Transcript Chapter 1

M4/23/12
Clustering of Services
Downtown
(Ch. 13.1 – pp. 404-410)
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I. CBD Land Uses
• Overview
• “downtown” = Central business districts (CBDs)
• usually a compact area
– busy area – shops, offices, city hall, courts, etc.
• easily accessible esp. by public transportation
• A. Retail Services in the CBD
• traditionally CBDs contained retailers w/ high threshold
and range as well as easy access for workers
– has changed beginning in 1950s & accelerating in 1970s
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I. CBD Land Uses
• A. Retail Services in the CBD (cont.)
• 1. Retailers with a high threshold
– Department stores
– Most have left & are converted to office space or vacant
» Why?
» Move to suburban malls – greater threshold
• 2. Retailers with a high range
– Often specialized in specific items – jewelry, shoes, etc.
» Also relocated to malls since 1970s
– Often combined today w/ tourist or recreational attraction
» “urban malls”
» Ex: South St. Seaport (NYC), Inner Harbor (Baltimore),
Faneuil Hall/Quincy Market (Boston)
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Traditional Department Stores in Urban Areas – Macy’s in NYC
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New Urban Landscapes –
converting harbors to
commercial uses
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I. CBD Land Uses
• A. Retail Services in the CBD (cont.)
• 3. Retailers serving downtown workers
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–
–
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Sell office supplies (for work) or personal goods (for home)
Workers can access at lunch break or after work
Rarely open late – only during business hours
Shift due to needs of downtown labor force
• B. Business Services in the CBD
• Support businesses for local business
– Lawyers need courts
– headhunters near businesses
– financial services near stock exchanges
• Great interdependency among businesses
• Still want face-to-face meetings
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CBD of
Charlotte, NC
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II. Competition for Land in the CBD
• great competition for property due to accessibility
– A. High Land Costs
• Urban areas have extremely high land costs
– esp. world cities: London, NYC, Tokyo
• Often restricted by space or nature
– NYC is island, Tokyo has earthquakes
• leads to two outcomes:
– 1. Intensive land use
» underground areas – subways, garages, utilities
» pedestrian passages – esp. in cold climates
» sometimes shopping malls (Atlanta)
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II. Competition for Land in the CBD
– A. High Land Costs (cont.)
• 2. Skyscrapers (cont.)
– “Vertical geography”
» Must build up – compact threshold
– Regular patterns to buildings
» Retailers on lower floors
» Businesses on middle floors
» Residents on upper floors (or separate buildings)
– Often renovate old, unused office buildings into residential in
many cities – chic living
– 1st skyscrapers in late 19th, early 20th cent.
» elevators & iron-frame construction
– D.C. has no skyscrapers due to strict zoning laws
» Wider CBD
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Battery Park
City – Lower
Manhattan
Before & After
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II. Competition for Land in the CBD
• B. Activities excluded from the CBD
– 1. Lack of industry in the CBD
– Modern factories require large, one-story parcels of land
» More likely in suburbs today
– Used to be located by ports
– Most urban ports transformed into commercial regions today
– 2. Lack of residents in the CBD
• Push and pull factors involved
– Many pushed out by crime & other factors
– Pulled out by safe, clean, larger suburbs
• Some returning now, esp. younger couples & “empty
nesters”
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III. CBDs outside North America
• Less dominated by commercial considerations
– Religious structures still dominant
• Europe still based on medieval constraints
– Tight & compact by American standards
• More people live in CBDs than in America
– Often contain more amenities & commercial necessities
• Mix w/ modern skyscrapers although many old
buildings renovated
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