Anzhelika Antipova

The post-disaster negative health legacy: pregnancy outcomes in Louisiana after Hurricane Andrew.

Disasters and displacement increasingly affect and challenge urban settings. How do pregnant women fare in the aftermath of a major disaster? This paper investigates the effect of pregnancies in disaster situations. The study tests a hypothesis that pregnant women residing in hurricane-prone areas suffer higher health risks. The setting is Louisiana in the Gulf Coast, United States, a state that continually experiences hurricane impacts. The time period for the analysis is three years following the landfall of Hurricane Andrew in 1992. We analysed low birth weight and preterm deliveries before and after landfall, as a whole and by race. Findings support an association between hazards and health of a community and indicate that pregnant women in the affected area, irrespective of race, are more likely to experience preterm deliveries compared to pre-event births. Results suggest there is a negative health legacy impact in Louisiana as a result of hurricane landfall.

Retail-center viability and urban form: a micro analysis

Abstract Location is commonly axiomatically stated as the most important real estate feature. However, little attention is given to the urban system that reveals how location is configured, and how that configuration sustains the viability of site-specific retailing activity in the metropolitan region. In this paper, we use block-level, GIS-aided spatial data that reveal the physical qualities of the retail center’s built environment as well as employment and business activity. Thereby, we examine a hypothesis that retailing viability is linked to urban form and set out to determine a statistical relationship. Retail sales data indicate the viability of businesses in two matched shopping centers, urban and suburban, each anchored by an identical big-box retailer downsized to a neighborhood supermarket, with pedestrian-friendly orientation and proximity to housing. The paper concludes with regression estimates of the urban form determinants of business viability by various distances from the retail center.

Local Amenities and Neighborhood Perception

Various local neighborhood amenities include ample green areas, nearby shopping, work access, and recreation. Amenities enhance life quality and may influence residential perception of urban neighborhoods and actual satisfaction with the neighborhood. To assess resident perceptions and satisfactions, a survey questionnaire was administered in Essen, Germany. Subjective perceptions from survey responses are commonly analyzed with factor analysis. Various urban amenities were grouped into uncorrelated factors. Factor scores were used in ordinal logistic regression to analyze ordered categorical outcomes controlling for sociodemographics. Perceptions and satisfaction with one’s neighborhood were measured by varying degrees of “importance” and “satisfaction.” Neighborhoods are more important when located in a safe and pollution-, litter-, and noise-free environment, with nearby green spaces and children’s educational and leisure facilities. The latter two amenities significantly influence residential satisfaction with urban neighborhoods.

Urban Environment: The Differences between the City in Europe and the United States

Urban form is the physical organization of urban areas. Urban form is measured by residential and employment densities, activity distribution, degree of mixed use, centralization, and urban design. Various factors influence urban form. The US urban form is compared with that in Europe. Due to different historical development, the US metropolitan form is characterized by low development densities, dispersed population and employment, and a larger role for the private car. European metropolitan areas have higher densities and more centralized land-use patterns with lower car use and stronger land-use controls, which preserve compact urban form; with urban development occurring in rail corridors while in the United States suburban development reinforces vehicle dependence, leading to the inefficient use of scarce urban space. Planning in Europe and the United States, and land-use development tools are reviewed.

City Structure and Spatial Patterns

To address urban problems and for planning and zoning purposes, city planners need to understand urban growth. This chapter reviews the classic internal structure models and urban system modeling. Urban models have a relatively short history. Early city structure and growth analysis dates back to the 1920s University of Chicago sociologists. De-densification and horizontal urban expansion lead to a polycentric urban form. Urban form and transport are interrelated. Changes in activity distribution impact travel including journey to work. Studying urban form changes helps understand changes in travel patterns including commuting. The impact of spatial structure (employment locations) upon commuting is investigated in the Baton Rouge Metropolitan Statistical Area. Commuting is studied under monocentric and polycentric assumptions. Comparison of two spatial separation measures including commute time and length supports “co-location theory” with polycentric structure contributing to commuting reduction.

The Relationship Between Urban Environment and Travel Behavior

This chapter links urban landscape and residential travel behavior. Travel behavior can be measured by modal choice, car ownership rates, trip generation, commuting time and distance, and trip chaining. This chapter focuses on active travel, including walking and cycling, promoted by researchers. Alternative travel modes are compared between Germany and the United States as well as policies increasing public transport demand and improving road safety. Germany’s land-use and public policies promote compact, mixed-use development, and active travel. Other countries might build upon Germany’s experience. To control traffic congestion, impact travel behavior, and drive cars less, urban development strategies are pursued including transit-oriented development (TOD). Research findings on the links between neighborhood characteristics and non-motorized transport can be useful to investigate the effects of neighborhood environment on residential health.

The Relationship Between Urban Environment and Health

Particulate matter, nitrogen dioxide, and ozone have adverse health effects. Increased mortality during London’s 1952 smog episode demonstrated harmful health effects from coal burning. Recent massive urbanization in developing countries is accompanied by traffic congestion and environmental degradation. In developed countries, residents and commuters are exposed to transportation-based emissions linked to cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, urban sprawl is associated with obesity in children and adults and related disorders, while driving affects mental health such as stress, and increases traffic and pedestrians/cyclists accident risks. Urban environmental exposure poses health risks to pregnancies including low birthweight and pre-term births. Differences in birth outcomes between high and low exposure areas are analyzed in Memphis, TN. Due to public health concerns, studying adverse impacts of urbanization and transportation helps to improve public health.