1. Chapter 12: Land-Use Planning
12.1 The Need for Planning
12.2 Historical Forces That Shaped Land Use
12.3 Factors That Contribute to Sprawl
12.4 Problems Associated with Unplanned Urban Growth
12.5 Land-Use Planning Principles
12.6 Mechanisms for Implementing Land-Use Plans
12.7 Special Urban Planning Issues
12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues

2. 12.1 The Need for Planning
Between one-third and one-half of the world’s surface has been altered by humans.
Most land-use decisions are still based primarily on economic considerations or short-term needs rather than on unique analysis of the landscape.
Los Angeles & Mexico City have severe air pollution. Venice & New Orleans are threatened by high sea levels. San Francisco & Tokyo are subject to earthquakes.
Once land has been converted to intensive human use, it is generally unavailable for other uses.
In US, 1 million acres of land is being converted to urban uses per year.

3. 12.2 Historical Forces That Shaped Land Use
Present land use in the United States:
52% - Crops and livestock
44% - Forests and natural areas
4% - Intensive human use.
1) Waterways provided the primary method of transportation.
This allowed exploration and development of commerce.
Early towns were usually built near water and at transfer points between water systems.

4. Water and urban centers

5. 2) The rural-to-urban shift
North America remained essentially rural until industrial growth began in last third of the 1800s.
Cities grew because of:
Industrial Revolution
People migrated from farms to industrial jobs found in cities.
European immigrants
Congregated in cities where jobs were available.
Cultural, social, and artistic opportunities

6. Rural-to-urban population shift

7. 3) Migration from the Central City to the Suburbs
In the early stages of the Industrial Revolution, a lack of control over industry activities led to polluted, undesirable waterways.
As roads and rail transport became more common, many left the waterway areas.
Agricultural land surrounding towns was converted to housing.
Land began to be viewed as a commodity, not as a non-renewable resource to be managed.

8. Continue
Pollution and crowding made cities undesirable places to live.
In the early 1900s, people who could afford to move out of cities began to do so.
% urban population lived in central cities.
% urban population lived in central cities.
The convenience of a personal automobile escalated decentralized housing patterns.

9. 4) Characteristics of Suburbs
Urban sprawl is a pattern of unplanned, low-density housing and commercial development outside of cities.
Sprawl is typically characterized by:
Excessive land consumption.
Low densities in comparison with older centers.
Lack of choice in ways to travel.
Fragmented open space, wide gaps in development, and a scattered appearance.
Lack of choice in housing types and prices.
Repetitive one-story development.
Commercial buildings surrounded by large parking areas.
Lack of public spaces and community centers.

10. Patterns of Urban Sprawl
Urban sprawl occurs in three ways:
Development of exclusive, wealthy suburbs adjacent to the city.
Tract development is the construction of similar residential units over large areas.
Ribbon sprawl consists of commercial / industrial buildings lining highways connecting housing developments to the central city.
A megalopolis is a merging of cities into large, urban areas.

11. Types of urban sprawl

12. 12.3 Factors That Contribute to Sprawl
Lifestyle
Increased wealth of population is reflected in material possessions, particularly the automobile and homes.
A decentralized housing pattern is possible because high rate of automobile ownership allows ease of movement.
Economic
Building on agricultural land is less expensive than to build within established cities.
Tax laws encourage home ownership (the interest on mortgage is deductible from income tax).

13. Planning and Policy
Historically, there was little coordination of effort as to how cities should develop.
Large cities have a huge number of political jurisdictions, so coordination is difficult.
Government subsidizes the development of decentralized cities.
Local governments pay some costs of extending services into new areas; costs are not passed on to builders.

14. 12.4 Problems Associated with Unplanned Growth
Death of the Central City
Currently less than 10% of people work in the central city.
There is less income to support public services.
Loss of Sense of Community
In many areas, people do not routinely walk through their neighborhood, leaving them feeling isolated.
Higher Infrastructure Costs
Extension of municipal services is more costly than supplying services to areas already in the city.

15. Transportation
As cities grew, little thought was given to transportation corridors.
Establishment of new corridors stimulates growth in nearby areas, and the new corridors soon become inadequate.
Reliance on automobiles has required constant road building.
In Los Angeles, 70% of city’s surface area dedicated to automobiles.
The average person in the U.S. travels about 160 miles/week in an automobile.

16. Loss Loss of Open Space Loss of Farmland
Oftentimes open space planning is left out of development plans.
Loss of Farmland
Flat, well-drained land is ideal for both farmland and urban development.
Several states have established programs that provide protection to farmers who do not want to sell their land to developers.
These programs may require farmers to put their land in a conservation easement.

17. Pollution Air Pollution Low Energy Efficiency
As traffic increases, so does air pollution.
A centralized, efficient public transportation system solves this problem, but it is difficult to achieve with a highly dispersed population.
Low Energy Efficiency
Automobiles are inefficient transportation.
Separation of homes and businesses requires additional driving.
Stop-and-go traffic patterns.
Single-family homes are less efficient than multifamily dwellings.

18. Pollution Water Pollution Problems Floodplain Problems
Large impervious surface areas lead to high runoff and potential flooding.
Floodplain Problems
Many cities are located on floodplains because they were originally established along waterways.
The flat land is attractive to developers but would be better put to use as open space or recreation.
Development increases economic losses.
Many communities have enacted floodplain zoning ordinances.

19. Wetlands Misuse
Wetlands are areas that periodically are covered with water.
Many have been drained, filled, or used as landfills.
U.S. has lost 53% of wetlands since the European immigration began (not including Alaska).
Wetlands play crucial role in reproductive phase of many organisms.
They also provide sediment filtration.

20. 12.5 Land-Use Planning Principles
Land-use planning is a process of evaluating the needs and wants of a population, the land characteristics and value, and various alternative solutions to land uses before changes are made.
Many problems outlined in the previous sections can be avoided with proper land-use planning.
A basic rule should be to make as few changes as possible.

21. When changes are needed:
Evaluate and record unique geological, geographic, and biologic features.
Preserve unique cultural or historical features.
Conserve open space and environmental features.
Recognize and calculate the cost of additional changes required to accommodate altered land use.
Plan for mixed uses in close proximity.
Plan for a variety of transportation options.
Set limits and require managed growth patterns with compact development.
Encourage development in areas with existing infrastructure.

22. 12.6 Mechanisms for Implementing Land-Use Plans
Establish State / Regional Planning Agencies
This pattern is more effective than local agencies because political boundaries seldom reflect the geological and biological database used in planning.
A regional approach is more likely to prevent duplication of facilities and lead to greater efficiency.
Purchase Land or Use Rights
In many cases, owner may not be willing to sell the land but is willing to limit future uses of the land.
Restricting Use
Zoning is a land-use regulation that restricts the uses to which land in a region can be put.
Often, planners making zoning decisions represent business or developing interests.

23. 12.7 Special Urban Planning Issues
Urban Transportation Planning
Urban transportation planning usually involves four goals:
Conserve energy and land resources.
Provide efficient and inexpensive transportation, particularly to those who are unable to drive.
Provide efficient transportation opportunities to suburban residents.
Reduce urban pollution.
Transportation corridors and parking facilities must be included in any urban transportation plan.

24. Urban
Nearly three-fourths of the North American population lives in urban areas.
Until recently, urban parks were considered an uneconomical use of land.
Facilities not conveniently located near residential areas may be infrequently used.
A new outgrowth of urbanization is the development of urban nature centers.

25. Continue
Brownfield development matches the degree of cleanup required to the intended use of the site.
Another important focus is remodeling abandoned commercial buildings into shopping centers, cultural facilities, and high-density housing.

26. Growth Smart growth recognizes benefits of growth.
Advocates emphasize developing “livable” cities and towns.
Smart growth recognizes that quality of environment directly affects quality of life.
Smart Growth Principles:
Mix land uses.
Take advantage of compact building designs.
Create range of housing opportunities and choices.
Create walkable neighborhoods.
Foster distinctive, attractive communities with a strong sense of place.

27. Growth
One aspect of smart growth is the building of “green buildings.”
Green buildings are built using a standard called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED).
The guidelines call for using recycled materials, ensuring better ventilation in buildings, reducing water and energy use, and other goals.

28. 12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues
The U.S. Government owns and manages about 30% of U.S. land.
Several U.S. agencies, including the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Forest Service, and the Fish and Wildlife Service, allocate and regulate the lands they control.
These agencies have conflicting roles.

29. 12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues
Designation of certain lands as wilderness is a sensitive issue.
The Multiple Use Sustained Yield Act of 1960 divided use of national forests into four categories:
Wildlife habitat preservation
Recreation
Lumbering
Watershed protection

30. 12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues
Many people want to use the natural world for recreational purposes because nature can provide challenges lacking in day-to-day life.
Conflicts develop because some activities cannot occur in the same place at the same time.
Groups argue that because they pay taxes, they have a right to use it as they wish.

31. 12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues
The General Mining Act of 1872 allows anyone to prospect for minerals on public land and establish a claim if such minerals are discovered.
The miner is then allowed to purchase the rights to extract the mineral for $5 per acre.
Many feel that the law is obsolete, but the law is still in force and public land is still being sold to mining interests at ridiculously low prices.

32. 12.8 Federal Government Land-Use Issues
U.S. federal recreational lands