URBAN LAND-USE

Types of Land Use

• All land use in an urban place can be classified into one of SIX major groups:

• industrial, residential, commercial, transportation, institutional and open space.

Industrial (Blue)• Factories, warehouses, shipping – close to highways,

railways and water• about 6% of all urban land

• 4 types• - Ribbon Industries (large, next to transportation, away

from residential)• - CBD (old, obsolete, fabric and textiles• - Suburban Industrial Parks (modern, planned, near

highways• - Suburban Business Parks (well planned, landscaped,

offices and light industry

Residential (Yellow)• 40% of developed land in many cities• Contains Single Detached, Semi-Detached, Duplex, Town

Houses, Low Rise Apartments, High Rise Apartments

• Low Density – Single, Semi, Duplex • Med Density – Towns, Low Rise• High Density – High Rise

• 5% of land for retailing, wholesaling, offices, and services

• 6 types (refer to chart on pg. 252)• - local centre – low order• - neighbourhood plaza – low order• - community shopping centre – low / mid order• - power centre (big box stores) – mid / high order• - regional shopping centre – all orders and specialized• - CBD – all orders and specialized

Commercial (Purple)

• nearly 32% of urban land for roads, highways railroads and electricity transmission corridors

• Automobile good for low density• Mass transit good for high density

• 4 types of roads• - expressways – high volume• - arterial roads – moderate volume, city roads• - collector roads – suburbs, move traffic from local to arterial• - local – small side streets

Transportation - Brown

• schools, hospitals, governments, places of worship• Land that is owned or controlled in some way by the

government.• About 10% of land use

Institutional (Red)

• Parks, golf course, open land, green spaces• 7% of land

Open Space / Recreational (Green)

Factors Affecting Land Use

• Land Value – highest in areas that are most accessible. CBD, major transportation routes.

• Zoning – control the kind and amount of development• Technology – grid pattern (old – high density) vs. garden

pattern (new – low density)• Climate – harsh, creating need for indoor and

underground centres