Downtownby Robert Liston

Urban Problems

• Overpopulation

• Power

• Money

• Planning

• Renewal Projects

• Pollution

Overpopulation

Book Prediction

• By the end of the century, there will be 330 million people living in the United States.

• 75% of them will live in a city

U.S. Census Bureau

• Currently a little over 298 million people live in the United States

• 80% of them live in a city

Why do these people live in a city?

• Employment

• Restaurants

• Shops

• Museums

• Parks

• Churches

• Libraries

• Hospitals

• Universities

Power

• The word “city” really means “metropolitan area”

• The towns included in the metropolitan areas are directly linked to the central city

• Each town has its own government officials, schools, housing zones and maintains their own streets

• Hundreds of towns must agree to solve problems in a city

Money

• Urban problems can not be solved without sufficient funds

• City officials spend money carelessly

• Important programs are eliminated

• Annual budgets can not be maintained

• “Freezes” are put on wage increases and hiring

• Main source of federal funding is through taxes

Money

• Income tax on individuals and corporations

• Sales tax

• Property tax

• Nuisance tax

• Income and sales tax create the most revenue.

• Urban areas rely on the revenue from property and nuisance taxes.

Planning

• Zoning

• Building costs

• Land use

• Architecture

• Beautification

*It is important to plan a city to accommodate growth.

Renewal Projects

• City chooses an area for redevelopment

• Funds are given to the local government to finance the preparation of the new plans

• The city buys up the old properties and pay for the residents to relocate.

• Old buildings are destroyed and resold to private developers

Pollution

Air pollution

• Automobiles

• Smokestacks from factories and power plants

• Pollution has a huge effect on a persons health

• Humans consume 30 gallons of air a day

• Causes lung cancer, emphysema, bronchitis and asthma

Urban Problems

• Many of these problems occur because of negligence.

• It takes a lot of planning and support from the community to prevent these problems.

• As long as someone is aware of the problems, there will always be someone working on a solution.