5 Chapter Hace:
Housing and Community
-housing is a durable physical product in a neighborhood setting and ingredient in
family satisfaction or dissatisfaction and in a communitys sense of well being.
-The ecological approach considers housing, neighborhoods, and communities as
functional entities and examines the interdependence b/w residents and their surrounding
environments as well as the interrelationships among residents. It also relates the
communiys physical features to the social situations in various neighborhood settings.
-Planing approach is concerned with the physical layout of housing, stteets, sidewalks,
open spaces and utility lines. Focuses on how physical environment supports
neighborhoods residents
Defining Neighborhood and Community:
Neighborhood- area in which people share certain common facilities necessary to
domestic life
Community- network of social interaction and bonding, based on mutual interests.
-Researchers tend to favor geographic definitions because such definitions facilitate their
use of census tracts or zip codes for isolating data.---statistical neighborhoods
-Social definitions incorporate residents perceptions of their neighborhoods functional
neighborhoods
Community Development:
-may refer to a new neighborhoods physical planning and development.
History of Studying Neighborhoods and Communities From a Social Perspective:
-As more people moved fro rural areas to cities, many researchers became deeply
concerned about the negative effects of urban centers on families.
---As neighborhoods became denser people would no longer know wach other and the
social ties that traditionally held people together would disintegrate.
--Governments pressing need for low-cost husing.
-Toward the end of the twentieth and into the twenty-first century, thanks to increasing
visibility of homeless people and increasing violent crime, resurgence of interest in
neighborhood and community effect on individuals and families
Theoretical Approaches to Studying Social Aspects of Neighborhoods and
Communities:
-Wirth defined city as a large, dense, permanent settlement with socially and culturally
heterogeneous people. Unique way of life, called urbanism
-No single causal model fully explains neighborhood and community roles, several
theories explain their influence on families and children
Social Contagion Theories: focus on childrens peers influencing their behavior--more kids go to college from a neighborhood, higher chance that others will
Collective Socialization Theories: Consider the impact of adult role models and
informally shared parenting functions by neighborhood residents.
Neighborhood Resource Theories: emphasize the link between the quality and
quantity of resident services. Examples are schools, police, parks
Relative Deprivation Theories: Assume that people judge their success or failure
by comparing their status to others around them. If children see themselves at a
disadvantage relative to their peers they may be less motivated.
Process of Physical Community Development:
-land use regulations are mostly local regulations
Planning Commissions:
-are made up of local residents who recommend to the governing body planning
decisions for the entire community.
-depending on the organizational structure, planning commissions may be limited
authority, serving only in an advisory capacity.
-others have power to approve or disapprove development plans
Comprehensive Plan:
-Community development goals are formulated through a comprehensive plan.
-seeking to ensure that social and economic needs are balanced against
environmental and aesthetic concerns.
-Topics covered in a comprehensive plan include: demographic and economic
factors; land use and zoning; housing and neighborhood quality; infrastructure;
government services; utilities and facilities; visual, cultural, and environmental
factors.
-planning commissions made up of appointed members undertake the extensive
community study, although citizen participation is often encouraged throughout
the process.
Tools of Physical Community Development
Zoning Ordinances:
-Can be traced back to 1692.boston confined location of slaughter houses
-New York City ordinance of 1916 first to include appeals process.
-every state now has such enabling legislation
-based on the interest of promoting residents health, safety, and welfare, zoning
ordinances land regulate use, population density, site requirements, and structural
dimensions.
-Contains 3 parts:
1. map showing boundaries of labeled zoning districts
2. section of specifically defined and periodically reviewed definitions
3. series of articles containing the permitted and conditional or special
permit uses within each district.
-zoning regulates development by district throughout the municipality. Serves to
protect neighborhoods character and protect property values.
-An ordinance permits nonconforming uses that result from enacting or revising
zoning regulations.---non-conforming uses, grandfathering, are land uses that
legally existed before ordinances adoption, but are no longer legal.
SKIPPED APPEALS PROCESS SECTION
Subdivision Regulations:
-Often in comprehensive plan, they govern the residential development of raw
land. Serve as protection for buyers of new homes and vacant residential lots by
assuring standards will be upheld. They usually guide:
-areas to be reserved for dedication for public use
-installation of and easements for public utilities
-lot and block size
-location, width, and surfacing of streets
Covenants:
-Private covenants, protective, restrictive
-agreements established by developer of subdivision or neighborhood association.
Critics of Physical Community Development Regulations
-1949 land improvements comprised 11% of price to new single-family home, by
1982, 24%, now 23.6%
-Other problems with current planning include lack of blaanced growth,
particularly in suburbs, where the not in my backyard (NIMBY) approach is
used. (growth is great but not in my backyard, my neighborhood, or town)
Physical Community Development Compromises
-The Planned unit development (PUD) creates residential neighborhoods that can
produce more profits for the developer and builder, while providing better
environment for residents. PUDs are usually part of the zoning code. Using this
planning commissions may waive technical requirements to allow dwellings to be
built in clusters
Builder/Developer Advantages:
-Streets and utilities: less street area for builders/develop. To cover and save $
-Dwelling units: save amount of land devoted to streets, have more dwelling
property.
Resident Advantages:
-More house for the money: cheaper large house
-More choices: Offer variety of house types.
Neighborhood Satisfaction
-neighborhood satisfaction is influenced by personal, physical, social,
segregation, and safety factors.
Personal Factors:
-Neighborhood satisfaction higher when:
1. Residents believe their current neighborhood is an improvement over their
former one
2. neighborhood has adequate level of stimulation
3 residents feel at home
Physical Factors:
-Less satisfied if neighborhood is noisy or divided by major traffic route, more
satisfied if green space, visually appealing, and good housing stock.
Social Factors:
-Wants good neighbors
-neighbors may serve as important support systems.
-neighboring: having dense neighborhood social networks.
Neighborhood Segregation:
-Least understood
-Caused by prejudice and discrimination in market (AAs treated les fairly)
-Socioeconomic status (income, occupation, education, and wealth) point to AAs
inability to afford some housing.
-Self-selection and group avoidance
Safety Factors:
-People feel safest in own homes.
-good lighting of public areas
-important factor
Further Evolution of Neighborhoods and Communities
Gentrificaiton:
-Gentrificaiton and disinvestment are opposite ends of neighborhood transition.
-Disinvestment occurs when buildings deteriorate, areas are abandoned, and
graffiti abouds. Middle and upper classes then move to more desireable areas.
-Gentrificaiton is when new money is invested in a neighborhood and upper class
moves back in
Gated Communities:
-Helps with Safety
Conservation Communities:
-Are neighborhoods that incorporate sustainable housing and neighborhood
design.
-create good environment and preserve most outstanding features of land
-some features include lake or stream
New Urbanism:
-New urbanists, promote neighborhoods that have a well-defined edge and a
focused center
-Neighborhood size should be no more than mile from one end to other.
Traditional Neighborhood Development:
-Street pattern that creates a number of alternative routes from one part of
neighborhood to another.
-Traditional grid of streets with cul-de-sacs.