Land Use - City Planning - City Design Notes
Land Use: Definition
Land use is the
of the natural environment or wilderness by humans
Modifications include creating fields, pastures, roads, and
Government
City/ Urban Government
Common Council
Mayor
Alderperson
Country/ Rural Government
Town Chair
County Board
Public Hearings
Recommendations made by council committees may require
The public is invited to make
to the common council
Are 12 and 13 year olds allowed to speak at council meetings?
!
Zoning
(R-1; R-2; R-3) Single family; duplex; multifamily
Commercial
(A-1; A-2; A-3) A-1 being the best farmland, A-3 the worst
(School, church, city hall, police, fire…)
Recreational
Industrial
City Growth: Urban Planning
Includes the built and social environments of municipalities and communities
Architecture
Architecture
Roads and
Education
Safety
Eminent Domain
Eminent domain gives the
the right to possess all property within the state
It was intended to only take
property for public use (roads, utilities)
However it recently has been
businesses like shopping malls
to take land for commercial
Annexation
It’s the process that
parcels of land from smaller towns to cities
For cities it’s a way to
Towns lose population, territory, and
If it’s not done thoughtfully, it can lead to
for the city
America- Building for the Automobile
One in Eight (
%) jobs in the U.S. is directly related to transportation
440,000 public school buses transport
children each day
% of all petroleum used in the US is for transportation
More Transportation Facts
In 2006 there were 8,371,718 miles of
That equals almost
in the U.S. (US DOT)
SQUARE MILES of land used just for roads
This does not include
!
land area is 54,310 sq miles
Automobiles have changed the landscape
Paving land means that water can’t
into the ground water
That water is funneled into lakes and rivers via
This can destroy
organisms
Watertown gets about
inches of precipitation annually
Let’s put that in Perspective…
A parking lot is 50 feet by 100 feet
The area =
sq feet; times 12 equals 60,000 sq inches
Times 30.88 inches of precipitation
Equals 1,852,800
of water; divided by 12 equals
154,400 cubic feet; divided by 3 equals
51,466.666 cubic yards of water
That’s 10,396,065.03
from that one parking lot in
Floodplains
against flooding
Sprawl in Watertown
Many of the commercial buildings on
are built on filled-in floodplain
The drive-thru for Rocky Rococo’s
into the river 1 week after it opened
Now that there is no
, where will the water go after a flood?
We can’t keep allowing this kind of development without
Sustainability
Sustainability is a characteristic of a process or state that can be
certain level indefinitely
at a
Sustainable Development
Stephen Wheeler: “Development that improves the
ecological health of cities and towns."
social and
Why consider Sustainability?
development creates many problems:
Overuse of
Ecosystem/ Natural Habitat
Urban
and climate change
Pollution
Growing inequality in cities (
)
Poor living conditions &
How can quality of life be made better?
Greenspace
Greenspace provides
for people living in urban areas
are multi-functional and are used by many different people for
many different things
It can help deter
They also offer habitat for
Urban Sprawl
Urban growth without central planning and control becomes
It often starts by building along main
Sprawl is made worse by
development like strip malls
Provides high
for advertising
Sprawl Costs Us All
Allowing sprawl costs
more than careful planning and development
Cities must provide new
water and sewer) to serve a dispersed population
(schools, roads, police, fire, gas lines,
These costs are more than the city gets back in
revenue
All infrastructure eventually needs
Sprawl development forces more
Driving to work and to the store means we spend more on
and car maintenance
spend less time together
Smart Growth includes a convenient blend of residential and commercial
Smart Growth is
It allows choices of
or
to destinations
Conservation Design
is well known designer
http://www.landchoices.org/docfilm/arendt_clip1.htm
Controlled-growth land use that adopts the principle that ‘
knows best’
Allows sustainable development while protecting the area’s natural features in
Includes preserving open space and vista,
Maintains the
farmland and natural habitats
character of rural communities
Typical Development
Homes on Large Lots
Conservation Design
Smaller lots with more Greenspace
Common Greenspace requires a change in thinking
We need to move past the idea of exclusive
, to some extent
We adopt a
philosophy that sharing these spaces is best for
everyone, not just those that can afford large lots
Riverwood Subdivision Project
Role Play- Zenith Council meeting
is the oldest part of the large city Zenith
Zenith has a population of
The following arguments are from past student responses:
Pro-Development
Less poverty
Better transportation/ more efficient
More things to do; more skate parks, etc.
Improved technology
Sustain professional sports
City can grow better if we start over
ABC will pay to relocate residents
More money for parks
Proposal can change if needed
Modern buildings are cool
More police- safer
Better education; more schools
Modern buildings- energy efficient
Less welfare
More sports for kids
Less dust from dirt roads
New boat dock
Marsh full of garbage
Offer enough to bring Olympics to Zenith
Taller buildings, less land used
More tourism; more hotels, casinos
Increased business connections
Anti-Development
View will be obstructed
Landmarks destroyed
Need to keep marsh for wildlife and flood control Children play in woods
More air pollution with development
More traffic = more accidents
Pay more for insurance
Higher taxes
Less farmland if developed
More noise pollution
Transportation problems; traffic jams
There is a petition against it
More water pollution
Not enough residential/ homes
Poor land use
Architecture not aesthetic
More crime
More poverty
Too many people
Buildings too close
Not enough greenspace
More maintenance/ cost
Loss of quaintness
More competition for jobs
Gangs like bigger cities
Waste disposal problems
Less outdoor recreation
Lose natural beauty
Smaller community is family-oriented
Not as peaceful
Modern buildings look ugly
More boats mean we can’t swim
Won’t be able to fish
Now what?
Both sides have valid arguments
We should be able to find sound
to these problems
Consensus
Achieving consensus requires serious consideration of every opinion
Your job is to create a proposal that finds a
development and anti-development factions
You will present your proposal orally
between the pro-