Urban model answer from Mrs Royston

2007, P1,Q5 Study Figure 8, on the insert, which shows an area of Stoke-on-Trent before and after improvement. Suggest why this urban renewal scheme has advantages over a comprehensive redevelopment scheme (4)

Level 1 (Basic) 1-2 marks
Simple statements, with lifts from Figure 8, or with no indication of why the scheme in Stoke-on-Trent is better than comprehensive redevelopment.
The area has been landscaped and there are places for the toddlers to play. Roads have been improved. Renovation is cheaper.

Level 2 (Clear) 3-4 marks
Linked statements, which show how urban renewal is better than slum
clearance.
With comprehensive redevelopment people would have to be moved away from the area where they had lived for a long time and there would be a loss of community spirit. With urban renewal however, people could stay in the area and the houses would have been modernised and improved for example with new bathroom facilities or new roofs. The general environment is also improved making it a more pleasant area in which to live for example ‘green’ areas are provided through landscaping and play areas are provided for young children. (4 marks)


Why can gentrification be considered a disadvantage to some people living in inner city areas? (1 mark)

•The price of houses would go up and the local people may not be able to buy in the area any more.
•There may be some change of service provision in the area e.g. a pub might become a wine bar.
•These changes might lead to social divisions within the area.


Name the large urban area you have studied. Compare your chosen large urban area with the model in Figure 2 (Burgess concentric zones model). You must refer to examples of streets / districts in your answer. (4 marks)

Level 1 Basic (1-2 marks)
No reference to named example or basic description of the area with no reference to the model.
New Street, Colmore Row and Broad Street are in the centre of Birmingham. The next areas are Highgate and Sparkhill and then come Hall Green. The furthest out is Monkspath. In the centre are shops and offices. Then come poor housing and nearer the edge are better class housing.

Level 2 Clear (3-4 marks)
Some indication of where the urban morphology fits or does not fit perfectly into the simple concentric model of Figure 2. Need to refer to at least 2 urban zones for full marks. Maximum mark only if some comparison made to urban model.
Birmingham is an example of a city that generally fits into the concentric zone model. The CBD is found in the centre of the city and has all the typical features of a CBD. New Street is the centre of the retail area, Colmore Row is the main financial area and Broad Street is one of the main entertainment areas in the CBD. Birmingham’s CBD is surrounded by the Inner City areas as identified in the model. Highgate is an inner city area that had been redeveloped and there is now a mixture of both industry and lower quality housing. Sparkhill is another inner city area although this area is more traditional with rows of 19th century terraced housing that have now been improved and gentrified. One area that does not fit the circular model is Edgbaston/ Harborne. This area is close to the CBD however is chararcterised by expensive 19th housing that was originally owned by industrialists. The houses tend to be large detached houses. Housing is newer as you move outwards, for example the outer suburb of Monkspath is newer than the inner suburb of Hall Green. Monkspath is dominated mostly by modern, high class detached and semi detached housing and Hall Green is characterised by interwar semi detached housing. Another area that does not fit the concentric model is Chelmsley Wood. This is a housing estate found on the edge of the city.