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Creative Class and the Promotion of Sustainability: Insights from the Five-county Region of Southern California
Get PDFThis research examines the extent to which the presence of the creative class in cities is associated with the promotion of sustainability, particularly as reflected in development regulations adopted by cities. Focusing on the incorporated cities in the five-county Southern California region, this study employed a mixed-method approach conducted in two phases. The first phase examined the association between the presence of the creative class and six sustainability-related urban form characteristics for 167 incorporated cities. Using four different combinations of the two variables—the size of the creative class and the level of the urban form index—eight cities were purposefully selected for an in-depth analysis for the second phase. The LEED-ND rating system was used as an evaluative framework to examine the current downtown specific plans of the selected eight cities to determine the extent to which downtown specific plan regulations reflected sustainability principles. Additionally, interviews with planners in the select cities were conducted to provide greater insights.Considerable variation was found in the promotion of sustainability among cities. Generally, cities with a higher proportion of the creative class integrated LEED-ND principles to a greater extent than those with a lower proportion. However, not all cities with a higher proportion of the creative class promoted more sustainability principles and to a stronger extent than those with a lower proportion. Findings from the first phase suggested that there was no statistically significant relationship between the size of the creative class and sustainability-related urban from characteristics, except for access to open space, which was positively correlated with the size of the creative class. This finding was further supported in the study’s second phase, which revealed that not all cities with a higher presence of the creative class promoted compact, mixed-use development. Furthermore, cities with a stronger presence of the creative class promoted more green building and infrastructure related sustainability principles; however, considerable variation existed. Regardless of the size of the creative class, cities are promoting sustainability in various ways. This study provides valuable insight for cities considering zoning reform to increase the promotion of sustainability
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Sustainability and Regionalism in the Los Angeles Region: Insights from the 2012 Regional Plan and Collaborative Process
Get PDFThe main purpose of this research is to examine the regional planning process and product that will influence future development in Southern California. In 2012, the Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG) unanimously adopted the Los Angeles region's first long-term regional plan that intends to reduce carbon emissions by integrating land use and transportation planning. Known as the 2012-2035 Regional Transportation Plan and Sustainable Communities Strategy (2012 RTP/SCS), the plan calls itself “a shared vision for the region’s sustainable future.” The 2012 RTP/SCS represents the first major step towards a regional approach to sustainable planning in Southern California, where regional planning has historically been challenged by factors such as political fragmentation and strong local autonomy. To develop the plan, SCAG was required by California's Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act, also known as Senate Bill 375 (SB 375), to implement an extensive cooperative planning process intended to include a variety of stakeholders. This process allowed stakeholders to effectively advocate for mutually beneficial policy objectives by forming a coalition, which according to the literature can become an urban regime if it establishes long-term dominance. Using a qualitative approach, this research examines: 1) the extent to which the 2012 RTP/SCS promotes principles of sustainable development; 2) how urban regimes might have influenced the development of the regional plan; and 3) the barriers and channels to a regional approach to planning for sustainability. Through an analysis of interviews, observations, and regional planning documents, the findings reveal that the 2012 RTP/SCS generally offers benefits for nearly all stakeholders through stronger sustainable development policies, economic and employment growth, and the preservation of local control. SB 375 gave SCAG more responsibilities and strengthened its role in regional planning and gave stakeholders the opportunity for unified engagement in the planning process. A coalition of stakeholders focused on principles of sustainable development shifted the regional planning discourse away from traditional transportation and economic improvement issues. This research suggests that a form of “regime regionalism” can effectively address complex challenges of sustainability if partners remain committed to the vision towards a sustainable Los Angeles region
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New regulations for promoting Good City Form? Insights from the process and product of form-based code adoption
Get PDFThe main purpose of this dissertation is to assess the effectiveness of form-based codes in contributing to good urban form. Cities are increasingly adopting form-based codes as an alternative to conventional zoning to guide future development, however there is yet not a comprehensive evaluation of its effectiveness in doing so. Moreover, there is little empirical evidence that form-based codes are being adopted for the public good. I use a two-pronged approach to examine the planning process involved in developing form-based codes and the product of this process, the adopted codes, within the theoretical frameworks of the theory of good city form (Lynch, 1984) and the theory of the city as a growth machine (Logan & Molotch, 2007). I use mixed methods to examine multiple case studies for the extent to which form-based codes integrate principles of good city form, and for evidence of the influence of the growth machine in the planning process of form-based codes. Through analysis of planning documents, interviews, and other media sources, the findings reveal that form-based codes do not necessarily promote principles of good city form to a greater extent than conventional zoning regulations and that the growth machine does appear to compromise the potential of form-based codes in contributing to good city form. Thus, form-based codes can effectively address certain issues but are not in themselves a panacea. In the context of zoning reform efforts and policies addressing contemporary urban issues at various government levels, the adoption of form-based codes is essentially an institutional response to the contemporary problems of urban development that does not go far enough in contributing more positively to facilitate good city form. Thus, the adoption of new development regulations such as form-based codes can be seen as a missed opportunity to adopt regulations that mitigate the effects of existing conventional zoning and contribute to an urban form that meets the needs and desires of the community and society at large. This research cautions policymakers and planners contemplating the adoption of form-based codes of the potential ineffectiveness of form-based regulations in achieving certain objectives for their community
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Get PDFThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
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Are transit-oriented developments equitable? Examining TOD policies and their impact on location affordability in Southern California
No full textIn California, transit-oriented developments (TODs) are encouraged by state, regional, and local governments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, alleviate the housing affordability crisis, and address the mobility and shelter needs of transit-dependent populations. In addition, housing near transit stations is expected to contribute positively to location affordability, measured as the share of household income spent on combined transportation and housing costs. While considerable literature has focused on the impact of TODs on stimulating economic growth and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, there is scant research examining the extent to which TODs contribute to equitable development. This dissertation, consisting of three studies, examines (1) the impact of TODs on location affordability for households living near transit stations over time and (2) the extent to which local governments in Southern California promote equitable development in TODs through development regulations, policies, and programs. Focusing on TODs’ impact on location affordability, I use a quasi-experimental design with propensity score matching to compare changes in local affordability between neighborhoods near new rail stations and those without rail service. Findings reveal that while rail station construction does not significantly affect affordability, the operation of rail transit may improve location affordability in the early operating years. However, lower-income households in TOD areas are more cost-burdened and may experience decreasing affordability over time. Examining governmental efforts in promoting equitable TODs, I analyze 19 TOD specific plans through content analysis. Findings indicate that local TOD planning has yet to prioritize social equity and the needs of transit-dependent populations. Although common strategies include increasing multifamily housing, providing affordable housing near transit, and community engagement, their implementation varies widely across cities. Furthermore, I evaluate the efficacy of the Transit-Oriented Communities Affordable Housing Incentive Program adopted by the City of Los Angeles to promote affordable housing production near transit. Through spatial analysis and interviews with key stakeholders, this program is shown to be effective due to its significant regulatory relief and streamlined entitlement process. This dissertation emphasizes a stronger focus on social equity within TOD policies and programs. It suggests that local governments should not only mandate or prioritize affordable housing provisions through specific plans or incentive programs like the TOC program but also integrate the most disadvantaged groups—often low-income and transit-dependent— into the planning and decision-making processes to truly address their needs. The research method used in this dissertation could also serve as an evaluative tool that local and regional governments could use to identify the strengths and weaknesses of existing policies and encourage policy changes in facilitating equitable development outcomes near transit stations
Variations on the Author
Get PDF“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Get PDFWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Get PDFWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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