanized, little variability (I.e., 80% of population in urban areas) ex. Canada, U.S., U.K. 

LDW more diverse, less urbanized (50%) 

* Some areas resemble MDW some areas r much less urbanized (34%, especially LeastDW, ex. India) 

Urban growth rates vary by….

level of development (economic/social) 

* Regional variations (ex. Europe, asia) & sub-regional variations (N. Africa 2%, E. Africa 4.45%) 
* Urban growth rates higher in LDW (less doubling time) 

Levels of urbanization generally higher in….,

Majority of v large cities in…

MDW

LDW

* & grow quickly (high urban growth rate) 
* e.g. Lagos (Nigeria) & Dhaka (Bangladesh): Megacities 

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MDW – more urbanized world LDW – urbanizing world 

Demographia vs UN

11 cities > 20 million ppl 

5 cities > 20 million ppl 

* Discrepancy: result of how define what constitutes a city 

Most say …. Large city in world, not universally accepted. why?

Tokyo

* Others listed large: NY, Seoul, Chongqing, Shanghai, Delhi, Mexico city, Sao Paulo, etc. 

Uncertainity – matter of definition (where boundary, who included, etc.) 

Definitions based on? (what a ‘city’)

* Political/legal definition (municipality) 


* Urban agglomeration (metropolitan area) 
* Sphere of influence (urban region) 

Megacity

metropolitan area w ppltn of more than 10 million 

* Most today in LDW 
* China = 6 


* India = 5 
* Bangladesh = 1 (Dhaka) - Pakistan = 2 
* Southeast asia = 3 
* Africa = 3 
* Latin america = 6 

Megacities growth ?

* Rapidly expanding population base: rural – urban migration, natural increase (high birth rate, low death rate) 
* Economic attraction 
* 7 of 43 megacities in 2030 will be in MDW 
* List of MD & LD countries might look different in 2030 (ex. China) 

Cities function together as an….

as an economic, political, cultural and environmental system (components together form whole) 

Urban system – whole vs components?

whole: region, country, world.

Components: cities. 

**Relationship between cities can be understood thru examining their …**

**respective functions, I.e., provision of goods and services to people & businesses** 

Central Place Theory? ways?

explain spatial distribution of urban centres with respect to their size and function 

Within urban systems, cities organized in a hierarchy: in each, few cities at top, many at bottom 


1. Rank size distribution: descriptive regularity among cities in an urban system, rank-size rule 

* Intrested city population = population of largest city / rank of intrested city 
* U.S., Germany, Japan - Canada 


2. Primate City: largest city in an urban system, usually the capital, dominates political, economic & social life; city more than twice the size of next-largest city in syst. 

* If was twice size: rank size distribution 


* Many former colonies have primate cities as European power centralized economic/political power there 

Canada reflects … pattern 

hierarchal

Canadian Urban syst

beyond size, can think abt interconnections b/w cities (ex. Linked transit syst.) 

Global urban system – Global cities

city – imprtnt node in global economy; dom city in global hierarchy, world city 

* Characteristics/dimensions: 


* Economic: # of corporate HQs (especially transnationals (companies operate in different countries), ex. Nike, Apple, Volkswagen), financial institutions, conc. Of business services 
* Political: national capitals, supranational organizations (ex. UN) 
* Cultural: (heterogeinity imprtnt) 
* Envir.tal (low population levels, congestion rates, liveability) 

Rankings (many variants, for global cities): 

* GaWC (globalization & world cities), Alpha ++: NY, London. Alpha +: Paris, Dubai, Tokyo, etc. 
* Kearney hierarchy (business activity, + cultural experience, etc.) 

Central place?

An urban centre that provides goods & services for the surrounding population; may take the form of a hamlet, village, town, city, or megacity

hinterland?

Market area surrounding a central place; the spatial area from which the providers of goods & services in a central place draw their customers

Range? (in terms of urban cities/development)

The max distance people are prepared to travel to obtain a particular good/service

ex. small range to take a kid to play in house league (a few kms), but to large range to play in NHL (100’s of kms)

Threshold ? (in terms of urban cities/development)

The minimum number of people (market size) required to support the existence of a particular economic function

Consumer services?

services provided primarily for individual consumers, such as retail, hospitality, food, leisure, health care, education, & social welfare; rep. approx. 50% of employment in most countries of MDW

Cities, key elements in 6 categories: (of urban land uses)

residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, transportation/infrastructure, public 

Residential areas

most complex (diverse) components of urban land uses 

* 50% of urban area 
* From inner city to suburban, rich to poor to middle-class, new  to old to renovated, owner-occupied to rented 
* Varying density – measured in housing units/hectare 


* Low (< 30 housing units/hectare), medium density (30-100 h.u./hectare), high (> 100 h.u./hectare) 

Industrial areas

5-10% 

* Heavy (traditional) industrial production, e.g. Hamilton’s North-end. Ex. Steelmaking, powerplants 
* Light (‘innovative’) production, incl. High-tech, food processing, e.g., McMaster Innovation Park, airport lands, warehousing, etc. 

Commercial Areas

5% 

* Office: Head office (downtown), back offices (suburban), regional offices (edge cities) 
* Retail: store-front shopping, suburban shopping malls, retail power centers, marquee/’flagship’ retail downtown 

Institutional areas

5-10% 

* Gov. Building, universities, hospitals, schools, churches

Transportation/infrastructure

25% 

* Roads, highways, subway/transit lines, ports, airports, parking lots, sidewalks, electricity lines, etc. 

Public areas

5-10% 

* Parks, civic plazas, arenas/stadiums, vacant land, etc. 

Municipal land uses …

maps & plans (reflect varied land uses) 

Organization of urban space

urban land uses; urban structure: arrangement of land uses in cities; related to urban morphology 

Structure shaped primarily by competition for territory & location  (for urban space)

* Competition for most desirable location 
* Desirability determined by accessibility (location gives opportunity 4 interactions w other locations) 
* Ability/willingness 2 pay 4 location (measures desirability) 
* Diff land users (I.e., commercial vs. Residential) have different abilities/willingness to pay 

Land at center of cities – most in …

demand – most accessible – most desirable – most expensive – less of it (cramped) 

Principle of bid-rent curves & land values 

Generalized urban land use

hypothetical bid-rent curves of 3 land users 

Core of bid-rent curves: land values (ability/willingness to pay 4 land) 

* Linked to accessibility & amount of space of property 


* Trade-off: accessibilty vs. Space : central locations (lots accessibility, lil. Space), peripheral locations (low accessibility, lots of space) 
* Many land-users, ea. W different valuation of trade-off (some accessibility, some space) 

Residential development (residence spatial patterns)

– residence spatial patterns 

* Downtown – high density 
* Midtown – medium density 


* Suburban – low density 
* Distant suburban – extremely low density 
* Might need multiple bid-rent curves different kinds of residential land users 

Commercial development – spatial patterns 

Offices: downtown (high-rise buildings), suburban (more space, low-rise buildings) 

N. America Cities commonalities?

urban structure

3 influential models (of urban structure)

concentric zone (sociologist – Ernest Burgess), Sector Model (economist – Homer Hoyt), Multiple Nuclei Model (Geographers – Chauncy Harris & Edward Ullman) 

\- collectively know: “The Chicago School” (of urban sociology) 

Concentric Zone Model?

Ernest Burgess (canadian-born) 

* Early 20th century 

Residential neighborhoods associated with particular social groups (e.g., economic, cultural) 


1. Spatial Relationship b/w socio-economic status & distance from CBD 

* Greater distance = greater wealth 
* Trade-off in cost + time of commuting (wealthier can afford) 


2. Spatial relationship b/w groups based on ethnic/racial identity (ie., culture); influenced by segregation & congregation 

* Inner-most areas for immigrants/racialized minorities 

Concentric zones of neighbourhoods each with neighborhoods of ppl of different socioeconomic status 

* Chicage 1920s 
* 5 zones: CBD, zone in transition, zone of working-class homes, middle class residences, affluent commuter suburbs 

Sector Model?

Homer Hoyt 

City differentiated into sectors based on land value 

* By distance from CBD & proximity to other sectors (I.e., accessibility) 
* Urban functions, established r permanent – reinforcing established patterns 

Murdie Composite Model ?

* Hybrid (sector + concentric models)


* Elements of concentric zones, ethnicity, sector model pie-shaped wedges 

Multiple Nuclei Model: Harris + Ullman 

* Changing urban structure/morphology (I.e., decentralization) 
* Some economic activities attract one another, while others repel 
* Fuctional clusters/nuclei - every city has several nuclei 


* Economic agglomeration: manufacturing, transportation and warehousing land uses (attract ea. Other): economically efficient, attract: blue-collar housing, repel: upper-middle-class housing 

Cotemporary Revisioning of the Multiple Nuclei Model (more recent):

Hanlon, Short, and Vicino – a new metropolitan model  

* Idealized U.S. city 
* Central city (revitalized downtown, concentrated poverty, gentrification) 
* Inner ring (suburbs in crisis, minority suburbs) 


* Outer ring (middle class suburbs) 
* Periphery (edge cities, gated communities, Boomburbs, enclaves) 

N. American cities, common? unique?

– common patterns – ea. City unique (site + situational characteristics) 

Additional models 4 european, latin-america, subs. African, and asian cities 

for urban city structures

Jane Jacobs ?

* 2 key books: The Death & Life of Great American Cities (1961), The economy of cities (1969) 
* Advocated for: higher density, walkable, mixed-use neighborhoods. Anti-car centric cities 

Richard Florida ?

* Key books: the rise of the creative class (2002), the new urban crisis (2017) 
* Urban regeneration thru placemaking & urban entrepreneurialism 


* “Three Ts” (technology, talent, & tolerance) & the creative class 
* Criticized for contributing to greater inequality in cities (connected to gentrification issues) 

Neil Smith: The New Urban Frontier (1996), David Ley: The New Middle class & the remaking of the Central city (1996)  ?

The role of capital & culture in the gentrification of urban residential neighbourhoods 

CBD

social, cultural, commercial. & political centre of city 

* Key city feature 
* “downtown” 

Much of city …

residential, intermixed with other urban land uses & connected via transportation linkages (ex. Roads, bus routes)

Residential areas divided into 

Neighbourhoods: city prt shows internal homogeneity regarding type of housing 

* Uniform Income level, ethnic identity 
* Usually reflected shared social values 
* Compromised of: 
* People: families, individuals (w traits, income, ethnicity/culture, etc.) 


* Residences: houses, apartments (lrg, small, new, old, etc.) 
* Other: schools, recreation, businesses 

City division:

“the city” & its “suburbs” 

Suburb

residential/mixed-use (residential & employment) area on city periphery, typically homogeneity in economic status, socio-cultural characteristics, or built form 

* Almost all residential areas, outside CBD, were once on periphery of city 

Residential areas mostly houses/shelter places 

**Basic human need: shelter** 

Housing market (2 views) 

1. Housing a commodity (to be bought/sold) - like clothing, electronics, etc. - likely someone’s largest capital investment 

* Canada it is commodity, though some subsidized housing 


2. As essential, universal right – like education, healthcare, etc. 

* Housing provided by state 

Housing value largely determined by?

its location 

* By 3 A’s: Accessibility, amount of space, amenities 

Aggregate decisions to relocate alters…

social geography of city 

Residential mobility?

individual/family decision to relocate residence, usually within urban area context 

* Like migration, push/pull factors 
* Pull: incr. Quality of life 
* Push: housing inadequancy (I.e., space), neighborhood liabilities, location 

City areas distinguish by…

income, culture, life-stage, etc. - segregation 

Segregation? result of?

spatial seperation of population subgroups within wider population 

Can be result of 


1. Discrimination (involuntary segregation) (ex. Urban poor) or 


2. Choice (congregation) 

* Consider ethnic/racial/cultural minorities & wealth/poverty 

Suburbanization

land on periphery of urban area (rural-urban fringe) becomes urbanized over time, as ppl & businesses move there, suburban development 

* “The American Dream” (desire 4 space, queit, etc.), created 
* The automobile trap (need cars, roads, to live in suburbs), dependency 

Urban sprawl

largely unplanned expansion of an urban area into rural areas 

* More common in U.S. with less stringent planning regulations 


* Continued urban sprawl – environmental calamity 

Post-suburban; emergence of ….

polycentric metropolitan area (cities w +1 downtowns) 

New commercial + retail nodes beyond existing peripheral suburbs – edge cities?

centre of office & retail activities located on edge of a large urban centre 

* e.g., Tysons corner, Virginia (Washington DC) 

Main edge cities contain – gated communities: high-status residential subdivision/community with access limited to residents & other authorized people (domestic workers, trades people, & visitors), often surrounded by a perimeter wall, fence, or buffer zone such as a golf course 

* Ex. Palm springs in California 

Gov. Legislate against …

further urban sprawl into countryside, instead increase settlement density in urban boundary, by green belt 

Greenbelt?

planned area of open, partially rural, land surrounding an urban area; area where ubran development restricted 

Suburbanization, segregation, & residential mobility impact …

housing stock & neighbourhoods, esp. Inner-city one’s 

Filtering?

housing units transition from being occupied by one income group to ppl of a different income group ovr time 


1. Downward Filtering: home 4 upper income, move out, now middle income live there, then to low income families 

* After lots of cycles of downward filtering, place may be perceived as an investment opportunity 


2. Upward filtering: homes habited from low income, to middle income, to wealthy 

* Neighbourhoods may go thru gentrification (by upward filtering) 

Gentrification

process of inner-city urban neighborhood social change resulting from the in-movement of higher income groups

Key influential geographers?

Neil Smith (rent gap) & David Ley (cultural change) 

Many c gentrification as …. (positive + negatives?)

revitalization (of housing stock + neighborhood) 

* Higher-income residents move in, dwellings r renovated, property values (& taxes) increase, new cafes, restaurants & stores move in, etc. 
* Positive: middle class benefit, cities get more property tax 
* Negative: displacement of poor, local businesses, greater social polarization (wealthy/poor divison) 

Gentrification inevitable, everywhere. mostly? solutions?

Mostly cities, mostly middle-class 

Solutions: mandate affordable housing, mixed-use, etc. 

Cities also defined by inequality:

socio-spatial stratification 

* Gated communities, middle-class neighborhoods, impoverished neighborhoods 

At socio-spatial stratification core, element of class: large group of people of similar social status & income (and often culture) 

* Upper, middle, working class 

Poverty conspicuous forms in near-central areas  

2 ways transition? homelessness?

1. Gentrify thru investment, upward filtering & beautification 


2. Deteriorate via disinvestment + cycle of poverty (if grew up poor, tend to end up poor theology) 

Homelessness: without permanent dwelling (house, apartment) 

* Spatial patterns of homlessness 
* Mostly in city center (where support services are) 
* Ex. Most homeless shelters in downtown toronto core 

Manufacturing? traditionally vs. today?

urbanization, urban growth & industrialization 

* Traditionally: close to city center 
* Today: urban periphery 

Commercial activity & business services

in post-industrial economy, services r largest segment of economy 

* Many office functions remain in CBD 


* Some decentralized to suburbs 

Retailing & consumer services 

* Traditionally: all downtown 
* Today: suburban malls, power centres, etc. 
* Future: completely online from suburban warehouses 

\# of land uses:

residential, industrial, commercial, institutional, transportation, public 

Land uses allocated via:

competition for land, urban planning 

Urban planning? what abt? came from? who?

political + technical process concerned with development, design, & use of land within the built environment; involves organization of different land uses, the planning of current and future transportation and social services, and natural environments of communities; sometimes referred to as city/town/regional/community planning 

Urban planning is abt: solving problems related to past/current/future development, aspiring to make cities better for the future 

Came from: response to appalling sanitory, social, & economic conditions of rapidly-growing industrial cities (o. 19th century) 

Who?: 

* Initially: architects, civil engineers, & medical doctors 
* Later: public health specialists, economists, sociologists, lawyers, & those w expertise in linkages b/w society & environment 
* Today, most urban planners from ‘environment & society’ degrees 

Planning today by? plan what?

the city, private sector, the public 

Planning what?: land uses allocation, public services,, transportation, employment areas, housing, environment