TORIO, DIANE RAE G.

ARC4203
PLANNING 3

CONCENTRIC ZONE THEORY

The concentric zone model, also known as the Burgess model or the CCD model, is one of the earliest theoretical
models to explain urban social structures. It was created by sociologist Ernest Burgess in 1925.

Based on human ecology theory done by Burgess and applied on Chicago, it was the first to give the explanation
of distribution of social groups within urban areas. This concentric ring model depicts urban land usage in concentric rings:
the Central Business District (or CBD) was in the middle of the model, and the city expanded in rings with different land
uses. It is effectively an urban version of Von Thünen's regional land use model developed a century earlier. It influenced
the later development of Homer Hoyt's sector model (1939) and Harris and Ullman's multiple nuclei model (1945).
The zones identified are:
1. The center with the central business district,
2. The transition zone of mixed residential and commercial uses or the zone of transition,
3. Working class residential homes (inner suburbs), in later decades called inner city or zone of independent
working men's home,
4. Better quality middle-class homes (outer suburbs) or zone of better housing,
5. Commuter zone.

The model is more detailed than the traditional down-mid-uptown divide by which downtown is the CBD, uptown
the affluent residential outer ring, and midtown in between.

Burgess's work helped generate the bid rent curve. This theory states that the concentric circles are based on the
amount that people will pay for the land. This value is based on the profits that are obtainable from maintaining a business
on that land. The center of the town will have the highest number of customers so it is profitable for retail activities.
Manufacturing will pay slightly less for the land as they are only interested in the accessibility for workers, 'goods in' and
'goods out'. Residential land use will take the surrounding land.

The model has been challenged by many contemporary urban geographers. First, the model does not work well
with cities outside the United States, in particular with those developed under different historical contexts. Even in the
United States, because of changes such as advancement in transportation and information technology and transformation
in global economy, cities are no longer organized with clear "zones" (see: Los Angeles School of Urban Analysis).
o It describes the peculiar American geography, where the inner city is poor while suburbs are wealthy; the
converse is the norm elsewhere.
o It assumes an isotropic plane – an even, unchanging landscape.
o Physical features – land may restrict growth of certain sectors; hills and water features may make some
locations unusually desirable for residential purposes.
o Commuter villages defy the theory, being a distant part of the commuter zone.
o Decentralization of shops, manufacturing industry (see Industrial suburb), and entertainment.
o Urban regeneration and gentrification – more expensive property can be found in formerly 'low class'
housing areas.
o Many new housing estates were built on the edges of cities in Britain.
o It does not address local urban politics and forces of globalization.
o The model does not fit polycentric cities, for example Stoke-on-Trent.
o
 SECTOR THEORY

The sector model, also known as the Hoyt model, is a model of urban land use proposed in 1932 by economist
Homer Hoyt. It is a modification of the concentric zone model of city development. The benefits of the application of this
model include the fact it allows for an outward progression of growth. As with all simple models of such complex
phenomena, its validity is limited.

This model applies to numerous British cities. Also, if it is turned 90 degrees counter-clockwise it fits the city of
Mönchengladbach reasonably accurately. This may be because of the age of the cities when transportation was a key, as
a general rule older cities follow the Hoyt model and more recent cities follow the Burgess (concentric zone) model.

The theory is based on early twentieth century rail transport and does not make allowances for private cars that
enable commuting from cheaper land outside city boundaries.[3] This occurred in Calgary in the 1930s when many near-
slums were established outside the city but close to the termini of the street car lines. These are now incorporated into
the city boundary but are pockets of low cost housing in medium cost areas.[2] The theory also does not take into account
the new concepts of edge cities and boomburbs, which began to emerge in the 1980s, after the creation of the model.
Since its creation, the traditional Central Business District has diminished in importance as many retail and office buildings
have moved into the suburbs.

 Physical features - physical features may restrict or direct growth along certain wedges
 The growth of a sector can be limited by leapfrog land.
 the theory too lacks the idea based on land topography.

MULTIPLE NUCLEI THEORY

The multiple nuclei model is an economical model created by Chauncy Harris and Edward Ullman in the 1945
article "The Nature of Cities".

The model describes the layout of a city, based on San Francisco. It says that even though a city may have begun
with a central business district, or CBD, other smaller CBDs develop on the outskirts of the city near the more valuable
housing areas to allow shorter commutes from the outskirts of the city. This creates nodes or nuclei in other parts of the
city besides the CBD thus the name multiple nuclei model. Their aim was to produce a more realistic, if more complicated,
model. Their main goals in this were to:
1. Move away from the concentric zone model
2. To better reflect the complex nature of urban areas, especially those of larger size

Effect to Industry
As multiple nuclei develop, transportation hubs such as airports are constructed which allow industries to be
established with reduced transportation costs. These transportation hubs have negative externalities such as noise
pollution and lower land values, making land around the hub cheaper. Hotels are also constructed near airports because
people who travel tend to want to stay near the source of travel. Housing develops in wedges and gets more expensive
the farther it is from the CBD.
 Harris and Ullman argued that cities do not grow a single nucleus but several separate nuclei. Each nucleus acts
like a growth point.

The theory was formed based on the idea that people have greater movement due to increased car ownership.
This increase of movement allows for the specialization of regional centers (e.g. heavy industry, business parks, and retail
areas). The model is suitable for the large, expanding cities. The number of nuclei around which the city expands depends
upon situational as well as historical factors. Multiple nuclei develop because:
1. Certain industrial activities require transportation facilities e.g. ports, railway stations, etc. to lower
transportation costs.
2. Various combinations of activities tend to be kept apart e.g. residential areas and airports, factories and
parks, etc.
3. Other activities are found together to their mutual advantage e.g. universities, bookstores and coffee
shops, etc.
4. Some facilities need to be set in specific areas in a city - for example the CBD requires convenient traffic
systems, and many factories need an abundant source of water
5. Certain events benefit from the adjacent distance like the positions of factories and residence.
6. In some cases, some constructions are located in less-than-ideal locations, often due to outside factors
such as rent.

Assumptions
1. Land is not flat in all areas
2. Even Distribution of Resources
3. Even Distribution of people in Residential areas
4. Even Transportation Costs