PAI786: Urban Policy
Class 1:
Introduction
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Class Outline
▫ Review Course Requirements and Readings
▫ Introduce American Cities
▫ Introduce Census Urban Geography
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Course Outline
▫ Introduction
 Evaluation of social programs
▫ Housing
 Basic analytical tools
 Housing problems and housing policy
▫ Discrimination and Segregation
▫ Concentrated Poverty and Welfare Programs
▫ Employment and Economic Development
▫ Urban Crime
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Course Requirements
▫ 1. Case Studies
 Participate in discussions
 Write memo
▫ 2. City Journal
 Essays on topics in the class
 Turned in twice; three entries in all
▫ 3. Policy Summit
 Group presentation
 Policy memo
Urban Policy: Introduction
• American Cities
▫ American cities and their suburbs are enormously
diverse.
▫ Here are a few examples from my travels over the
years.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Many cities arise around a
port.
The city on the right is New
Orleans, with its Mississippi
River port.
The city on the left is Seattle,
with its huge natural harbor.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Many other cities rise around a
seat of government.
The city on the left is, of
course, Washington, D.C.
The city on the right is Boston,
Massachusetts, which is a
state capitol.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Some cities have
beautiful natural
settings.
The city on the top is
Miami.
The city on the
bottom is Honolulu.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Some cities develop large
business concentrations or
money-making amenities.
The sports stadiums in Seattle
are on the left (with Mt.
Rainier in the background).
The Boston financial district is
on the right.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Other cities develop famous
tourist-attracting amenities.
Here is the French Quarter in
New Orleans (the night before a
bowl game in the Superdome)
Here is Pike Street Market in Seattle.
Here is Boston’s Chinatown
Urban Policy: Introduction
Some cities have severe
environmental problems, such
as smog associated with
extensive commuting by car.
The city on the left is Los
Angeles (taken from the Getty
Museum).
The city on the right is San
Diego (from the North).
Urban Policy: Introduction
Many cities have high-income
residential neighborhoods.
The Garden District in New
Orleans is on the right.
A gated community in
Miami is on the left.
Urban Policy: Introduction
And, of course, many cities
have slums, defined as
neighborhoods with poor
housing and social problems.
These pictures are from the
9th Ward in New Orleans a
couple years after Hurricane
Katrina. You can see the high
water mark in the picture
above.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Sometimes, even in the poorest neighborhoods, you see rebirth.
Here is another picture of the 9th Ward.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Finally, of course,
cities are
surrounded by
suburbs, many of
which have
beautiful residential
neighborhoods,
good public
services, and
community events.
These are suburbs
of Syracuse.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• What’s Missing?
▫ For the most part, these pictures leave out the
most important thing about cities: the people!
▫ That’s what this class is about:
▫
▫
▫
▫
▫
Where do different types of people live?
What types of housing do people live in?
How many people are poor? Why are they poor?
Do some people still face discrimination? Why?
Why do some people live in such run-down
neighborhoods?
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Alternative Definitions of “Urban”
▫ Common Usage
 Urban = large city (and perhaps its inner suburbs)
 Defined as governmental units
▫ Census Definition (explored below)
 Urban = metropolitan = large cities, their counties,
and the counties that are linked to them
▫ Analytical Definition
 Urban = place with relatively high population
density
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Census Geographic Units
• Region
▫ Division
 State
 County
▫ County subdivision
▫ Place (or part)
▫ Census tract (or part)
◦ Block group (or part)
◦ Census block
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA)
▫ A metropolitan statistical area (MSA) combines a
large population nucleus with adjacent counties
that have a high degree of economic and social
integration with that nucleus.
▫ Each MA must contain either a place with a
minimum population of 50,000 or a U.S. Census
Bureau-defined urbanized area and a total MA
population of at least 100,000.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Micropolitan Statistical Area
▫ A micropolitan statistical area is a mini MSA.
▫ It must have a central place with a population
between 10,000 and 50,000.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Consolidated and Primary Metropolitan
Statistical Area (CMSA and PMSA)
▫ If an MSA has 1 million people or more, two or
more primary metropolitan statistical areas
(PMSAs) may be defined within it.
▫ Each PMSA consists of a large urbanized county or
cluster of counties that demonstrate strong
economic and social links to other portions of the
larger area.
▫ When PMSAs are established, the larger MSA of
which they are component parts is designated a
consolidated metropolitan statistical area (CMSA).
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Central City
▫ In each MSA, PMSA, and CMSA, the largest place
and, in some cases, one or more additional places
are designated as ‘‘central cities.’’
▫ The largest central city and, in some cases, up to
two additional central cities, are included in the
title of the MSA.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Urbanized Area (UA)
▫ An urbanized area (UA) consists of densely settled
territory that contains 50,000 or more people.
▫ The U.S. Census Bureau delineates UAs to
provide a better separation of urban and rural
territory, population, and housing in the vicinity
of large places.
▫ This is closest to analytical definition, but it is not
used for most types of data.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Census Tract
▫ Census tracts are small, relatively permanent
statistical subdivisions of a county or statistically
equivalent entity delineated by local participants.
▫ The primary purpose of census tracts is to provide
a stable set of geographic units for the
presentation of decennial census data, but their
boundaries sometimes change.
▫ Census tracts generally have between 1,500 and
8,000 people, with an target size of 4,000.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Census Block
▫ Census blocks are areas bounded on all sides by
visible features, such as streets, or by invisible
boundaries, such as city limits.
▫ Generally, census blocks are small in area; for
example, a block bounded by city streets.
However, census blocks in sparsely settled areas
may contain many square miles of territory.
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Other Terms
▫ A ‘‘metropolitan area’’ (MA) is either an MSA, a
CMSA, or a PMSA.
▫ A “core-based statistical area’’ (CBSA) is either an
MSA or a micropolitan statistical areas.
▫ A “census block group” is just what it sounds
like—an intermediate geography between census
blocks and census tracts.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Number of Metropolitan Areas
▫ As of February, 2013, there were
 388 MSAs and 541 micropolitan statistical areas in
the United States
 These number include 7 MSAs and 5 micropolitan
statistical areas in Puerto Rico.
Urban Policy: Introduction
Urban Policy: Introduction
• Urban Diversity
▫ American metropolitan areas are enormously
diverse in terms of
 Population
 Income and poverty
 Race and ethnicity
 Governmental structure
Urban Policy: Introduction
Characteristics of the Largest Metropolitan Areas, 2010
Race (Percent)
Area
New York
Los Angeles
Chicago
Dallas
Philadelphia
Houston
Washington
Miami
Atlanta
Boston
San Francisco
Detroit
Riverside
Phoenix
Seattle
New Orleans (46th)
Syracuse (80th)
Income Per
Population
Capita
18,897,109
$52,037
12,828,837
$42,784
9,461,105
$44,379
6,371,773
$41,764
5,965,343
$46,075
5,946,800
$46,570
5,582,170
$56,984
5,564,635
$42,764
5,268,860
$37,101
4,552,402
$53,553
4,335,391
$59,993
4,296,250
$37,927
4,224,851 $29,680
4,192,887
$34,452
3,439,809
$50,378
1,167,764
$23,475
662,577
$36,833
Poverty
Rate in
Central
Percent
City
White Black Other Hispanic
18.7
59.2
17.8
23.1
22.9
19.8
52.8
7.1
40.2
44.4
21.6
65.4
17.4
17.2
20.7
23.2
65.3
15.1
19.6
27.5
25.0 68.2
20.8
11.0
7.8
20.6 60.2
17.2
22.5
35.3
18.4
54.8
25.8
19.4
13.8
26.5
70.3
21.0
8.6
41.6
22.5
55.4
32.4
12.2
10.4
16.9
78.8
7.3
13.9
9.0
11.6
51.7
8.4
39.9
21.7
36.4
70.1
22.8
7.1
3.9
15.1
58.9
7.6
33.5
47.3
21.1
73.0
5.0
22.1
29.5
10.6
71.9
5.6
22.5
9.0
23.8
58.2
34.0
7.8
7.9
31.7
85.5
8.1
6.5
3.4