Reading To Be Done before This Discussion: : Robert Geddes, "Metropolis Unbound," The American Prospect, November-December 1997, pp. 40–46. Available online at http://www.prospect.org/cs/articles?article=metropolis_unbound

: Jay Walljasper, "New Lessons from the Old World" E The Environmental Magazine, March/April 2005, pp. 26-33. Available at http://www.emagazine.com/view/?2307

Things to Bring to Class: Notes from your readings or a printout of the articles.
Due in Discussion This Week: Answers to the questions below and your Vocation Reflection Paper.
Due in Discussion Next Week: Questions as usual

How This Discussion Connects To Lecture: Cities and urban areas play an important role in shaping human geographies.  They way they are structured may influence social structures, economic opportunities, and culture. Throughout history people have moved to cities in order to gain access to better paying jobs, services (such as education and health care), and other opportunities.  However, in the last hundred years, the processes of urbanization and urban growth have accelerated rapidly, and, the majority of the world’s population will soon be living in cities and urban areas.

Your text provides a detailed discussion of urban structure and land use and also provides several models that can be used to understand different urban formations. In lecture you will learn about a number of urban models which describe the way the classical American city is structured. These models make an attempt to represent the logic behind the distribution of residential and commercial areas largely on the basis of economic criteria, but also on the basis of class and ethnic divisions.  It is important to remember, however, that a model is always an ideal, sometimes even a normative (how things ought to be) representation of a reality that turns out to be more complex.  These models may also be increasingly irrelevant given changes in urban structure over the past century. 

To Prepare for Discussion: In North America the distinction between urban and rural is increasingly hard to discern.  You may be under the impression that as a resident of Valparaiso you’ve moved to a small town in the country.  Cornfields and the lack of “basic” amenities like a shopping mall or sidewalks would support that assertion.  The mayor, the university marketing folks, and the producers of the Michael Essany show would certainly like you to believe that Valparaiso is the typical American small town, but a short drive north or west of town should convince you otherwise.  In fact, it is hard to live in Valparaiso without at least occasional visits to Hobart, Chesterton, or Merrillville for higher order goods.  In contrast with its popular image Valparaiso is really a node in the larger city-region of Northwest Indiana, which itself is a satellite in the “galactic city” of Chicago.  Our traditional categories of rural, urban, and suburban have not caught up with the very visible changes in the urban landscape.

These changes in urban form are fueled by industrialization, economic development and advances in transportation technologies.  The article by Robert Geddes, "Metropolis Unbound," introduces a ‘new’ form of human settlement: the city-region. This article discusses the growth of these city-regions and the political, social, and environmental challenges associated with them. As you read, think about how Valparaiso, Chicago, and your own hometown fits within the various scenarios for city form that Geddes presents.  In this week’s discussion, we will discuss this new urban form, address the challenges it presents, and think about the implications for the way we live.

The second article New Lessons from the Old World explores what we here in the United States can learn from European cities. In Europe cities are built at a pedestrian scale and incorporate public transportation. The author claims that these cities are more environmentally sustainable. They might fit into the Cascadia paradigm described by Geddes. As you read, think about how cities in the United States compare to those in Europe. How does Valparaiso compare? What aspects of cities in both Europe and the United States would you include in your own ideal city?

Name: Honor Code:
Questions to be Answered before Discussion

1. What is the Los Angeles paradigm? And, what problems are associated with it?

 

 

2. What alternatives are presented to the Los Angeles paradigm? And, how do these models address the goal of achieving a balance between the economy, the environment, and social equity?

 

 

3. How do European Cities differ from cities in the United States?

 

 

 

4. What role does transportation play in making cities environmentally sustainable?

 

 

 

5.  What do you think the idea city would look like?  What would some of its most important characteristics?

 

 

6. What is one question about the issues covered in the reading that you would like to see discussed during class?