Government Influence On Urban Development

The urban society is a complex environment in which many people live amongst each other, and are constantly impacted by people, the government, and real estate. First of all, the people are influenced by all of the others around them, and the constant activity. Also, people can be affected by the layout and development of the city that they are living in. The neighborhoods and zones established by the real estate market and government can influence people’s lives. Throughout the history of urban development, the government has had a major impact on the design of urban areas. All of these influences can have both positive and negative effects on the population. Whether it be the government or the real estate market, the development of urban

(20) It is the relationship between people and the space in which they live. In this perspective, the government and the real estate industry have major impacts on the urban development. As previously discussed, the government can have a major impact on the makeup of a city. For example, an environmental policy can impact what can be built in a certain area and how it would be constructed. If there is a certain policy saying that only a certain amount of energy or gas can be spent at a given site, then that could prevent the construction of a factory. Another example is the construction of transportation services such as highways or railroads. Interstate 95 is a major highway on the eastern coast of the US, and is very important for travel, but it must go through many major cities and impacts their layouts. In Philadelphia, it goes long the Delaware River, and separates Center City from the water. Because of this, it is difficult for pedestrians to get from Center City to the waterfront, which limits the value of the generally expensive waterfront property. Had the government chosen to put the highway somewhere else, access to the water would be easier, and would definitely be capitalized on by investors. Another impression the government had on cities was the process of redlining which established the value of land in a city, and involved discrimination against minorities. The discrimination prevented minorities from acquiring enough money to move out of the poorer areas. Furthermore, the lower valued area had no money invested into them, and were unable to improve. The government policy of redlining prevented areas of cities from improving and stopped minorities from leaving the inner-city. (Dreier 127) Redlining is one of the main causes for the urban area remaining