Essays on Urban Sprawl, Race, and Ethnicity

188 Pages·2014·1.14 MB·English

by  Jared M. Ragusett

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Open Access Dissertations
9-2012
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Jared M. Ragusett
University of Massachusetts Amherst
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ESSAYS ON URBAN SPRAWL, RACE, AND ETHNICITY

A Dissertation Presented

by

JARED M. RAGUSETT

Submitted to the Graduate School of the
University of Massachusetts Amherst in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY

September 2012

Economics
© Copyright by Jared M. Ragusett 2012
All Rights Reserved
ESSAYS ON URBAN SPRAWL, RACE, AND ETHNICITY

A Dissertation Presented

By

JARED M. RAGUSETT

Approved as to style and content by:

____________________________
Michael Ash, Chair

____________________________
Carol Heim, Member

____________________________
Henry Renski, Member

_______________________
Michael Ash, Department Chair
Economics
DEDICATION

For my parents and grandparents.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I wish to thank the members of my dissertation committee for their support,
patience, and always challenging insights. In the fall of 2006, I wandered into Michael
Ash’s office with a few disjointed ideas for a dissertation. While never minimizing the
challenges of this process, his enthusiasm and encouragement were invaluable sources of
motivation and focus. I would like to thank Carol Heim for her thorough feedback,
which has strengthened my analytical and writing skills, and for her organization and
preparation for our many lengthy discussions. I would also like to thank Henry Renski
for his commentary and interest in this project, as well as his advising on being a scholar.
Although they did not contribute directly to this dissertation, I wish to thank Rick Wolff
and Léonce Ndikumana for their support and advising over the years.

Several individuals provided research assistance, guidance, and access to data and
software. Qian Yu (UMass – Amherst, Department of Geosciences), Dennis Swartwout
(UMass – Amherst, Earth Science Information Office), and James Shimota
(Environmental Systems Research Institute) were extremely helpful in acquiring GIS
software and data, and for likely answering dumb questions. For their guidance with the
critical replication, I thank Chenghuan Sean Chu (Federal Reserve) and Matthew Kahn
(UCLA). For their research assistance with the replication, I thank the staff of the
Harvard University Archives.

I am also grateful to my colleagues and support staff at Western New England
University (WNE) and Central Connecticut State University (CCSU). For their
encouragement and support, I especially thank Anita Dancs and Karl Petrick of WNE, as
well as Paramita Dhar and Neva Deutsch of CCSU. For providing me with a steady
income throughout this process, and no shortage of work, I am indebted to my former
department chairs Herbert Eskot and Michael Meeropol of WNE, and current department
chair Carlos Liard-Muriente of CCSU.

Finally, I wish to thank the many friends and family members who have been
there for me throughout this journey: my parents; my cousin Stacy and godson Kristian;
my friends Carrie Wareck, Emily Collins, and Michael Davenport; my ‘New England’
mother Sue Davenport; and finally, my fellow graduate students in the Economics
Department at UMass – Amherst.

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ABSTRACT
ESSAYS ON URBAN SPRAWL, RACE, AND ETHNICITY
SEPTEMBER 2012
JARED RAGUSETT, B.A., KALAMAZOO COLLEGE
M.A., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST
Ph.D., UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS AMHERST
Directed by: Professor Michael Ash
This dissertation investigates the economic consequences of urban sprawl for US
minorities. Each essay focuses on a key empirical debate related to that relationship. The
first essay establishes a set of attributes and empirical measures of sprawl based upon a
comprehensive review of the literature. I define sprawl as a multi-faceted pattern of three
land-use attributes: low density, deconcentration, and decentralization. I then resolve
several methodological inconsistencies in the measurement of sprawl. Extensive analysis
of spatial and economic data finds that metropolitan areas do not commonly exhibit high-
sprawl (or low-sprawl) features across multiple measures. Instead, they often exhibit
unique combinations of low-sprawl and high-sprawl attributes. The second essay
examines the effect of sprawl on minority housing consumption gaps since the housing
bust. I make two contributions to the literature. First, I reveal a facet of the relationship
between sprawl and the Black-White housing gap not examined by previous econometric
studies: Sprawl only contributes to reducing that gap once a metropolitan area reaches a
critical threshold level of sprawl, typically at high levels of sprawl. Below a threshold,
sprawl facilitates an expansion of the Black-White housing gap. Second, I compare
results for Blacks, Asians, and Hispanics using recent data. For Blacks, the benefits from
sprawl occur above an even higher threshold, as compared to preceding studies using
1990’s data. For Asians, sprawl yields significant gains in housing consumption relative
to Whites. As such, arguments that anti-sprawl policies reduce minority gains in housing
should be treated with considerable skepticism in the post-Great Recession economy.
The third essay explores the relationship between sprawl and racial and ethnic
segregation. This econometric study advances the understanding of that relationship in
two ways. First, I examine the effect of countervailing patterns of multiple land-use
attributes, i.e. unique combinations of low-sprawl and high-sprawl attributes, on all five
of the dimensions of segregation. Second, I compare outcomes for Blacks, Hispanics,
and Asians. The study analyzes the contribution and transmission of countervailing
spatial patterns of land use to increasing (or decreasing) segregation. These complex
effects bring new precision and insights to the analysis of racial and ethnic inequality in
an age of rapid demographic change.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Page

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS………………………………………………………………...v

ABSTRACT……………………………………………………………………………...vi

LIST OF TABLES………………………………………………………………………...x

LIST OF FIGURES………………………………………………………………...……xii

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………..1

1.1 Motivations and Research Objectives………………………………………...1
1.2 Plan of the Dissertation……………………………………………………….4

2. ALTERNATIVE MEASURES OF URBAN SPRAWL: ATTRIBUTES AND
EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE FROM 2000…………………………………………..7

2.1 Introduction…………………………………………………………………...7
2.2 Literature Survey……………………………………………………………..8
2.3 Alternative Attributes and Measures of Urban Sprawl……………………...12

2.3.1 Density…………………………………………………………….16

2.3.1.1 Average MA Density…………………………………….16
2.3.1.2 Densities Using Percentiles………………….…………..17

2.3.2 Concentration……………………………………………………...19

2.3.2.1 The Delta Index………………………………………….20
2.3.2.2 The Gini Coefficient……………………………………..21

2.3.3 Centrality…………………………………………………………..22

2.3.3.1 The Glaeser-Kahn Method…………………………...….24
2.3.3.2 The Absolute Centralization Index…………………..…..26
2.3.3.3 The Standardized Centrality Index……..………………..27

2.4 Data Description…………………………………………………………….28
2.5 Results and Analysis………………………………………………………...34

2.5.1 Analysis of Residential Housing Sprawl…………………………..37
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2.5.1.1 Residential Housing Density.............................................37
2.5.1.2 Residential Housing Concentration...................................40
2.5.1.3 Residential Housing Centrality..........................................42

2.5.2 Analysis of Employment Sprawl…………………………………..45

2.5.2.1 Employment Density.........................................................45
2.5.2.2 Employment Concentration...............................................46
2.5.2.3 Employment Centrality......................................................48

2.6 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………..49
2.7 Tables………………………………………………………………………..52

3. IS URBAN SPRAWL GOOD FOR US MINORITY HOUSING CONSUMPTION? A
CRITICAL ASSESSMENT OF KAHN (2001)………………………………….62

3.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………….62
3.2 Replication of Kahn (2001)………………………………………………....65

3.2.1 Replication of Descriptive Analysis……………………………….66
3.2.2 Replication of Regression Analysis………………………………..69

3.3 Threshold Effects and the Black-White Housing Consumption Gap……….72
3.4 Urban Sprawl and Minority Housing Consumption Gaps since the Housing
Bust………………………………………………………………………77
3.5 Discussion…………………………………………………………………...81

3.5.1 Is urban sprawl good for minorities?................................................82
3.5.2 What explains the presence of thresholds for Black housing
consumption?.................................................................................83
3.5.3 Has urban sprawl made housing more affordable for Blacks and
Hispanics?......................................................................................86
3.5.4 Why does sprawl yield significant housing opportunities for
Asians?...........................................................................................89

3.6 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………..91
3.7 Tables and Figures…………………………………………………………..93

4. RACIAL AND ETHNIC SEGREGATION IN THE ERA OF URBAN SPRAWL: A
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF BLACK, HISPANIC, AND ASIAN
OUTCOMES…………………………………………………………………...105

4.1 Introduction………………………………………………………………...105
4.2 Literature Survey…………………………………………………………..108
4.3 Framework and Theoretical Approach……………………………………..112
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4.3.1 Configurations of Land Use……………………………………...112
4.3.2 Dimensions and Measures of Segregation……………………….117
4.3.3 Research Questions and Hypotheses……………………………..120

4.4 Data and Summary Statistics………………………………………………121
4.5 Regression Analysis………………………………………………………..125
4.6 Discussion………………………………………………………………….128

4.6.1 Analysis of Black Segregation……………………………….......128
4.6.2 Analysis of Hispanic Segregation………………………………..132
4.6.3 Analysis of Asian Segregation……………………………………134
4.6.4 Summary of Segregation Analysis……………………………….138

4.7 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………140
4.8 Tables and Figures………………………………………………………….142

5. CONCLUSION………………………………………………….…...……………...149

APPENDICES

A: CALCULATION OF EMPLOYMENT DECENTRALIZATION………………….153
B: MEASURES OF RESIDENTIAL SEGREGATION………………………………..155

BIBLIOGRAPHY………………………………………………………………………158

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