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A Comparison of Housing Growth Hotspots in the Midwestern and Northeastern U.S from 1940-2000

Reference Type
Conference Proceedings (Chapter)

"Sprawl is one of the major causes of landscape change in the United States as well as worldwide.  In the both the Midwest and Northeast United States recent housing growth has been rampant at the outlying fringe of metropolitan areas and in remote regions with attractive recreational and aesthetic amenities.  Our goal was to identify hotspots of housing growth as both an absolute and a percent measure in both regions, analyze their spatial patterns, and compare hotspots so that policy, planning, and management efforts can be focused, and suitable areas identified for detailed examination of underlying causal factors.  Using a set of fine scale (mean size < 400 ha) housing data we measured decadal housing growth hotspots from 1940 to 2000 separately for the entire Midwest and Northeast U.S. Hotspots were estimated using the G-star statistic, a local indicator of spatial autocorrelation, based on neighborhood sizes from 5 to 50 km.  In the Midwest the number of hotspots increased continuously over the 60-year period, whereas in the Northeast they increased until the 1970s and subsequently decreased.  Similarly, the total area of hotspots increased in the Midwest, but peaked in the 1970s in the Northeast.  In both regions mean hotspot size decreased as a function of percent growth and showed either a positive or static trend for absolute growth.  Hotspot locations moved away from metropolitan areas towards rural locations, many of which are rich in natural amenities and potentially sensitive to environmental change.  Our results highlight a continuing trend of decentralizing housing growth and the need to target specific locations in future management efforts." [Abstract from Conference Program and Book of Abstracts]

[Concurrent Session I-D: Urban Sprawl]

[Presented at "Emerging Issues Along Urban/Rural Interfaces: Linking Science and Society", a conference held March 13-16, 2005 in Atlanta, GA (US)]

Authors
C.A. Lepczyk, R.B. Hammer, V.C. Radeloff, S.I. Stewart
Date Published
2005
Journal/Conference
Emerging Issues Along Urban/Rural Interfaces: Linking Science and Society
Editor
D. Laband, et. al.
Publisher
Auburn University Center for Forest Sustainability
Publisher Location
Auburn, AL (US)
Sub-Topics
Interface
State(s)/Region(s)
Northeast-USDA FS, Midwest-USDA FS
Keywords
Interface, Sprawl, Leaf characteristics, Urban-rural, WUI
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