Urban Land Use

CGC 1D
Rationale:

 In order for an urban area to function

effectively, all the needs of its citizens
must be met.
 In order to do this, municipal
governments divide the land up into six
types of land uses.
6 Types of Urban Land Use
 Residential – 40%
 Transportation – 32%
 Institutional – 10%
 Open space – 7%
 Industrial – 6%
 Commercial – 5%

(percentages based on a typical Canadian city).

Clark, Bruce W. et al, Making Connections: Canada’s Geography. Second ed. Don Mills, ON: Pearson Education Canada Inc. 2006.

p. 245.
Residential Land Use
 This is where people live.
 The type of housing in an area is based on
residential density, defined by:
 Number of housing units in a hectare (unit of land)
 A hectare is about 100 x 100 metres (or roughly
the size of two football fields)
Types of Residential Density

Low Density
 Single-family homes, semi-detached homes,
and duplexes
 Have less than 30 homes per hectare
Medium Density
 Town houses, low-rise
apartments
 Have between 30 to 100
homes per hectare

High Density
 High-rise apartments
 Have more than 100 units
per hectare
Transportation Land Use
 Land that is used for moving people and
goods from one place to another.
 Includes: sidewalks, roads, highways,
subways, streetcars, railroad tracks, freight
yards, airports, marinas and any other land
that is used for transportation.
Institutional Land Use

 Land that is
occupied by
schools, hospitals,
government
offices, and places
of worship.
Open Space Land Use
 Land that is now
vacant, or left in a
natural state (like a
woodlot), or land that
is for recreational
use (parks,
playgrounds,
community centres)
Industrial Land Use
 Land that is used for industry
 Some examples: Factories, warehouses,
power plants, or places of resource
extraction (like mines).
Commercial Land Use

 Land that is set aside for commercial

activities. This includes any land use that
is used for buying, selling, or trading
goods and services.
Christaller’s Central Place Theory
 This theory suggests that any good or service
offered by a central place needs a minimum
number of customers to stay in business
 Low-order goods & services (need only a small
population to stay in business – milk & bread)
 Middle-order goods & services (larger population
is needed – family doctors, hair salons, shoe
stores)
 High-order goods & services (need a large
population – specialized hospital, art gallery,
designer clothing store)
Land Use Conflict
 Some types of land use do not suit other
types of land use. This can cause land
use conflict.
 Can you identify three examples of land
use conflicts and explain why these land
uses do not suit each other? Take a
couple of minutes and write this down.
Your teacher will ask some students to
share answers.
Additional Understandings

 Read pages 247-264 in Making

Connections
 Answer Questions #1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 15, 17
on pages 264-265.
Woodlot Debate

 Later this week, our class will be

transformed into a town hall meeting.
Students will represent one of four
interest groups:
 Local Residents
 Local Business Owners

 Residential Property Developers

 Environmentalists
Debate

 We will be debating the future of a local

woodlot.
 Should it be town down to make room for
more residential development?
 The class will be divided into four groups,
each representing a different perspective on
this issue. Make sure you get into character!
Field Study
 To help us gain a stronger
understanding of the significance of the
woodlot, we will be visiting the woodlot
during tomorrow’s class.
 While there, we will clean up any
garbage that we find.
 You should also start thinking about
points that you could make in the debate
later this week.
Tomorrow
 Don’t forget to dress appropriately to be
outdoors tomorrow!
 Meet at the start of class at the main
entrance to the school for attendance