6.3. The changing structure of urban settlements Flashcards
Functional Zonation
Pattern of land uses in an urban area whereby distinctive retail, office, manufacturing and residential zones can be recognised
Functional Zonation Models
1) Burgress’ Concentric Zone Model
2) Hoyts’ Sector Model
3) Multiple nuclei model
Burgress’ Concentric Zone Model main assumptions
- Towns grew outward from the centre in a concentric pattern (buildings become closer to edge of city)
- 5 rings may develop (innermost to outermost): Central business district, Zone of transition, Council estates, Commuter zone, Countryside area
- Surrounding the CBD was the “zone in transition”
Central Business District (CBD)
- Most accessible to the largest number of people
- Contains services such as shops, offices, banks, etc.
- Multi-story buildings as land is very expensive (build upwards to save cost)
Zone of Transition (“twilight zone”)
Has 2 sections: Wholesale light manufacturing (transitional and low class residential (old inner city areas)
- 19 Century terraced buildings
- no gardens
- cheap, dirty slum areas (attracting crime)
- GRID IRON street pattern
- High rise blocks were built after slums were pulled down
- old industries found here
Council estates
- Semi-detached housing with gardens in large estates
- Less expensive private estates also here, not top quality (medium class residential)
Commuter Zone
- High class residential area
- Private, top quality housing
- Detached and semi-detached on cheap land
- People can live here as they are prepared to pay
Countryside Areas (suburbs)
- Countryside surrounding the urban area
- Can also contain villages / hamlets / city workers live
Problems with the Burgress Model
The Burgress model is simple and elegant but has many criticisms:
- It was based on Chicago in 1925 and best fits this city at this time
- The model is old and was developed before mass car ownership, so people relied on public transportation
- New working and housing trends have emerged since the model was developed. Many people now choose to live and work outside the city on the urban fringe
- There is no such thing as a “typical” city. All are different
- Intervening barriers such as old industrial centres, may prevent completion of a ring
Zone in transition
Area just beyond the CBD, which is characterised by a mixture of residential, industrial and commercial land use, tending towards deterioration and blight
Hoyts’ Sector Model (1939)
- Hoyt proposed the idea that towns grew as sectors or “wedges”
- That means that if, for example, industry grew in one part of a 19th century town, future industry would then develop in that sector
- As the town grew, so would the area of industry and therefore it would grow out in a wedge shape
- CBD is in the centre as it is the point of maximum accessibility and wedges surround it
Sector
A section of an urban area in the shape of a wedge, beginning at the edge of the CBD and gradually widening to the periphery
The multiple nuclei model
- This theory is based upon the notion that the cities have an essentially cellular structure, in which distinctive types of land use have developed around certain growing points, or “nuclei” within the urban area
- This model is therefore a good fit for sprawling and expansive cities
Bid-rent theory
Explains urban structure in terms of the profitability of land
1) The highest bidder willing to pay the highest rent will succeed in using any piece of land
2) The highest bidder is probably going to be the one which can make the greatest profit from setting up that piece of land
3) The CBD is where greatest profitability can be made (most accessible) so this is where bid rent (the rent that someone is willing to pay) will be the highest
Factors affecting the location of urban activities
- Market forces - the demand and supply of land in various locations dictates its price
- Local or central government planning decisions - planners can overrule market forces where they consider it necessary for the public good