Urban Functions
Basic activities: town-forming activities; serve a larger population than just the
community and bring wealth into the area
E.g.: tourism, military facilities; transportation
Non-basic activities: town-serving activities; they exist to meet the needs of the local
population
E.g.: grocery stores, municipal services
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As basic activities grow in a community, the additional wealth stimulates the
expansion of the non-basic sector
Multiplier effect – leads to unequal growth – communities that have a locational
advantage enjoy growth in basic activities and the multiplier effect produces evergreater employment in the non-basic sectors; those who have a locational
disadvantage suffer as they do not attract individuals
City Forms
1. Political and religious cities – designed to serve important religious or political
functions (e.g.: national capital, holy centre)
 E.g.: Washington, D.C.
2. Organic cities – evolved naturally in ways that fit the physical landscape; rarely
grow very large
 E.g.: Amsterdam
3. Planned cities – designed to keep urban functions apart
 E.g.: Vancouver
4. Transit cities – made up of sub-centres linked to a city core by transportation
services
 E.g.: New York City
5. Automobile cities – expand outward in all directions from the city core; they grow
rapidly
 E.g.: Los Angeles
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Every city has an official plan – a broad plan for growth and development that is
usually drawn up after lengthy consultation with the people of the city
Key Issue – sustainable cities: those in which resource decisions today do not
compromise the quality of life for future generations
 See worksheet 15-2 for characteristics of sustainable cities
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A sustainable approach recognizes the decisions must take into account the
community, economy, and environment and the ways in which these
components interact
Urban Problems and Sustainable Opportunities
1. Energy Consumption
 Cities account for 80% of world’s use of fossil fuels
 Sustainable cities would reduce amount of energy required (e.g.: local
renewable forms of energy, solar roof tiles)
2. Transportation
 In North America, 94% of urban dwellers commute to work by car
 Reducing reliance on cars reduces pollution and increases space for
more beneficial uses
 Key to making transportation in cities sustainable is to make cities
more compact (build up instead of out)
3. Food
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4. Density
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Almost all food in cities has to be transported (cost and pollution)
More local food supplies would be available if zoning protected
agricultural areas from urban growth
Too many cities waste space
In sustainable cities, people use less space (e.g.: infilling – increases
density by rezoning and rebuilding in populated areas to allow more
people to live in the same place)