Land Use Zoning and Human Diversity: Exploring the Connection

City planners are rallying against social and economic segregation by enacting regulatory changes, particularly zoning reform. Land use zoning, many argue, is one of the most potent tools planners have to enact change in human settlement patterns, and the goal of that change is often to foster greater levels of socioeconomic and land use diversity. This paper presents a method for connecting land use zoning and spatial patterns of diversity explicitly. It addresses the question of whether, and in what ways, zoning and human diversity are interrelated. Two fundamental questions arise in attempting to use zoning to foster greater diversity: What is the current relationship between human diversity and zoning, and second, how can zoning, given local experience, be changed to effectuate more diversity. To answer these questions, patterns of zoning by parcel and patterns of socioeconomic diversity were evaluated for the twin cities of Champaign and Urbana, Ill. A form of the Simpson Diversity Index was used to measure socioeconomic and zoning diversity by census block group. The results showed an association between diverse residential zoning and income diversity, but other measures of social diversity were not strongly correlated.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/07339488
• Authors:
  • Talen, Emily
• Publication Date: 2005-12

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Print
• Features: Appendices; Figures; References; Tables;
• Pagination: pp 214-232
• Serial:
  • Journal of Urban Planning and Development
  • Volume: 131
  • Issue Number: 4
  • Publisher: American Society of Civil Engineers
  • ISSN: 0733-9488
  • EISSN: 1943-5444
  • Serial URL: http://ascelibrary.org/journal/jupddm

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Census; City planning; Development; Economic and social factors; Land use; Mixed use development; Persons by socioeconomic levels; Spatial analysis; Zoning
• Identifier Terms: Simpson Diversity Index
• Uncontrolled Terms: Diversity; Racial segregation; Settlement patterns
• Geographic Terms: Champaign (Illinois)
• Subject Areas: Data and Information Technology; Highways; Planning and Forecasting; Society; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01014787
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Dec 4 2005 1:44PM