Urban Settlement Patterns

Why Urban settlement?• Prior to agricultural revolution, every

individual was required to find enough food to survive.

• Agricultural Revolution – ancient times – 10,000 years ago - spared some people from agricultural work because farms produced food surpluses

• This allowed people to become specialists in other fields (metal working, government, carpenter, medicine...)

Mesopotamia

Urban Land Use

Residential

• Where people live• 40% of a cities lands• Ex. Single-family houses to apartment

buildings• Low Density – Single Detached Housing

• Medium Density - High Density- Townhouses - Apartments

Residential Density – the number of housing units/hectare

Transportation Land Use

• Roads– Expressways, Arterial Roads, Collector Roads,

Local Roads

• Transit Systems – Train tracks• Facilities- Airports, Bus Station, Parking Lots

Low Order Goods

• Require only a small population• Used by a small amount of customers on a

frequent basis• Ex. A Post Office, convenience store,

elementary school, gas station

Middle Order Goods

• Stores that sell entertainment, cars, clothing, office supplies...

• Include family services such as doctors offices and hair salons

• While we need these services from time to time, there are fewer customers shopping for them

• Ex. high school, Canadian Tire, Silver City, Ford Dealership, Future Shop

High Order Goods• Requires a large population• These goods and services are expensive and

are purchased infrequently• Thus, you need a large population to establish

one for business• Ex. Children’s Hospital, College and University,

Sports team (major league), Ferrari Dealership, profession theatre/ concert

Commercial Land Use

• About 5% of the city’s land is used for commercial activity

• These activities include the buying and selling of goods and services in retail establishments, financial services, and other businesses

• They provide jobs and bring money into the community.

Types of Commercial Land Use

• 1 –Local Service Centers• 2 –Neighbourhood Plazas• 3 –Community Shopping Centers• 4 –Power Centers• 5 –Regional Shopping Centers• 6 –Downtown or Central Business District

Local Service Centres

• Street corner shops• Low order goods and services for people in

surrounding area

Neighbourhood Plazas

• Small shopping centres contain a number of small to medium sized stores with parking lots

Community Shopping Centres

• Malls are found at major street intersections in large cities.

• They are usually anchors for the mall.• Ex. Canadian Tire

Power Centres

• The “Big Box” Stores found in Canada.• Companies that need a large amount of floor

space for their store.• Famous Players, Best Buy, Staples, The Bay

Regional Shopping Centres• Large regional shopping malls that have

specialized stores for high threshold pop.• Located near major highways and in large

suburbs• High and middle order goods

Central Business District• The CBD is what most people call “downtown”• High demand for office space raises land value• Developers build tall buildings to maximize the

use of this expensive land• Found in Canada’s largest cities

Industrial land Use

• On average, about 6% of urban land use• Light Industries – Maple Leaf foods• Heavy Industries – Ford, Dofasco• Warehouses – along the highway and traffic

routes

Institutional Land Use

• About 10% of urban land use• Schools• Government Buildings• Court Houses• Prisons

Parks and Recreation Space

• About 7% of urban land use• City Parks • YMCA• Sports arenas • Pools...

1. Basic vs Non-Basic Industry

• Basic Industry– Businesses that bring money into the community

by attracting people into the community or selling outside of the community• Stelco, Ski Resort, Ford

• Non-Basic Industry– Sells within the community, does not bring profits

into the community• Grocery Store, fast food restaurant

Central Place Theory• Good and services offered by Central Places• They vary in size and area and support a

specific area

• Threshold Population– The number of population needed to support a

good or a service. The more expensive the good is the more population needed to support it

Central Place Theory

Multiplier Effect

• Explains how a city will grow by the addition of a Basic Industry

• Ratio – 1 Basic job will create 3 Non Basic Jobs

Ford Plant - 1000 workers - 3000 non-basic jobs will be created

Different Urban Places

• Diversified Urban Centres– A City with many functions – Toronto, Vancouver• Services, Manufacturing, Transportation, Culture,

Tourism

• Resource Towns – Sudbury, Timmins• Manufacturing Cities- Hamilton, Sarnia• Transportation Cities- Thunder Bay• Tourist Cities – Collingwood, Banff• Government Centres – Ottawa, Fredericton