Note
Studied by 247 peopleChapter 8: Urban World
Chapter 8: URBAN FORM AND THE SOCIAL GEOGRAPHY OF THE CITY (378 - 426)
Explaining Urban Form
CBD Dynamics:
The Central Business District (CBD) serves as the vibrant heart of the city, encompassing commercial, cultural, and political activities.
Historically, CBDs were characterized by high-rise structures housing offices, government buildings, and civic amenities, fostering economic vitality and accessibility.
Evolution in recent times has seen a shift from CBDs solely serving commercial purposes to incorporating residential spaces, embracing medium- and high-density living.
central business district (CBD) = The social, cultural, commercial, and political center of the city, usually characterized by high-rise office and residential towers, key municipal government buildings, and civic amenities.
CBD's Evolution and Diversity:
CBD boundaries and functions undergo constant change as cities expand and adapt to shifting urban landscapes. (changes with culture)
Noteworthy trends involve the resurgence of residential living in CBDs, attracting diverse demographics seeking urban revitalization and convenience.
For instance, downtown areas in cities like New York, London, or Tokyo showcase a blend of commercial and residential spaces catering to various socioeconomic groups.
Traditionally, cities center on a cultural and economic core (CBD)
Peripheral Developments:
Suburbs, both in More Developed Countries (MDCs) and Less Developed Countries (LDCs) have gained significance post-World War II. (this is a significant change)
Suburbs accommodate a major portion of the population, showcasing varied residential zones, employment hubs, and mixed-use developments.
Over time, a steady decentralization of residents and businesses from the CBD to suburban areas has been observed, leading to complex urban sprawl patterns.
A significant change has been the expansion of the urban periphery in suburbs (MDCs) and informal settlements (LDCs)
Social Class Dynamics:
Society within urban areas comprises distinct social classes, such as the upper, middle, and working classes, each contributing uniquely to the city's fabric.
Social class influences residential choices, employment opportunities, and access to resources within cities. For instance, affluent areas in suburbs may cater to the upper class, while inner-city regions witness revitalization efforts for diverse social strata.
Economic and Cultural Variations:
Variances in urban planning, economic status, and historical trajectories contribute to the unique characteristics of each city's CBD and peripheral regions.
For instance, CBDs in some cities might reflect a more service-oriented economy, while others may retain remnants of manufacturing or industrial heritage.
example: downtown Vancouver
Variations of CBD over time and space reflect the cultural and political differences regarding planning
Urban Structure
Urban Land Use Categories:
Residential, commercial, industrial, institutional, recreational, and transportation are key land use categories.
Variations exist within each category, from low-density suburban residential areas to high-density urban center zones featuring skyscrapers or mixed-use developments. (High-density center, and low-density periphery)
City-Specific Characteristics and Global Similarities:
Each city's uniqueness stems from economic, cultural, and historical factors, influenced by its geographic site.
However, land use patterns often exhibit regional similarities; for instance, North American cities differ in layout and land use from European or Latin American counterparts.
Population Distribution and Density:
The spatial distribution of activities (residential, commercial, etc.) within cities determines population density.
A common trend is a decrease in population density as distance from the city center increases, following a negative exponential function.
Urban Land Use Generalization
Theoretical frameworks like the von Thünen theory offer insights into urban land use economics.
They suggest that land values decrease with distance from the city center, with higher-value land uses occupying central areas. (land costs: higher costs at the center)
Extends agricultural land cost patterns into the city
Theoretical City Structure:
The concentric zone model illustrates a theoretical city structure with distinct rings: a central business district, followed by industrial, residential, and suburban zones.
In reality, cities might exhibit variations, like multiple nuclei models, reflecting diverse functional areas within the urban landscape.
Definition of Urban Structure:
Urban structure refers to the general arrangement of land uses within cities, shaping the city's physical form and influencing the experiences of its inhabitants.
must remember that Urban experience is partly framed by urban structure
Examples:
analyzing the distribution of land uses in specific cities—such as the CBD-centric structure of Manhattan
the mixed-use neighborhoods in Tokyo
Modeling the North American City
from the early 20th century, developed by the Chicago School scholars provides valuable insights into the evolution and structure of North American cities, offering a framework to comprehend urban development patterns.
Concentric Zone Model (Burgess, 1923):
Describes a city's structure as a series of concentric rings radiating outward from the Central Business District (CBD).
Zones include CBD at the core, transition, working-class residential, better residential, and commuter zones sequentially expanding outward.
Example: Chicago in the early 20th century demonstrated this model with a clear CBD and distinct socio-economic zones expanding outwards.
Sector Model (Hoyt, 1939):
Presents the city's expansion as sectors or wedges radiating outward from the CBD along transportation routes or other axes.
Different land uses or activities concentrate along these sectors, forming distinct zones.
For instance, industrial sectors might be aligned along railroad lines, while high-class residential areas follow a river or parkway.
Multiple Nuclei Model (Harris and Ullman, 1945):
Views cities as having multiple centers of development or nuclei, each representing specialized functional zones.
Various activities (industrial, commercial, residential) develop around these nuclei, interacting and influencing the urban structure.
Example: Los Angeles exhibits this model with various specialized nuclei like the downtown financial district, industrial zones, and suburban centers.
Purpose and Impact of Models:
These classic models serve to comprehend urban growth, land use patterns, and activity distribution within North American cities.
Influential in urban planning and development, these models provided a framework to understand and plan for evolving city landscapes.
Influence and Observations:
These models were instrumental in shaping urban planning strategies, offering a foundation to comprehend how cities transform over time.
Reflect industrial origins of North American cities
Observations from cities like Chicago informed the development of these models and subsequent studies in urban geography, allowing planners to anticipate and address urban challenges.
Concentric Zone Model
Certainly, the Concentric Zone Model, developed by Burgess, provides a foundational framework for understanding urban growth patterns, residential zones, and their relationship to the central business district (CBD) within North American cities.
Spatial Relationship and Zones in the Concentric Zone Model:
Identified five zones based on their distance from the CBD:
Key variable is distance away from city center
CBD, Comprising financial, commercial, and entertainment areas at the city center.
Zone in Transition: Surrounding the CBD, characterized by blue-collar industrial employment and lower land values. Typically home to poorer residents and recent immigrants residing in substandard housing.
Extended land use and land cost logic (high-cost land is at the center and High-income residents desire land, so acquire it at the periphery)
The model further includes zones for working-class homes, middle-class residences, and suburban commuter areas farther away from the CBD.
Rings of use reflect land values and the ability to pay for
space (Transitional area: the original industries older houses, and Increasingly affluent residential areas)
Urban Growth as Invasion and Succession:
Burgess's model conceptualizes urban growth as a process of invasion and succession, where areas closer to the CBD are initially settled and later invaded by new land uses, forcing existing land uses to move outward. (An evolutionary ecological perspective on urban growth)
Immigrant Reception and Segregation:
Historically, the Zone in Transition served as an immigrant-receiving area, where new immigrants settled in highly segregated neighborhoods as they aimed for establishment in the city.
Model's Applicability and Evolution:
The model primarily applies to North American cities and offers insights into residential characteristics and evolving urban landscapes.
While influential, the model oversimplifies the complexities of urban development and does not entirely reflect the reality of all cities.
Impact of Automobiles and Continued Value of the Model:
The widespread use of automobiles in the latter 20th century altered urban development dynamics. Suburban areas became more accessible and affordable for development.
Despite its limitations, the Concentric Zone Model remains valuable for understanding general trends in urban development, the evolution of residential patterns, and the historical relationship between land values and distance from the CBD.
Studying Burgess's Concentric Zone Model provides a foundational understanding of urban growth dynamics and historical patterns of residential segregation, especially in North American cities. However, it's crucial to acknowledge its limitations and use it as a starting point for more nuanced analyses of contemporary urban development. Examples from cities like Chicago, which partially reflect these zones, enhance the applicability and understanding of this model.
Sector Model
Enhancement of Burgess's Model by Hoyt:
Hoyt's Sector Model, developed in 1939, sought to refine Burgess's concentric zone model by incorporating the role of directionality influenced by transportation accessibility.
emphasizes the directional aspect influenced by transportation routes
Addressed limitations of concentric zone model
Key Determinants in the Sector Model:
Distance and direction from the CBD are critical factors determining land use within urban areas according to Hoyt's model, departing from the sole focus on distance in Burgess's model. (New key variable is direction)
The internal structure is also shaped by routes that radiate outward from the center
City Expansion in Sectors:
Unlike Burgess's concentric rings, Hoyt proposed that cities expand in a series of sectors or wedges created by transportation corridors like rail lines, commercial streets, or transit routes.
The city centre is more diverse
Growth Patterns and Land Use in Sectors:
Once a particular land use is established within a sector, growth occurs outward in a wedge-like manner.
New development follows along established routes in a homogenous pattern
Example: High-status residential neighborhoods tend to see the development of expensive housing on the outer edges, further from the city center.
Industrial Development and Influence of Transportation Corridors:
New industrial development, such as factories, often aligns along existing transportation routes, contributing to the sector-based expansion pattern.
Transportation corridors significantly influence the direction of growth and the establishment of different land uses within the city.
Example and Application:
For instance, the growth of high-income residential neighborhoods along specific transportation arteries or the establishment of industrial sectors along existing railroad lines illustrates Hoyt's model in practical urban development.
Multiple Nuclei Model
Multiple Nuclei Model developed by Chauncey Harris and Edward Ullman provides a more nuanced perspective on urban development, departing from the singular CBD focus of earlier models and acknowledging the influence of multiple centers in shaping urban land use patterns.
Concept of Multiple Nuclei:
Cities are viewed as evolving beyond a single CBD, featuring the emergence of additional nodes or nuclei within the urban area over time, each associated with specific activities or functions.
Highlights the third variable: additional centers
Divergence from Previous Models:
Unlike the concentric zone and sector models that centered around a singular CBD assumption, the Multiple Nuclei Model recognizes the presence and influence of various centers within a city.
Types of Additional Nuclei:
Additional nuclei encompass diverse centers such as airports, industrial parks, universities, commercial nodes, etc., each exerting its influence on urban land use patterns.
Different types of centers: commercial nodes, industrial parks, universities
Attract and repel different activities (Industrial pollution repels residential development)
The number of nuclei varies by city size and development
Forces of Attraction and Repulsion:
Harris and Ullman's model emphasizes centripetal (attraction) and centrifugal (repulsion) forces in determining urban land uses.
Certain land uses attract complementary activities while simultaneously repelling others. For example, industrial areas may attract similar industries and working-class residential areas while repelling high-status residential developments due to factors like pollution or noise.
Key Contributions and Importance:
Recognizes the complexity of cities beyond the singular CBD concept, considering various centers' influences on urban development.
Acknowledges the critical role of existing land uses in attracting or repelling new land uses in adjacent areas, shaping the city's overall structure.
Influence and Predictive Power:
Highly influential in geography and subsequent urban research, anticipating many late-twentieth-century urban changes.
Anticipated trends such as the decline of CBDs and the rise of suburban business and retail centers, proving prescient in understanding urban transformations.
Strong influence on later models
Examples of multiple nuclei influencing city development, such as airport-driven economic zones or the influence of universities in fostering adjacent commercial or residential developments, reinforce the applicability and relevance of this model in contemporary urban geography studies.
Modeling the European City
the urban structure in Europe demonstrates diverse characteristics and diverges significantly from the models initially formulated for North American cities. Can see more urban sprawl in recent decades.
Urban Structure in Europe vs. North America:
European cities have distinct historic cores characterized by narrow streets, and compact, and high-density forms compared to North American cities like New York with taller skyscrapers but lower population density in the core.
The simplified model may hide diversity (hides industrial cities vs mercantile cities)
Urban form differs from North America)
Application of Classic Urban Structure Models in Europe:
Varying success in applying classic models (concentric zone, sector, multiple nuclei) to European cities due to different historical, cultural, and planning contexts.
Central core reflect historic city
The sector model finds application in cities like Paris, explaining industrial zones in specific sectors and high-status residential areas in others.
Built Environment and Skyscraper Density:
European cities generally have lower vertical built forms compared to North American cities, with fewer tall buildings dominating the skyline. Examples include London, Paris, and Rome.
However, there's a gradual shift in some European cities towards developing more skyscrapers.
Spatial Characteristics and Transportation Focus:
European cities emphasize public transportation, with multiple train and light rail lines, pedestrian-friendly districts, and more public spaces. North American cities, on the other hand, have wider automobile thoroughfares and limited public transit in comparison.
Has more public transit, public space
European city cores are characterized by narrow streets, compact and dense urban forms, and vibrant downtown areas with public squares, plazas, and marketplaces. (More vibrant economic and social life)
Variations in Urban Structures:
Cultural diversity and historical differences result in a wide array of urban structures in European cities, spanning ancient, medieval, industrial, and commercial centers, each with unique characteristics.
Composite Model for West European Cities (White, 1984):
White attempted to create a composite model for West European cities.
Features a historic core central to commercial, civic, and social life, surrounded by evolving residential areas undergoing gentrification or urban decay.
Suburban areas encompass commuting villages, mixed middle-class and high-status households, and often include significant social housing components.
Examples
North American skylines are dominated by modern skyscrapers (e.g., Toronto, Chicago, New York), while European cities (e.g., London, Paris, Rome) have fewer tall buildings, though this trend is changing gradually.
Examples include Bruges, Venice, London, and Moscow showcasing culturally and economically rich central cores.
changes as Cities mix individual decisions and planning
Models developed for North American cities often need adaptation or modification to accurately represent the complexities and variances in European urban landscapes.
Modeling the Latin American City
Latin American urban development was deeply influenced by the Spanish colonial system. The imposition of a particular form by the colonial system laid the groundwork for subsequent urban models and patterns that evolved over time.
Colonial Imposition and Urban Transformation:
The Spanish colonial system imposed strict urban planning strategies on existing indigenous urban centers and built new cities. (Strictly defined CBC and corridor of amenity)
These cities were often characterized by a grid pattern of streets emanating from a central plaza, a layout typical of Spanish colonial towns.
Wealthy elites and colonial administrators resided near the central plaza, forming the nucleus of the city, while locals seeking work settled towards the outskirts.
European Influence on Urban Planning:
The colonial cities' layout featured a clear central plaza and streets arranged in a grid pattern, a legacy visible in many Latin American cities today.
Larry Ford's Model of the Latin American City:
Ford's model, developed in 1996, delineates the urban structure of Latin American cities based on concentric zones radiating outwards from the Central Business District (CBD).
Key components of the model include a commercial spine extending from the CBD, elite housing located nearby, and concentric zones of varying residential quality as one moves away from the center. (CBD)
Land Use Description in Ford's Model:
Commercial spine: A ceremonial boulevard extending from the CBD, typically housing high-end commercial establishments and elite-quality residences.
Zones of residential quality: These zones progress from high-quality residential areas near the center (zone of maturity) to mixed residential areas (in situ accretion) and wedge-shaped sectors of low-quality homes (disamenity) characterized by hazardous or noxious features.
Outer ring: Informal squatter settlements typically surround established zones, forming an outer ring.
Similarities to the Sector Model:
Ford's model mirrors aspects of the sector model by incorporating concentric zones and wedge-shaped sectors around a central CBD. This includes the CBD acting as the core, surrounded by different zones with distinct land use patterns.
Defining a corridor similar to the sector model (sees Commercial spine extends the CBD, elite housing)
Key Features of Latin American Urban Structure:
The model reflects a core-periphery structure where residential qualities vary radially from the CBD outward, depicting a transition from elite residences near the center to low-quality housing in the periphery.
Residential quality declines with distance from CBD (Differs from MDC city)
Informal settlements, often squatter settlements, tend to form beyond established zones, reflecting a complex mix of formal and informal urban development.
Reflecting the multiple nuclei model:
Malls, middle-class housing, and industry in the periphery are recent, post-industrial change
Earlier models did not have these features
Examples
Central America (Central Mexico to Honduras) and Andean/Pacific coast regions (Ecuador to Bolivia) had significant urban centers before European colonization.
Modeling the Sub-Saharan African City
Diversity of African Cities:
O'Connor's categorization (1983) highlights four main types: Indigenous, Islamic, Colonial, and Dual cities, each exhibiting unique traits shaped by historical, cultural, and colonial influences.
Indigenous cities, exemplified by places like Addis Ababa, represent pre-colonial urban centers with their own distinct characteristics.
Colonial cities, established by European powers, served as capitals, mining towns, or trading centers. Kinshasa is an example of a city shaped by colonial influence.
Dual cities combine characteristics from multiple types (like Khartoum-Omdurman)
Can see 3 general CBD’s:
Traditional (traditional architecture, single-story buildings)
Market Zone (open air, informal)
Colonial (vertical development)
Challenges in Generalizing Models:
The diversity and complexity of African cities make it challenging to create a single generalized model. As urbanization progresses, the simplistic classification of cities becomes less helpful in capturing their multifaceted nature.
Internal Structure of Large African Cities:
African cities exhibit variations in internal structure, yet they share some common features with cities worldwide.
The commercial center often comprises the former colonial business district, showcasing economic activities and administrative functions.
Traditional or informal marketplaces are common, serving as hubs for trade and local economic activity.
Residential neighborhoods and manufacturing clusters surround the commercial center, often organized based on ethnic diversity or historical migrations.
Similar to cities in other parts of the world, higher-quality housing tends to be closer to the city center, reflecting historical socio-economic hierarchies.
Informal squatter settlements/shantytowns form an outer zone, representing areas of lesser-developed infrastructure and housing, characteristic of many developing regions globally. (an imprint of European colonialism)
Colonial impact leaves three common features:
1) Commercial centre
2) Informal marketplace(s
3) Diverse neighbourhoods reflect diverse migrations
Modeling the Asian City
Southwest Asia and North Africa - Islamic Influence:
Cities in this region exhibit significant Islamic influence, evident in the presence of major central mosques, historic kasbahs (fortified citadels), central markets or bazaars (suqs), and narrow, irregular street patterns.
As urban growth occurs, suburban areas emerge, leading to the development of separate nuclei with their own mosques and bazaars.
The influence of globalization contributes to the creation of Westernized districts characterized by modern infrastructure such as hotels, skyscrapers, office buildings, and exclusive residential areas, reflecting a blend of traditional and contemporary elements.
South Asia - Indigenous and Colonial Cities (the two principle types)
Indigenous cities in South Asia, often located along trade routes, are centered around bustling bazaars offering diverse retail outlets and accommodations. High-quality residences tend to be closer to these commercial centers, while housing quality gradually declines with distance from the center. Enclaves are scattered throughout for minority ethnic groups and lower caste populations.
Coastal colonial cities in South Asia are structured around historic military forts at their center. These cities feature administrative areas, business districts, housing for indigenous populations, separate European settlement areas, and commercial nuclei in bazaars. Over time, these areas are surrounded by informal squatter settlements, illustrating the contemporary urban landscape.
Key Features Across Southwest Asia and South Asia:
Islamic-influenced cities display characteristic elements such as central mosques, kasbahs, and vibrant markets, while experiencing urban expansion resulting in the emergence of suburban nuclei and the integration of Westernized districts due to globalization.
Indigenous cities along trade routes are marked by bustling bazaars, varied residential qualities, and enclaves for specific social groups, whereas coastal colonial cities exhibit a clear separation of administrative, commercial, and residential zones, often encircled by informal settlements.
Southeast Asia
Reflects Port Cities and Trade Roles:
Port cities globally historically served as crucial hubs for trade and commerce due to their strategic maritime locations.
multiple ethnic groups markets
These cities often exhibit a diverse mix of ethnic groups, cultural influences, and bustling markets catering to international trade, fostering a vibrant and cosmopolitan atmosphere.
Housing Quality and Spatial Patterns:
Urban areas commonly display declining housing quality as one moves farther from the city core, reflecting socio-economic disparities and varying accessibility to amenities and resources.
Zonal patterns emerge, showcasing distinct commercial zones often delineated by ethnicity or cultural influences. Formal suburban areas coexist alongside informal squatter settlements, highlighting the complexity of urban fabric and housing diversity.
Declining housing quality with distance from the core
Chinese Cities:
Chinese cities exhibit high population density, although they may not always have compact urban forms. They are known for their polycentric nature, featuring multiple nuclei with mixed commercial and residential structures.
Urban planning in Chinese cities involves distinct cores reserved for public spaces, wide boulevards, and monumental administrative buildings, emphasizing controlled development intensity compared to other areas.
Embracing globalization, Chinese cities have witnessed industrial growth on the periphery, especially in special industrial sectors, representing a departure from development patterns observed in North American cities.
Communist and market-socialist planning: a central public spaces, industrial development at the periphery
Polycentric
Southeast Asian Cities:
Southeast Asian cities reflect influences from various cultures like Indian, Chinese, Arab, and European, highlighting ethnic diversity within their urban fabric.
Similar to other regions, these cities showcase declining housing quality with distance from the core, along with commercial zones characterized by ethnic distinctions.
The presence of formal suburbs contrasts with areas hosting informal squatter settlements, illustrating the multifaceted nature of urban development.
Rethinking Models of the City
Urban models, particularly the classic ones like the concentric zone, sector, and multiple nuclei models, have historically emphasized economic factors in explaining urban development.
However, these models tend to oversimplify the complex realities of cities, focusing primarily on variables like distance, direction, and nuclei while neglecting social, cultural, and political aspects of urban life.
White (1987) sought to address these limitations and revised classic models to better suit the evolving nature of 21st-century cities in more economically developed countries (MDCs).
Limitations of Classic Urban Models:
Classic models such as concentric zones, sectors, and multiple nuclei simplify urban structures and predominantly focus on economic factors, overlooking the broader social, cultural, and political dimensions of urban development. (Early models were more economic than social)
They often fail to comprehensively explain the contemporary complexities in urban landscapes, especially in the context of social changes, cultural shifts, and political interventions shaping cities.
White's Revised Model for 21st-Century Cities:
Responds to changes in urban structure driven by factors like deindustrialization, the rise of the service economy, retail decentralization, increased government intervention, automobile use, and suburban expansion.
Retains focus on distance, direction, and nuclei while introducing seven components to better represent modern urban realities.
Do not describe or explain recent changes
Components of White's Model:
Core area: Housing government, financial, and business offices, with less emphasis on retailing and more vertical growth.
Second zone: Previously light industrial and warehousing areas experiencing either stagnation or revitalization due to new investments in business and residential sectors.
Areas of low-quality housing: Characterized by poverty and often inhabited by minority ethnic groups, adjacent to the second zone or found elsewhere.
Middle-class residences: Dominant areas are divided into distinct neighborhoods but disrupted by other components.
Elite residential enclaves: Scattered across the middle-class area, varying in proximity to the city center or suburbs.
Institutional and business centers: Scattered throughout the middle-class area, including hospitals, malls, and industrial parks.
Outward growth along major roads: Peripheral centers that may develop independently of the original city form.
Flexibility and Adaptability of White's Model:
White's model offers more flexibility and adaptability compared to classic models by incorporating distance, direction, and multiple nuclei, providing a more nuanced representation of urban reality. (Maintains variables of distance, direction, nuclei)
White (1987) revised the classic models for the 21st-century MDCs:
While still emphasizing distance, it integrates other variables to better capture the complexities of modern urban structures and their evolution. (Considers social and economic changes)
Rethinking Models of the City: Seven components of White’s model:
The core is administrative and business rather than retail-oriented: grows upward instead of outward
The surrounding zone is often stagnant: sometimes revived
Several areas of low-quality housing, characterized by poverty, often occupied by ethnic minorities
Much of the city is middle-class residences: distinct neighborhoods, and not contiguous
Elite residential enclaves are scattered throughout
Institutional and business centers are scattered throughout
Cities expand along major roads: peripheral centers may develop
Housing and Neighbourhoods
Housing/shelter is seen as a fundamental human need and occupies a central role in shaping urban landscapes and reflecting societal inequalities within cities. The urban social geography is deeply intertwined with housing patterns, showcasing disparities and trends that mirror broader social and economic structures.
Significance of Housing in Urban Landscapes:
Housing serves as a fundamental requirement within urban settings, occupying a pivotal role in the social and economic fabric of cities.
Diverse housing areas or neighborhoods within cities reflect varying degrees of privilege or deprivation, depicting a spectrum of socioeconomic disparities.
Social Inequalities Reflected in Housing:
Urban neighborhoods exhibit stark contrasts in housing quality, lifestyle, and socio-economic conditions. Privileged areas often boast spacious suburban homes, whereas deprived areas may feature crowded, impoverished, and crime-affected inner-city dwellings.
Neighborhoods reflect and reinforce inequalities
Housing locations within a city tend to mirror and exacerbate larger social inequalities, reinforcing disparities among residents based on socioeconomic status.
Four Overarching Social Trends Affecting Urban Social Geography:
Economic Restructuring: Declines in industrial cities lead to shifts in employment opportunities and urban dynamics, contributing to disparities between affluent suburbs and struggling inner-city areas.
Changes in Age Structure and Household Formation: Varied population demographics such as retirees settling in areas like Vitoria contrasted with young migrants flocking to cities like Calgary.
Increased Internationalization and Multiculturalism: Wealthy immigrants and refugees influence the socio-cultural fabric of neighborhoods, fostering diverse and multicultural urban landscapes.
Retrenchment of the Welfare State: Fiscal constraints impacting subsidized social housing, further exacerbating housing disparities and socio-economic inequalities
Four Key Aspects of Urban Social Geography:
Economic Disparities: Evident in housing discrepancies between affluent suburban neighborhoods and economically disadvantaged inner-city areas.
Ethnic Segregation: Neighborhoods demonstrating homogeneity in ethnic identity, influencing social values and cultural dynamics.
Shared Social Values: Certain areas showcase shared values based on income levels, ethnic identity, or lifestyle preferences.
Social Inequalities: Housing locations and neighborhoods reflect broader societal disparities among residents, amplifying socio-economic differences.
Housing Markets
Housing serves as both a commodity, representing a significant capital investment, and an entitlement, denoting a universal right regardless of income. This dual perspective influences housing markets, their dynamics, and their intersection with societal structures and policies.
Housing as a Commodity creates markets
Housing acts as a locus for buyer-seller interactions, creating markets influenced by various stakeholders such as planners, developers, speculators, and financial gatekeepers.
Housing differs from other commodities
Unlike many commodities, housing is immobile, and its value is intricately tied to location, affected by factors like neighboring land uses, spatial relationships, and social characteristics.
Affected by planners, developers, speculators, financial gatekeepers
Redlining and Spatial Discrimination:
Redlining, a practice by financial institutions, involved identifying certain areas as "high risk," leading to loan denials and reinforcing neighborhood segregation and decline.
Spatial discrimination practice of finance institutions
Examples of gatekeeping activity: redlining
This practice limited investment options and contributed to socio-economic disparities.
Loan denials based on anticipated price decline
Housing Policies in Developed Countries:
Perspectives on housing policies vary between capitalist and socialist views. While the capitalist approach views housing as subject to market dynamics without state intervention, the socialist perspective advocates for housing as a universal right similar to education or healthcare.
Housing policies across countries range from minimal state intervention in the United States to extensive public housing initiatives in European nations and Canada. Singapore and Hong Kong exhibit dominance of state-controlled public housing.
Distinctive Characteristics of the Housing Market:
Housing shares similarities with other markets but possesses unique features such as immobility and the significant influence of location on its value. Attributes like lot size, housing type, condition, and spatial relationships affect housing value.
Complexities and Discriminatory Practices:
The housing market's supply-demand logic is influenced by various participants, including urban planners, developers, real estate agents, and financiers, shaping decision-making and market dynamics.
Discriminatory lending practices, historically based on race, influence access to housing loans despite being illegal. Withdrawal of financial institutions from certain areas and the emergence of high-interest institutions restrict access to housing options, resembling modern-day redlining practices.
Consequences and Evolution of Redlining:
Redlining's illegal practice reinforced segregated neighborhoods, hindered property sales, and led to suburban homogeneity and property deterioration. In Canada, the establishment of CMHC (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) altered the prevalence of redlining, promoting homeownership and reducing its practice.
Current Practices Resembling Redlining:
Contemporary practices, including the withdrawal of mainstream financial institutions from inner-city areas and the rise of high-interest institutions, limit residents' ability to buy, sell, or renovate homes, reminiscent of modern-day redlining practices.
Can see this Abandonment of redlining practices
Look at the Subprime mortgage crisis in 2007-2008
Redlining, a discriminatory practice denying financial services to specific neighborhoods, was officially banned in 1968 by the Fair Housing Act.
Despite the ban, historical redlining contributed to disparities in access to credit and housing opportunities for marginalized communities.
The subprime mortgage crisis of 2007-2008 was caused by the widespread issuance of risky mortgage loans to borrowers with poor credit histories or unstable financial situations.
While redlining was part of housing discrimination, the immediate cause of the crisis was risky lending practices, inadequate regulatory oversight, and the collapse of the housing market.
Efforts post-crisis included regulatory reforms, government interventions, and increased scrutiny of lending practices to prevent a recurrence.
Initiatives continue to promote fair lending practices and address systemic inequalities in housing and credit access.
Residential Mobility
Residential mobility, influenced by push and pull factors, plays a significant role in shaping housing decisions and neighborhood dynamics. The factors driving relocation decisions often vary based on individual circumstances, preferences, and financial constraints.
Factors Influencing Residential Mobility:
Push Factors: Stem from inadequate housing conditions, neighborhood characteristics, accessibility issues, and a desire for improved homeownership conditions.
Moves affected by push and pull factors:
Pull Factors: Include incentives like increased living space, shorter commute times, better neighborhood amenities, and other desirable features that attract individuals or families to relocate. (Design and quality, including space, housing age)
Residential Mobility and Life Cycle:
Life events such as marriage, childbearing, divorce, and other significant changes impact relocation decisions. Different life stages introduce varying push and pull factors that influence residential moves.
we can see this Shift from rental to ownership: affected by the life cycle stages
Filtering Concept and Neighborhood Dynamics:
Filtering: Describes the sequential occupation of housing units by individuals from different income groups over time, often resulting in downward income filtering as homes age and neighborhoods become less desirable.
can be studied at the individual house and neighborhood level
Downward filtering, more common than upward filtering, occurs as older housing becomes more affordable, potentially leading to housing abandonment and contributing to urban financial problems.
Factors Impacting Neighborhood Decline or Revitalization:
Neighborhoods experience decline or revitalization influenced by various factors. Revitalization factors, such as increased demand and property maintenance, contrast with decline factors that decrease demand, leading to neglect or abandonment.
Property Value, Homeownership, and Gentrification:
Homeownership is often perceived as an investment for income generation or property value appreciation, influencing relocation decisions significantly.
Negative equity, where homeowners owe more on their mortgage than the home's value, impacts the ability to sell homes.
Gentrification, observed in areas like Lavapiés in Madrid, can lead to rising housing prices and displacement of long-term residents due to increased demand, tourism, and changing neighborhood dynamics.
Impact on Urban Landscapes:
Individual and familial decisions regarding residence contribute to reinforcing or altering spatial social variations, shaping distinct neighborhoods in urban landscapes.
Gentrification
Definition: Gentrification refers to the revitalization and transformation of deteriorated urban areas by middle-class individuals or families, resulting in increased property values and improved housing quality.
Process: Involves renovating existing housing rather than demolition, attracting newcomers due to increased land and property values.
Since the 1970s, incoming high income residents have transformed some older, derelict inner-city neighborhoods
Ubiquity of Gentrification:
Most developed world cities experience gentrification, marked by housing upgrades and changes in neighborhood dynamics, often with new upscale businesses replacing traditional establishments.
Positive Aspects of Gentrification:
Advantages: Attracts middle-class residents seeking unique housing and architectural features, convenience of living near city centers, and capitalizing on differences in land value.
Investment opportunity in low-cost housing (social impact- improved housing)
Access to downtown employment
Quality of life benefits
City Benefits: Upgrades the built environment, leading to increased property tax revenue for local governments.
Negative Impacts of Gentrification:
Threat to Vulnerable Populations: Rising property values and taxes may displace poorer residents, especially renters, leading to increased social polarization and conflicts.
mixed social impact: New businesses targeting higher-income earners
Social Polarization: Gentrification can contribute to social conflict as some inner-city residents resist changes to maintain neighborhood diversity and identity.
Displaces existing population
Case Example:
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randview-Woodlands Area:Located in East Vancouver, this inner-city neighborhood resisted decline and gentrification, retaining its unique character and affordable housing. The community's desire to preserve diversity and identity potentially contributed to resisting the impacts of gentrification.Examples like the Grandview-Woodlands Area showcase instances where communities actively resist gentrification to preserve their identity and affordability.
Residential Segregation
Definition: Segregation involves the spatial separation of distinct subgroups within cities, often based on factors like income, class, ethnicity, religion, or cultural variables.
Residents and associated services may vary
Residential Areas: Segregated areas include homes and associated social/cultural institutions that maintain spatial separation within the larger urban landscape.
Historical Examples of Segregation:
Europe: Pre-Industrial Revolution, distinct urban districts included Jewish ghettos. Post-Industrial Revolution, class divisions led to the emergence of working-class and middle-class areas.
North America: Nineteenth-century cities exhibited segregation based on ethnicity and class, with African-American neighborhoods forming in highly segregated areas.
Colonial Areas: Cities in colonial times had separate districts for Europeans, immigrant groups, and local populations, resembling apartheid-like divisions observed in South Africa.
Factors Contributing to Segregation:
Economic Factors: Significant contributors to residential segregation, creating distinct neighborhoods based on income, wealth, and social class.
Social Segregation: Discussions revolve around dominant charter populations and minority groups, often leading to spatial separation due to voluntary congregation or involuntary discrimination.
Spatial segregation is usually involuntary
Spatial congregation is largely voluntary
Types and Measures of Social Segregation:
Forms of Segregation: Enclaves, ghettos, and colonies emerge from voluntary or involuntary segregation, representing different degrees and forms of spatial separation.
Measuring Segregation: Metrics like the Index of Dissimilarity and Isolation Index quantify the extent of segregation between minority and charter populations.
Spatial Outcomes and Cultural Significance:
Social Places: Segregated neighborhoods often host cultural institutions, businesses, and signs that visibly represent distinct cultural groups, like Chinatowns in North America.
Variation in Segregation: Visible minorities (e.g., African Americans) tend to experience higher levels of segregation compared to cultural minorities defined by language or religion.
Assimilation, Acculturation, and Multiculturalism:
Societies have had to change policies regarding assimilation, acculturation, and multiculturalism
Assimilation vs. Acculturation: Assimilation aims to absorb minority groups into the larger society, while acculturation retains aspects of their identity.
Policy Differences: Countries like the US promote assimilation, while Canada adopts multiculturalism as an official policy, fostering a pluralistic society while facilitating acculturation.
Segregation Types - Enclaves, Ghettos, Colonies:
Enclaves: Concentrations of minority groups protecting their cultural practices, such as Jewish districts in American or European cities.
Ghettos: Long-standing segregation imposed by dominant societies on minority groups, seen in African-American and Hispanic-American segregation in the US.
Colonies: Result from discrimination or congregation, reflecting temporary segregation in immigrant reception areas in North American cities.
Terminology Definitions:
Societies may formally or informally recognize minority groups, charter groups, and visible minorities
Visible Minority: Defined by skin color; in Canada, anyone non-white or non-Indigenous is recognized as a visible minority.
Cultural Minority: Defined by language, religion, lifestyle, or ethnic origin.
Charter Population: Dominant cultural group in an urban area representing the host community.
Minority Populations/Groups: Differentiated from the charter population based on ethnicity, language, religion, nationality, lifestyle, or income.
Congregation vs. Involuntary Segregation:
Congregation: Voluntary clustering of minority groups to maintain cultural practices, institutions, and networks.
Involuntary Segregation: Forced clustering due to discrimination, often perpetuated by real estate agents, developers, or financial institutions.
Effect of Gentrification and Example Protest
Definition of Gentrification: It is the process of upgrading deteriorating neighborhoods in a city by attracting more affluent residents, resulting in neighborhood improvement.
Positive Aspects:
Neighborhood Improvement: Gentrification leads to enhanced appearance, better quality housing, and the introduction of new businesses, positively affecting the neighborhood's aesthetics and amenities.
Rise in Property Values: Investments in the area elevate property values, which can increase tax revenue for the municipality, theoretically leading to better amenities and beautification.
Negative Aspects:
Displacement: Gentrification often displaces long-term residents and businesses as rising property values prompt landlords to evict existing residents, leading to a change in the area's socio-economic composition.
Impact on Local Businesses: Independent retailers catering to the original neighborhood population are replaced by higher-end or franchise businesses, altering the area's commercial landscape.
Canadian Example - Locke Street, Hamilton, Ontario:
Locke Street underwent gentrification, transforming from a mixed-income area with small shops and diners to a hot housing market with upscale retailers and restaurants.
A group protesting gentrification caused significant property damage, highlighting the tension and discontent surrounding the changes in the neighborhood.
Consequences and Considerations:
Real Consequences: Gentrification's consequences extend beyond property improvement, involving issues like affordable housing and regulations around evictions.
Balancing Neighborhood Rehabilitation: Emphasizes the importance of addressing affordable housing needs and tightening eviction regulations to mitigate the negative impacts of gentrification.
Impact on Inner Cities: Expansion of suburban areas in conurbations can reduce urban tax bases, underutilize urban infrastructure, and decrease property values in city centers.
Suburbanization
Historical Perspective:
Early urban areas revolved around key points like river crossings or marketplaces.
Wealthier residents tended to live closer to city centers, while poorer populations resided farther away.
Urban centers have always had suburbs (Prior to industrialization, the city center was the favored location)
Transformation of Urban Space:
Late 19th-century transportation improvements (e.g., streetcars) facilitated initial suburban growth.
we see Disamenities in city centres
The introduction of automobiles shifted focus from direction to distance from city centers, enabling access to previously remote areas. (Public transit, then automobiles, enabled suburban growth)
Urban centers have always had suburbs
Prior to industrialization, the city center was the favored location
Suburban Growth Phases:
Suburbanization accelerated in the 20th century, particularly in regions with available land, weak planning regulations, and affluent populations.
Suburbs became the dominant urban experience, emphasizing consumerism and conformity.
Decentralization enabled by available land, low planning controls, relatively high incomes, mobility
Characteristics of Suburbs:
North American suburbs typically featured single-family homes on large lots and relied heavily on automobile transportation.
European working-class suburbs, incorporating public housing, faced challenges of deprivation and inadequate infrastructure.
Population Trends and Diversity:
North American suburbs experienced substantial population growth and diversification.
By 2000, suburban populations surpassed those in both central cities and rural areas combined.
Suburbanization Defined:
Suburbanization refers to the process where rural-urban fringe areas become urbanized due to migration and business expansion.
Responses to Urban Changes:
Suburbanization emerged in response to internal changes within industrializing cities, including disamenities in city centers and improvements in transportation.
Public transit and automobiles played pivotal roles in enabling suburban growth and altering the importance of distance over direction.
Distinct Experiences of Suburbs:
Suburban experiences varied significantly between car-dependent and transit-dependent suburbs, shaping their development and characteristics.
North American suburbs are notably diverse, exhibiting various forms and socio-economic landscapes.
Dominant form in North America, very diverse
Urban Sprawl
Definition Clarification:
Urban sprawl conveys negative connotations of extensive, unplanned development, often associated with a lack of planning and coherence.
It co-exists with consumption and involves the spread of residential and other land uses without integration, high density or underused land
Characteristics of Sprawl:
Low Population Densities: Result in disconnected land use and underused spaces, contributing to long commuting times.
Young sprawl and its association with suburbanization
Supports strip malls and retail centers designed around automobile reliance.
Impact and Criticisms:
Environmental Effects: Criticized for destroying farmland, increasing pollution due to commuting, and fostering sedentary lifestyles.
Long commuting times
Residential Preference: Despite criticisms, a significant portion of North America's population preferred suburban living by 1990.
Formation of Conurbations:
Conurbations result from sprawling urban development, forming continuously built-up areas by merging expanding cities. (Has led to the formation of conurbations)
Examples include the Greater Toronto Area and Hamilton (GTAH) or the Megalopolis (BOSNYWASH) in North America.
Coalescence of sprawl from multiple cities (ex: Suburbs of St Diego and LA)
Consequences of Conurbation Growth:
Impact on Inner Cities: Expansion of suburban areas in conurbations can reduce urban tax bases, underutilize urban infrastructure, and decrease property values in city centers.
Post-Suburbia
Definition of Edge Cities:
New urban centers situated on the outskirts of cities emphasize professional, managerial, and skilled labor opportunities rather than industrial employment.
The suburban form changed with continued expansion
The term edge city was first used to describe new centers of suburban office and retail activity
Characteristics of Edge Cities:
Limited industrial connections, focusing on office buildings and public institutions, often with high-rise structures, resembling traditional city centers.
Post-industrial
Reflect general patterns of employment change
As suburbanization continues, edge city forms, types, and names have proliferated
Service industries and producer services moved in
Features of Edge City Development:
Post-Suburban Nature: Reflects the evolution of suburban areas from industrial to service-based economies.
Services Exodus: Involves the migration of financial and producer services from older downtown areas to these suburban centers.
Examples and Pervasiveness:
Tysons Corner Example: Tysons Corner, Virginia, transformed from a rural area in the 1960s into a significant hub with extensive retail spaces.
U.S. Occurrence: Edge cities are prevalent in rapidly growing urban regions like Las Vegas, Denver, Phoenix, Dallas, Austin, Houston, and Atlanta.
Global Variations and Other Terms:
Global Variances: Edge city growth is more prevalent in the U.S. due to available space, while other developed nations have less common occurrences due to space limitations.
Alternative Descriptions: Various terms such as peri-metropolitan growth, suburban activity centers, and technoburbs highlight the multifaceted nature of these urban developments.
Social Implications and Diversity:
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Inequality and Poverty
Poverty Concentration in Cities:
Urban areas increasingly concentrate on poverty, particularly within older central areas, housing disadvantaged populations.
Modern cities are highly unequal (Greater inequality than pre-industrial rural or urban space)
Often in older inner areas in MDCs
Historical Urban Growth Patterns:
19th-century urban industrial expansion led to poorly serviced high-density housing.
20th-century urban redevelopment replaced past slums with equally poor, often high-rise housing.
Issues Associated with Poor Residential Areas:
Poor housing areas are linked to various social issues like crime, substance abuse, homelessness, and ethnic tensions.
Ethnicity and Poverty:
Deprivation often correlates with distinct ethnic groups, contributing to the spatial concentration of poverty.
Explanations for Poverty:
Culture of Poverty Argument: Suggests a cycle of poverty perpetuated by cultural norms and individuals’ inability to cope
Emphasis on Personal Characteristics: Focus on individual limitations like illness or lack of education.
Structural Class Conflicts: Highlights economic restructuring and housing inadequacies (capitalism)
Institutional Control of Resources: Addresses the uneven distribution of resources and power imbalances.
Impact of Inequality on Urban Life:
Wide income disparities lead to mental illness, substance abuse, crime, lower education standards, and shorter life expectancy in cities.
Response to Inequality:
Affluent residents' response often widens the gap, leading to disparities between rundown inner-city areas and gated suburban communities.
This comprehensive summary covers various aspects of poverty concentration in cities, historical growth patterns, causes and explanations for poverty, the impact of inequality on urban life, and responses to urban poverty
Poverty and Urban Life
Welfare Neighborhoods:
Some major American cities have designated "welfare neighborhoods" where residents heavily rely on welfare payments, forming the backbone of the local economy.
These areas often suffer from a lack of essential services, including health, education, financial services, and affordable retail options.
Factors Associated with Poverty:
Poverty is linked to ethnic minority identities, unemployment, low education levels, poor health, and disadvantages related to age and gender.
Associated with various social status disadvantages (E.g., education, ethnic minority, gender)
Shifts to post-industrial economies have led to the loss of manufacturing jobs, particularly affecting deindustrialized areas without new investments.
Exacerbated by lack of social services, loss of manufacturing jobs
Impact on Health and Housing:
Poverty contributes to inadequate housing or homelessness, leading to increased health risks like hypothermia, tuberculosis, bronchitis, and skin infections.
Substance abuse becomes prevalent in impoverished areas due to despair and lack of opportunities.
Gender and Age Vulnerabilities:
Single mothers and older women living alone are especially vulnerable to poverty, and gender-based divisions persist despite some measures like subsidized daycare.
Poverty's impact varies across age and gender lines, influencing vulnerabilities and opportunities.
Poverty and Criminal Activity:
Poverty is closely linked to criminal behavior, with unemployed individuals overrepresented as both perpetrators and victims of crime.
Criminal activity often arises from societal inequality and exclusion, with marginalized groups facing increased harassment and arrest.
Interconnected Factors:
Contemporary research emphasizes how gender, class, ethnicity, and sexuality intersect within the context of poverty, compounding vulnerabilities.
Homelessness
Degrees of Homelessness:
Rooflessness: Sleeping in open-air spaces, exposed to the elements.
Houselessness: Individuals routinely sleep in shelters or emergency accommodations.
Insecure Housing: People lacking permanent housing, forced to share accommodations, or at risk of losing housing due to financial constraints.
inadequate accommodation: Considered inadequate for shelter (overcrowding, disrepair)
Living Conditions and Inadequate Accommodation:
Homelessness encompasses various inadequate living conditions, including overcrowding, unfit or substandard housing, and the absence of permanent shelter.
In certain regions, such as some Indigenous reserves in Canada, poor housing quality is a significant issue contributing to homelessness.
Caused by various social and economic stresses
Spatial Contrasts and Estimation Challenges:
Disparities in wealth and poverty are visible in many cities, exemplifying the stark contrast between privilege and deprivation.
Estimating the number of homeless individuals faces challenges due to differing definitions and methodologies, leading to variations in reported figures.
Homelessness as a Social Issue:
Success stories in some regions, such as New Zealand, highlight the effectiveness of state housing and cultural factors in mitigating homelessness.
Homelessness places a significant financial burden on governments and society, straining various services, including emergency medical facilities, police, social service agencies, and charities.
Health and Financial Costs:
Homeless individuals often face dire health outcomes, with significantly reduced life expectancies due to substance abuse and other health complications.
Comparative cost analyses showcase the potential financial feasibility of providing affordable housing solutions over emergency services, illustrating the economic benefits of supportive housing programs.
Examples:
Canada faced challenges in census-based estimations, with a recent study approximating 200,000 homeless accessing emergency shelters or sleeping outside. However, this undercounts homelessness by not including those staying with friends or relatives.
New Haven, Connecticut, illustrated stark contrasts of privilege (represented by Yale University) and deprivation, exemplified by a tent city near the university. This disparity between wealth and poverty reflects broader societal issues.
Collins (2010) highlights the success in New Zealand where homelessness is minor due to state housing and cultural factors, reducing reliance on shelters or soup kitchens.
The Homeless Experience In Calgary and LA
Calgary Study on Homelessness:
Typical homeless individuals in Calgary are predominantly single, male, and financially disadvantaged.
They often lack education and are unemployed, actively seeking temporary work but facing difficulties in finding stable employment.
Contrary to stereotypes, homeless individuals are not inherently lazy; many are actively looking for work and are not intentionally separating themselves from society.
Homelessness is perceived differently by respondents, some defining it as lacking a home, while others see it as lacking a source of income or being unemployed.
Shelters are the primary form of accommodation for many homeless people, with few actually sleeping on the streets.
Los Angeles Study on Homeless Women:
The study focused on 25 single homeless women in Los Angeles, revealing diverse residential patterns and movement between settings.
These women faced unemployment and lacked other sources of income. Some used mobility as a coping mechanism, cycling through different settings intentionally.
Some reinterpreted institutional settings to affirm their identities rather than passively utilizing them.
Stability in residence did not necessarily indicate successful coping strategies, as seen in the case of a 50-year-old woman, Ellie, who cycled through 10 different settings over three years.
General Observations:
Many city residents encounter homelessness casually, often witnessing homeless individuals seeking financial support in public spaces.
Unfortunately, most people have little awareness or understanding of the lives and circumstances of homeless individuals.
Cities as Centres of Production and Consumption
Main Forms of Urban Employment:
Manufacturing: Historically, a significant source of urban employment, but its location patterns have undergone substantial changes since the Industrial Revolution.
Professional/Business Services: Including fields like law, finance, advertising, publishing, and insurance.
Retailing and Consumer Services: Vital for meeting the needs of urban populations.
Historical Shift and Urbanization:
Urbanization historically occurred as people migrated from rural to urban areas in pursuit of job opportunities.
Centres of Employment:
Cities serve as crucial hubs for employment, production, and consumption, facilitating economic activities.
Industrialization and Urban Growth:
The Industrial Revolution significantly accelerated urban growth, leading to the establishment and rapid expansion of urban centers.
Patterns of manufacturing locations have changed considerably since the Industrial Revolution
Location of Industrial Activities:
In earlier periods, manufacturing was often concentrated near the central business district, waterways, or railway lines within cities.
Shift in Industrial Activities:
Recent decades have witnessed a decline in manufacturing in most developed countries, with these activities relocating to newly industrializing nations like Mexico and China.
Transformation and Economic Restructuring:
Cities have undergone economic restructuring, marked by a shift from city centers to urban peripheries due to advancements in transportation and logistics.
Replacement of Industrial Activities by Services:
Inner-city manufacturing spaces have been replaced by various service activities, such as business services (law, finance), public services (education, healthcare), and consumer services (retail, hospitality).
In MDC cities:
older locations have lost manufacturing activities
newer suburban areas have gained
Real-world examples like the decline of manufacturing in inner-city areas like Detroit and the rise of service economies in cities like New York or London provide practical illustrations.
Offices and Professional/Business Services
The geography of Office Locations has changed:
Shift from central business cores to suburban areas due to cost-effectiveness and the ability to attract and retain workers from suburban regions.
While city centers may retain prestige office jobs, the major activity and land use of these cores significantly contributes to urban identity.
Key Organizational Changes in Retailing:
Reduction in independent retailers due to competition from larger enterprises.
Emergence and dominance of transnational retailers like Walmart and Ikea.
The growth of major online retailers such as Amazon and Alibaba, altering the retail landscape.
Reduction in independent retailers
The largest retailers are transnational
Rise of online retail
Toronto's Case Study:
Toronto experienced office migration from the downtown core to suburban areas, with a significant drop in downtown office capacity since the late 1970s.
Financial, insurance, and real estate firms remain in the downtown core, while others moved to suburban office parks, reflecting the general trend in large North American cities.
Transformation in Retailing Patterns:
Historical shift from city center streets to suburban shopping malls, marking a significant change in retailing locations.
Recent trends show further decentralization of shopping centers to out-of-town areas accessible by automobile, termed as power retail developments.
Move from traditional CBD to suburbs, then power centers
Migration from central business core to suburbs
Simultaneous impact on CBD and rural space
Impact of Online Retail:
Online retail growth impacts physical urban retail presence, prompting traditional retailers to venture into online platforms.
The rise of major online retailers like Amazon significantly altered traditional shopping habits.
Technological Influence on Retailing:
Introduction of innovative technologies such as Amazon Go Grocery Stores using app-based purchasing technology.
The potential influence of these technologies on the accessibility and location of stores based on app usage, potentially impacting demographics and urban accessibility.
Real-world examples like the transformation in Toronto's office landscape and the impact of major online retailers on physical retail presence provide concrete illustrations of these shifts in urban geography and economic activities. Decentralization Trend: In the late 1970s, over 60% of Toronto's office capacity was in the downtown core; currently, only 20% remains, with financial, insurance and real estate firms staying while others moved to suburban office parks.
Transportation and Communication
Importance of Transportation and Communication:
Vital City Function: Cities depend on transportation (roads, rail, air, telecommunications) for the movement of people, goods, and information to function effectively.
Cities are facilitated by transportation and communication
Everyday Movement: People commute to work or school, travel for shopping, entertainment, and visitations, and maintain electronic contact through telephones, computers, and mobile phones.
Economic Transactions: Goods move into, out of, and within the city as part of daily economic activities.
Cities are Facilitated by transportation and communication
Impact of Disrupted Transportation:
Consequences of Disruption: City life suffers when transportation services are unavailable due to weather, labor strikes, accidents, or infrastructure damage.
Disruption Ramifications: Work, food purchases, emergency services, and daily activities may be severely affected during transportation disruptions.
Accessibility and Mobility:
Accessibility Definition: It refers to the ease of reaching one location from another. For instance, suburbs might be farther from workplaces and essential services compared to downtown areas.
Influence of Distance: Physical, time, or cost distance affects accessibility levels to various city services from different locations.
On average, changes in mobility have increased accessibility
Increase in Mobility:
Technological Advancements: Technological improvements in transportation and rising incomes have reduced the constraint of physical distance, reducing the friction of distance.
Role of Automobile Ownership: Widespread ownership of automobiles enhances personal mobility, but mobility disparities exist based on economic circumstances. Low-income earners rely more on public transit systems and have lesser mobility options compared to high-income earners.
Social and Economic Implications:
Transportation and Wellbeing: Transportation issues are interconnected with broader aspects of social and economic wellbeing within the city.
Affected by income and other factors (age, ability)
Role of Information Technologies (IT)
Information Technology (IT) and Urban Movement:
Virtual Accessibility: IT advancements provide virtual access to various activities like online shopping, home entertainment, and telecommuting, reducing the necessity for physical movement within cities.
Changing Business and Personal Communications: Businesses and individuals increasingly conduct daily routines remotely, including online transactions, telecommuting, and telemedicine.
Alters communication and transportation services
E-commerce and its Impact:
Rise of E-commerce: Electronic commerce (e-commerce) such as online banking and shopping has significantly transformed the commercial landscape of cities.
Continued Importance of Traditional Shopping: While e-commerce grows, traditional shopping behavior remains due to the social and recreational aspects associated with shopping.
Effects on Work and Business Activities:
Telecommuting Advancements: IT enables more individuals to work or study from home, leading to reduced daily travel needs within cities.
Decentralization of Business Activities: IT advancements allow some business functions, particularly back-office operations, to be located away from established office areas, reducing movement to city centers. Can disperse back-office activities. Tends to concentrate on front-office activities (Enables changes in personal and business location)
Transportation, Land Use, and Accessibility:
Transportation's Impact on Land Use: Transportation systems, roads, and public transit influence accessibility, which, in turn, affects land use decisions made by businesses and other land users. Transportation is a major user of urban land (Roads and parking lots)
Highway and Public Transit Effects: Empirical studies reveal that the construction of highways or the establishment of public transit systems like light rail transit (LRT) influences urban development and investment. High accessibility areas due to these systems tend to attract residents and businesses.
Relationship Between Accessibility and Land Use Change:
Impact of Improved Accessibility: Improved accessibility, whether due to highways or public transit, influences land-use change. Areas close to these accessibility-enhanced locations witness higher land values and potential development.
Planning the City
Cities mix individual decisions and planning
Planning has ancient Origins: Evident in planned GRIDS (E.g., Indus Valley, Greece)
Individual Choices and Urban Geography:
Daily decisions made by businesses and individuals, like investing in new ventures or selecting places to spend money, cumulatively impact the social and economic layout of a city.
While these choices are constrained, they contribute significantly to the city's urban geography through their collective effect.
Role of Urban Planning:
Urban planning is crucial in managing cities and ensuring the provision of essential services such as water supply, policing, and transportation networks.
Zoning regulations and other planning measures influence the locations of different land uses, shaping the spatial spread and growth of cities.
Modern cities require planning activities to develop and function effectively, providing a template that is then shaped by the actions and interactions of its inhabitants.
Urban planning decisions can address
Service provision
Land use, zoning
Policing
Transport
Spatial spread, temporal growth
Improving the Industrial City
Historical Unregulated Growth:
Early cities experienced unregulated and haphazard growth in land use, lacking significant planning or control over development.
Initially grew haphazardly, at a cost to residents
Transformation due to Industrialization (19th Century):Rapid urbanization linked with industrialization in the 19th century necessitated significant changes in urban planning approaches.
Urban centers faced critical sanitation issues arising from overcrowding and unsanitary conditions, leading to diseases like typhoid, typhus, and cholera.
Initially grew haphazardly, at the cost of the residents
Emergence of Urban Planning:
The urgent need for better health conditions drove the emergence of modern urban planning.
Citywide sewage and water supply systems became essential for addressing sanitation challenges in European and North American cities.
Focus of Early Urban Planning:
Early urban planning initially centered on improving public health conditions by addressing sanitation issues caused by overcrowding and unsanitary living conditions.
Planners also directed attention to improving housing standards and creating public open spaces to enhance the overall living environment in cities.
Historical Foundations of City Planning:
Early permanent settlements, like Moenjodaro in what is now Pakistan, displayed planned layouts with rectangular grid street systems and central squares, evidencing deliberate design.
The grid system, popularized by the Hippodamus of Miletus in the 5th century BCE, became a norm in many planned cities across different civilizations.
European influence in city planning is evident in cities like Vancouver, Quebec City, Guelph, and Charlottetown, reflecting authority on the urban landscape through street orientation and public space design.
Historical cities, across various regions of the world, often exhibited monumental planning styles in their central areas, intended primarily to express authority rather than improving residents' quality of life.
Planning Cities and Suburbs
Beautiful City Movement:
Aim: Address pollution and overcrowding in industrial cities through aesthetic city redesign. Reaction to industrial city pollution and overcrowding. Plan not fully implemented, but generated interest)
Focus: Government-controlled urban elements like street layouts, public buildings, and open spaces. Advocated aesthetically pleasing cities: (Street layouts, public buildings, public open spaces)
Example: The comprehensive plan for Chicago included ring and radial roads, public transportation, uniform building heights, and extensive open spaces, though not fully implemented.
Impact: Interest sparked across countries, including Canada, leading to city beautification groups and plans in cities like Toronto, Ottawa, Calgary, and Edmonton. It aimed to impose social order on chaotic city growth.
Garden Cities and suburbs Movement:
Objective: Integrate urban and rural aspects in new urban areas to alleviate industrial urban life challenges. Spacious, high quality environment for work and living
Intended to blend city and country
Design Elements: Master-planned cities featuring low-density housing, wide streets, concentric land use patterns, public open spaces, and green belts.
Each new city built according to a master plan
Example: Ebenezer Howard proposed the garden city concept, inspiring designs like the Radburn suburb in New Jersey.
Radburn Features: Emphasized safety for children, separated pedestrian and vehicle traffic, and incorporated superblocks around communal parkland.
Cities of Towers (Le Corbusier's Vision):
Architect: Le Corbusier advocated high-rise, high-density urban centers with organized spatial layouts. (High-rise buildings interspersed with parkland)
Large, dramatic urban centres, multi-story buildings
Advocated increasing both open space and density
Features: Suggested massive multi-story buildings, increased open space, and population density through clusters of buildings separated by greenery.
Examples: Chandigarh in India and Brasilia in Brazil adopted his ideas. His influence is also evident in North American urban renewal with high-rise apartments and suburban complexes in Toronto's suburbs.
Planning Cities and Suburbs: New Urbanism
Architectural and planning ideology (Building ideal urban communities)
Influenced by high-density, pedestrian-friendly cities
Creates communities based on pedestrian movement, public transit, and increased social interaction
Origins of New Urbanism (1980s):
Response to 20th-century urban sprawl trend (suburbanization trends) characterized by sprawling suburbs. (Wasting too much space, lack of sense of community)
Concerns: Suburban expansion consumes large land areas, lacks community focus, and discourages pedestrian-friendly living.
Key Principles of New Urbanism:
Emphasis on pedestrian movement and mass transit over private vehicles.
Accessibility: Businesses designed for easy access by foot or public transit.
Street Design: Narrow streets to reduce traffic speed, enhance safety, and foster community interaction.
Housing Design: Front porches close to streets to encourage social engagement, with rear-oriented parking lots and garages.
Neighbourhood Planning: Each area to have a discernible center for community interaction and social cohesion.
Examples of New Urbanism:
Seaside in Florida, Mackenzie Towne in Calgary, and Cornell in Markham, Ontario.
Purpose of New Urbanism:
Advocates an idealized image of urban life, mythologizing urban places.
Encourages residents to adopt specific behaviors and promotes a planned vision of the city.
New Urbanism aims to counteract urban sprawl by fostering walkable, transit-oriented, and community-focused neighborhoods, offering an alternative approach to urban planning and lifestyle.
Planning in Practice
Government Intervention in Urban Planning:
Urban planning involves government intervention aiming to shape the form and function of cities for better livability.
Since World War II, urban planning focused on physical design, urban renewal, and suburban expansion, often driven by legislative constraints and public participation.
Move away from utopian goals
The more pragmatic activity of central government (Formal process of development, implementation, and Influences urban form)
Zoning and Its Impact:
Zoning emerged in the 1920s to regulate land use, segregating urban areas into distinct zones (residential, commercial, industrial) to prevent incompatible land uses from being adjacent.
major planning tool defining land use and social and economic geography of the city
Critics note zoning's inflexibility and sometimes sterile urban landscapes, which may result in socio-economic segregation in certain American cities.
Inner City Redevelopment:
Many cities worldwide concentrate on redeveloping city centers, emphasizing cultural capital like historic preservation and arts promotion for economic growth.
The European Union's City of Culture initiative and similar plans encourage cities to emphasize culture in their development.
Urban Transportation Challenges:
Urban transportation systems pose planning and financial challenges due to growing cities and evolving land uses.
Debates center on public transit versus private automobile use, often focusing on limiting private car access in favor of robust public transit. (Has emerged as an area of debate)
Differences between European and North American cities are notable, with European cities emphasizing public transit and bicycles.
Addresses differing social and environmental concerns
Debates on Highway Expansion:
Debates surround the merits of investing in new highways versus improving public transit, with some arguing that more highways increase traffic rather than relieve congestion.
The issue of who pays for transportation services is contentious, with some components being privatized in various countries.
Social Justice Implications:
Transportation planning tends to prioritize technical aspects, like traffic flows, with little focus on social justice implications concerning the costs and access for low-income individuals.
Highways and private automobile ownership contribute to urban sprawl, congestion, air pollution, and accidents, disproportionately impacting low-income suburban residents without access to efficient public transit.
Zoning Definition:
Zoning refers to legal land use restrictions that determine urban activities and building forms allowed on specific land parcels.
Planned Redevelopment of the Port Lands area
Port Lands Redevelopment in Toronto:
The Port Lands area in Toronto, formerly industrial, is targeted for redevelopment by municipal and provincial governments.
Various proposals, including consideration for the Olympics, have been discussed, with recent plans focused on mixed-use neighborhoods.
Quayside Development:
Quayside is the test neighborhood developed by Sidewalk Labs within the Port Lands area.
It's intended to be a "smart city," equipped with sensors, high connectivity, and data analysis to automate various aspects like transit and deliveries.
Toronto is targeted by Sidewalk Labs to design this smart neighborhood, with the aim of extending such developments to other cities.
Features of Quayside:
Quayside will feature a mix of residential and commercial spaces along with areas for retail, arts, and community activities.
Sidewalk Labs committed to making 20% of the residential units affordable housing as of 2018.
Controversies and Challenges:
Concerns and controversies surround smart city concepts, particularly related to privacy and data ownership.
The implementation of smart city technologies is likely to come with significant challenges, as with any new technology.
Cities of the Less Developed World
Same functions as MDC cities, but is often less effective (Providing homes, places to work, and places to consume)
Some similarities to 19th-century MDC problems
Key differences
Large areas of poverty: periphery, urban centre
Lower access to social and physical services, employment
Tendency to have primate cities
More rapid growth
Challenges in Less Developed World Cities:
Health: Higher rates of premature death due to infectious diseases and elevated infant and maternal mortality rates.
Housing: Inadequate shelter supply and insecure tenure, leading to housing problems.
Employment: Generally low-paying, unsafe, and insecure job opportunities.
Food and Water: Expensive, poor quality, insufficient quantity of food and water.
Education: Unavailability of education for many, resulting in high illiteracy rates.
Living Conditions:
Cities in less developed regions have areas resembling middle-class neighborhoods but overall perform urban functions less effectively.
Despite challenging circumstances, many residents believe cities offer a better quality of life than rural areas.
Large areas of poverty: periphery urban center
Lower access to social and physical services, employment
Resilience and Coping:
Residents, particularly the urban poor, face significant daily challenges but work tirelessly to cope and provide their children with improved prospects.
Challenges faced by urban poor are not self-imposed but stem from larger economic and social issues needing fundamental resolution.
Colonial Origins and Recent Growth
Colonial Legacy in Less Developed World Cities:
Many cities in Africa, Latin America, and some in Asia have a colonial heritage, created by European powers to serve European needs.
These cities bear colonial/pre-independence names and often retain colonial architecture, reflecting their origins.
Functions of Colonial Cities:
European-created cities primarily served administrative, military, and export control functions.
Many LDC cities were created as centers for exploitation (Locations suited to extraction, not independent economies and high in-migration)
They failed to stimulate local growth and benefit local populations, lacking initiatives for indigenous industrial development.
Cultural Impact and Pluralism:
Importation of indentured labor led to cultural pluralism and, in some cases, cultural conflicts within these cities.
Post-Independence Challenges:
Post-independence, rapidly growing cities lacked a pre-existing industrial base, leading to various issues and problems stemming from the colonial era.
Urbanization Growth:Urbanization in the less developed world surged after 1950, with only 17% living in cities in 1950, rising to about 50% today.
Rural-to-urban migration was driven by changes in employment opportunities and a perceived better quality of life in cities.
Primate Cities:
Rural migrants often gravitate toward primate cities, notably the capital cities, creating megacities.
Primate cities in less developed countries often house 20-30% of the country's total population, raising concerns about their size in relation to the country's economic circumstances.
Informal Settlements and Slums
Overview of Less Developed World Cities:
Many cities in less developed countries show economic and social vibrancy, hosting major corporations and becoming players in the global economy.
Despite this, some areas suffer from overcrowding, crime, poverty, disease, limited services, traffic congestion, and unemployment, impacting the poor the most.
Growth of Informal Settlements and Slums:
Rapid urban growth has led to the emergence of informal settlements at the city periphery and long-standing slums in urban cores, creating issues of uncontrolled expansion and low-quality housing.
Statistics indicate the enormity of the problem: about one-third of the world's urban population were slum dwellers in 2005, expected to reach 1.4 billion by 2020.
Employment and Labor in Informal Settlements:
New urban migrants often engage in the informal sector for employment, involved in retail, services, selling items, begging, and scavenging. (Often segmented by gender and age, Low pay is often unsafe and can be a range of informal work, like informal housing)
Labor markets are segmented by gender, with women performing less attractive labor, and child labor is prevalent in various forms.
Health and Environmental Issues:
Informal settlements and slums face health challenges due to unsafe water, and inadequate sanitation, leading to diseases like respiratory infections, diarrhea, malaria, and cholera. (Health affected by physical environment location)
Informal settlements are often in hazardous locations like Natural hazards, pollutants, and Less access to resources
Air pollution, often at dangerous levels due to proximity to industrial areas, is a significant problem, leading to serious health risks.
Environmental concerns, termed the 'brown agenda,' involve housing crises, waste disposal, and pollution issues, reflecting urban and economic growth linked to environmental deterioration.
Vulnerability to Global Environmental Change:
These areas are vulnerable to global environmental changes, such as sea-level rise and extreme weather events like hurricanes, due to their locations, lack of infrastructure, and poor management.
Urban vs. Rural Perception:
Despite challenges, the urban way of life is perceived as preferable to rural living, leading to a continual influx of people into cities from rural areas.
Informal Settlements and Slums
A significant portion of the world’s population
Informal housing in the periphery and inner city
Informal status can mask range in quality (Some low quality, some more established, all non-legal)
Lack of legal recognition makes life precarious)
Slum Areas as Gateways to Prosperity
Urban vs. Rural Perception:
Migrants in less developed countries perceive cities as offering a better quality of life compared to rural areas, which is reflected in declining fertility rates in urban centers compared to rural regions.
Advantages of Informal Settlements and Slums:
Informal settlements provide opportunities for women, freeing them from patriarchal constraints and offering social roles outside the home.
These settlements offer low-cost housing, create social support networks not feasible in rural areas, and generally prevent extreme starvation.
Role of Arrival Cities in Social Mobility:
Arrival cities, where rural migrants first experience urban life, are seen as catalysts for social change and mobility. They allow individuals to take advantage of cheap housing, build social connections, accumulate capital, and transition to becoming urban dwellers.
Improving Life in Informal Settlements:
Integration of informal settlements into cities: Urban authorities are making efforts to integrate these settlements into cities by providing assistance for housing improvement. Some argue that this approach perpetuates poverty while absolving governments of their responsibility.
Redirecting international aid: There's a suggestion to redirect aid from rural to urban areas, addressing the pressing needs of congested cities such as sanitation.
Local involvement in improvement: Initiatives to improve urban areas should actively involve residents to ensure their participation and secure tenure, fostering willingness among residents to contribute to home improvements.
Conclusion
The urban form reflects the social and economic change
Agricultural and industrial revolutions created different forms
Meeting social and human needs can conflict with economic goals, producing high levels of local and global inequality
Complex form and changes in form reflect both changing economic practices and the search for ideal social spaces