Urban Studies and Planning Commons^™

How To Make America Walkable, Michael Lewyn

Scholarly Works

Review of Walkable City, by Jeff Speck

The Plots Of Alexanderplatz: A Study Of The Space That Shaped Weimar Berlin, Carrie Grace Latimer

Scripps Senior Theses

This paper explores Alexanderplatz during the Weimar Period in Berlin. It is looked at from three different perspectives: historical urban plans, Alfred Döblin's novel Berlin Alexanderplatz, and Rainer Werner Fassbinder's 1980's film adaptation of Berlin Alexanderplatz. Through these three mediums, an argument forms that Alexanderplatz functioned as both a major transit space for movement of transportation and pedestrians, but also the transit space for the movement of ideas and information.

Impacts Of Transportation Infrastructure Proximity And Accessibility On Real Property Values, Arturo Bujanda

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Investments in public infrastructure such as highways, airports, mass transit, and stadiums can increase adjacent property values, generating a value premium for private developers and adjacent property owners. A portion of this value can be "captured" as public revenue via property taxes to assist financing such improvements. States and local governments aim to anticipate and capture the economic value created by transportation accessibility. While value capture (VC) represents an opportunity for regional agencies to recapture some transportation infrastructure costs, it is not clear how much value is added by the infrastructure in a particular region. This research applies geographic weighted …

From Vacant Lots To Full Pantries: Urban Agriculture Programs And The American City, Jessica Owley, Tonya Lewis

Journal Articles

This Article builds on efforts to promote urban agriculture and remove legal and practical obstacles to its development. Specifically, we explore concerns regarding land tenure. Urban agriculture development can be retarded by uncertainties in landownership and agriculturalists’ land rights. We explore property tools that could be helpful to urban agriculturalists (both farmers and gardeners). One thing we learned quickly in our research is that the challenges (and therefore the most helpful tools) vary greatly by place. For this reason, we present examples of urban agriculture efforts across the United States to demonstrate the varying challenges that jurisdictions face and to …

Structural Equation Models Of Vmt Growth In Us Urbanised Areas, Reid Ewing, Shima Hamidi, Frank Gallivan, Arthur C. Nelson, James B. Grace

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Vehicle miles travelled (VMT) is a primary performance indicator for land use and transportation, bringing with it both positive and negative externalities. This study updates and refines previous work on VMT in urbanised areas, using recent data, additional metrics and structural equation modelling (SEM). In a cross-sectional model for 2010, population, income and freeway capacity are positively related to VMT, while gasoline prices, development density and transit service levels are negatively related. Findings of the cross-sectional model are generally confirmed in a more tightly controlled longitudinal study of changes in VMT between 2000 and 2010, the first model of its …

Sustainability Policy’S Inherent Dilemmas – Exemplified Via Critical Examination Of The Las Vegas Metropolitan Sustainability Campaign, Kathryn A. Zimmerman

All Master's Theses

In response to a dual problem of critical water scarcity and rapid population growth, leaders of metropolitan Las Vegas implemented a region-wide, internationally marketed sustainability campaign. Preliminary studies found that, while sustainability policy attains its rhetorical goals, solutions initiated not only perpetuate but also purposefully expand the original dual problem to justify continuous water resource acquisitions. To examine this sustainability conundrum constructed by leadership—problem-perpetuation rather than problem-resolution—a critical examination in resource management asked two basic questions: what is being sustained and by what means? Via this inquiry, specific processes by which leaders perpetuate problems can be identified; and, so-informed, new …

Unigov: The Indianapolis Response To Urban Sprawl, Maxwell Hackman

Graduate Thesis Collection

Unigov is one of the most significant pieces of legislation in Indianapolis and Indiana history. In the often times hostile environment of Indiana politics it is nothing short of a miracle that the leaders in the Republican Party were able to get the Unigov bill approved and have it be as successful for the city as it has been. Unigov also created a modern day political machine for the Republican Party of Indianapolis. The new city of Indianapolis under the leadership of Republican Mayors Richard Lugar and William Hudnut has earned national name recognition on the convention circuit and for …

Theorizing More Inclusive Cities: A Relational Model Of Boundary Transformation And Urban Research Agenda, Leigh Graham

Publications and Research

To generate more inclusive environments for marginalized urban communities of color demands a strategy that privileges symbolic boundary change and uses it as the inroad towards spatial changes. This paper theorizes a three step relational process of a) communicative democratic activism, b) "multicultural" capital brokers providing access to the policy making process, and c) practices of community building that reflect the role of cities as key sites for sociospatial boundary transformation. An emphasis on discursive and ideational change, relying on communicative democratic processes steeped in historical, comparative analysis opens up our minds towards different classification schemes for stigmatized groups. Participating …

Hang-Yong High-Speed Railway And Ningbo’S Industrial Structure: A Conceptual Analysis, Dongxuan Ying

Theses and Dissertations

High speed railway and promote the economic development of the city. So the operation of high-speed railway in Ningbo to Hangzhou, Ningbo’s opportunity and challenge, tourism, transportation, business, industry, real estate industry, headquarters economy, financial, cultural and creative industries, attract talent. Although short-term high iron research is very difficult to see effect, but through some research can guess and judge the impact of high-speed rail industry of Ningbo city and some Suggestions put forward the Ningbo, Hang-Yong high-speed railway.

Implementing Green Roofs On Movie Theaters And Shopping Centers: Business Cases In Profitable Sustainability, Ryan J. Miller

Pomona Senior Theses

This thesis presents the business case for installing green roofs on movie theaters and shopping centers. These businesses can then derive increased profits from the environmental benefits of reduced energy use and increased stormwater retention. After presenting the basic design and benefits of a green roof, the thesis develops stand-alone business plans for a movie theater and shopping center. The author finds that green roofs are a profitable sustainability solution for the commercial enterprise.

Exploring The Effects Of Ex-Prisoner Reentry On Structural Factors In Disorganized Communities: Implications For Leadership Practice, G. Michael Davis

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The purpose of this study is to explore the way(s) in which the disproportionate return of ex-prisoners to socially and economically disadvantaged communities impact(s) specific community structural factors identified in the study. After three decades of withstanding the enduring effects of the mass incarceration, communities stand at the edge of a new era. Economic realities, and the failure of policies designed to deter crime through imprisonment are rapidly ushering in an era of mass prisoner reentry. The complexity of the challenges surrounding the successful integration of offenders to communities requires a new leadership paradigm for justice leaders. This study posits …

How Livable Is Your Transit System?, Marc Schlossberg

TREC Project Briefs

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has identified some “livability principles” which include healthy, safe and walkable neighborhoods and safe, reliable and economical transportation choices. Transit agencies and local governments routinely use metrics to evaluate the performance of transit systems, but a uniform standard of transit data collection does not exist outside of the reporting requirements of the National Transit Database (NTD). Because of the types of data collected for the NTD, the focus of performance measurements is often on ridership and financial performance, leaving aside the question of livability.

In an OTREC-sponsored project, principal investigator Marc Schlossberg …

Civic Deliberative Dialogue And The Topic Of Race: Exploring The Lived Experience Of Everyday Citizens And Their Encounters With Tension And Conflict, Jacquelyn Yvonne Mccray

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

The research explored the interactions and experiences of participants and facilitators in civic deliberative dialogue and how they worked through tension and conflict. The dissertation question asked: What is the lived experience of participants and facilitators of civic deliberative dialogue and how do group members collectively move beyond tensions and disagreements that surface during dialogue processes? The study analyzed the joint influences of tension and disagreement within the context of seven deliberative dialogues convened on the topics of race, race relations and racism. Grounded theory methodology was used to analyze qualitative research data collected from participant volunteers and facilitators. A …

Estimates Of Population Age Groups (Ages Under 18 Yrs., 18-64 Yrs., And 65 Yrs. And Over) For Oregon And Its Counties, July 1, 2013, Portland State University. Population Research Center, Risa Proehl

Oregon Population Estimates and Reports

The dataset also includes:

• Estimates of Population Age Groups (ages under 18 yrs., 18-64 yrs., and 65 yrs. and over) for Oregon and Its Counties, July 1, 2012 (prepared January 2013)
• Estimates of Population Age Groups (ages under 18 yrs., 18-64 yrs., and 65 yrs. and over) for Oregon and Its Counties, July 1, 2011 (prepared January 2011)

A Comparison Of Emergency Service Provider Costs For Formerly Homeless Persons Living Inpermanent Supportive Housing In Washington County, Oregon, Scott Stewart, Janai Kessi

Northwest Economic Research Center Publications and Reports

Comparison between the emergency service costs that homeless persons incur while homeless with their costs for the same services while residing in permanent, supportive housing.

Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership: An Economic Impact Analysis, Jeff Renfro, Marisol Cáceres, Janai Kessi

Northwest Economic Research Center Publications and Reports

Estimated the economic impact of the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership on manufacturing in Oregon.

Cupa's Reach, Institute Of Portland Metropolitan Studies

Metroscape

A brief look at the numbers of graduates from Portland State University's College of Urban and Public Affairs, and their dispersal across the globe.

Making Concrete From Recycled Materials, Jason Ideker

TREC Project Briefs

Making concrete out of recycled concrete aggregate, or RCA, can be a sustainable and cost-saving alternative to other aggregates. However, the quality of concrete made with RCA is dependent on the quality of the recycled material used. OTREC researchers Jason Ideker of Oregon State University and Jennifer Tanner of the University of Wyoming, with graduate student researchers Matthew P. Adams and Angela Jones, sought to determine some of the primary concerns involved with the use of RCA and to arrive at methods of assessing its durability for use in new concrete.

Alkali-silica reaction occurs in concrete over time, causing it …

The Streets Are Talking: The Aesthetics Of Gentrification In Two Downriver New Orleans Neighborhoods, Tara E. Foster

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Since the 1970s, when neoliberal policies and changing consumer patterns began remaking cities, scholars have conducted research about gentrification. In New Orleans, these studies have helped explain the demographic and economic shifts in some neighborhoods. However, there has been limited focus on the built environment aspects of gentrification in New Orleans, specifically the interpretation of the external aesthetic shifts in streetscapes as part of the gentrification process. This thesis examines the relationship between these aesthetics, primarily graffiti and street art, and the gentrification process, as perceived by various stakeholders in two New Orleans neighborhoods: St. Roch and Bywater. Using empirical, …

Sistas On The Move: An Ethnographic Case Study Of Health And Friendship In Urban Space Among Black Women In New Orleans, Valerie A. Mcmillan

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

Black women are disproportionately affected by adverse health conditions, such as obesity and heart disease. For example, more black women currently die from complications associated with diabetes, obesity and high blood pressure than any other ethnic group in the United States (Gourdine 2011). There are however, increasing numbers of everyday black women who defy these statistics and are positive role models for all women. One such group of women is the New Orleans chapter of Sistas On The Move (SOTM), an all-female running group that emphasizes the importance of black women’s health and builds community around physical activity. Through …