Urban Forms Flashcards
Define urban form. Describe the UKs
Physical characteristics of a built up area including shape, size and density of housing.
-UK has one large mega city region near London and has lots of small villages.
Give 3 things impacting settlement location
-Wet points: Want to be near water supply. Needed for agriculture, sanitation and health.E.g. Abu Dhabi has to conserve water.
-Topography: Easier to build on flat areas than slopes. Slopes in Rio favelas are densely populated.
-Coast: For trade access mostly. Can restrict growth so upward growth has occurred in Mumbai.
Could also link to hazards and frequency. Defensible eg Durham meander and castle.
Give 4 characteristics of megacities
High density living such as flats and high rise buildings
Environmental problems such as pollution and waste
Residential differentiation between socioeconomic groups
Edge cities
Give 3 challenges to megacities
Sanitation. Difficult to provide clean water to everyone. Lots live in close proximity and some live in slums near landfill.
Housing: Large demand but limited supply. Homelessness or informal squatter settlements.
Traffic: Associated with fixed infrastructure and growing population. China had a 100km traffic jam for 10 days.
Define infrastructure and give 3 examples
Usually fixed physical or organizational structures needed for society
Energy
Water treatment
Transport
State 2 ways human activities can impact urban forms
-Wealthier countries can afford to build infrastructure that is reinforced and regulated eg env sustainable. In LICs, often rapid growth and informal settlements.
-Planning: HIcs often consider greenbelt land and recreational space to limit growth. Unplanned developments can be unsuustainable in LICs.
LA: Describe the land use
-White midle class moved here to escape industrial cities like Chicago. Lots of suburbanisation. Expatriate communities
Hollywood is a high income area out of town.
Low density housing in Greater LA.
Coastal area.
Housing issues. Expensive land-use restrictions and Skid Row homelessness. Lots of parks and green spaces like Griffith Park.
-Relies on car culture so lots f congestion.
LA: Describe economic inequality
-CBD suffered dead heart syndrome due to suburbanisation. Downtown LA has HQs.
-Few employment opportunities for low-skilled.
-People moved to Anaheim.
LA: Describe cultural diversity
-Cultural melting pot. Mexicans Hispanics are the largest group. Lots of culture eg Chinatown and Little Italy. These groups have been left behind by suburbanisation. Lots of crime/unemployment.
Mumbai: Describe land-use
-Coastal area. Expanded upwards. High-pop density. Overcowding. Bollywood.
-Most rapidly growing Indian city. Skyscrapers, shopping centres, high tech firms take advantage of skilled cheap labour. Luxury areas.
-10 mil live in Dharavi slums. Cancer issues due to poor medical care
_Public transport such as auto rickshaws. Lacks infrastructure.
Mumbai: Economic inequality
-Poverty but Some areas of wealth eg South Mumbai. Dharavi slums adjacent to wealthy area. Slum Rehabilitation scheme though. Extreme inequality
-FDI here but low taxes leads to a lack of spending on infrastructure.
-Economy centred on finance. MNCs. Large proportion of indias income tax.
Mumbai: Cultural diversity
-1k new migrants per day.
-Buddhism/hinduism for eg. Festivals
What is town-centre mixed-use development? Give a local example that was privately funded? Impacts socially and economically.
L1 made in 2008. Privately funded. Encourage 24 hour city though some shut early. Own the city feeling. Pedestrianise
Associated with urban resurgence.
A style of development that aims to create a town structure that has all the necessary features for a town to attract investment, tourist and revenue
-Luxury areas
-Public spaces/leisure
-Office centre,
+Regenerate derelict land, mixture of jobs/housing, less segregation.
-Might increase segregation due to prices of shops , small firms have to compete with chain stores which is difficult and rent is high. Though, small firms can still exist with TNCs if there is loyalty.
Cultural and heritage quarters: What, local example, pros and cons.
-Royal Albert Dock Liverpool. Funded by EU in the 1980s. Previously UNESCO
-An approach to regenerating urban areas that focuses upon character of a city.
-Cultural quarter is one that has presence of cultural activity e.g. making objects, goods and products as well as cultural consumption e.g. venues, galleries and creative arts.
-Heritage quarters focuses on the historical uniqueness/ national reputation of areas based on small scale industries.
-Sense of PLACE.
+Less dereliction on brownfield, boosts tourism globally and multiplier, jobs.
-Day-to-day locals don’t benefit, often high prices in these areas due to tourism, high costs to maintain, too much emphasis on consumerism/tourism loses authenticity
Fortress developements: What are they? Describe the changes. Give an eg. Pros and cons
-Small-scale, high levels of security for all eg CCTV, guards and high walls. S.Africa. US embassy which has 2 atrium floors (in case of robbery), trees to protect Gated communities for white due to fear of crime that gov aren’t interferign with.
-Historically, evident and supposed to be seen. Now, supposed to blend in and “design out crime.” Defensible. Don’t want to frighten people.
+Safety and embassy is aesthetic.
-Segregating ethnic/economic groups = tension.
-More entrepreneurial in these gated communities as they can access Wi-Fi Costly to install. Sense of exclusion and can visibly see security = feel like outsider.
