Land Density

Urban

Sprawl,
Density

Values

Land

of

and

the

Development

John R.Ottensmann

The character of the residential development occurring at the periphery of
a metropolitan area has extensive and
diverse economic and social implications.
The kinds and prices of housing produced, the population groups served, and
the cost and problems of providing
public services are alldetermined by the
workings of the development process.
An understanding of this process requires an examination of the relationships between land prices and the location and intensity of development.
Urban sprawl-the scattering of new
development on isolated tracts, separated from other areas by vacant land-is
frequently cited as one negative consequence of the development process. Theseparation of residential areas by vacant
land leads to increased costs in providing
utilities and other public services. Residents are forced to travel farther to engage in most activities, using more
energy resources and producing more air
pollution. The scattered subdivisions
bring the negative impacts of urbanization to far larger areas of formerly agricultural or wilderness land. And finally,although this effect is impossible to
quantify, many have strenuously objected to sprawl on aesthetic grounds,
arguing against the formless character of
typical urban development.
Urban sprawl is not without its defenders. Lessinger [1962] argued that
the scatter of new development might

prevent the development of large, homogeneous residential areas that would be
socially segregated andultimately become large, homogeneous slums. Boyce
[1963] suggested that sprawl retains an
element of flexibility for future urban
development appropriate under conditions of uncertainty and imperfect
knowledge. The reservation of land for
later development in more intensive uses,
either residential or commercial, could
produce an urban pattern that may be
more efficient in the long run,based on
recent theoretical work by Ohls and
Pines [1975].
A basic discussion of the nature of
sprawl has been provided by Harvey and
Clark [1965]. Clawson [1962] and Sargent [1976] have suggested the importance of landowner speculation in the
process. Bahl [1968] considered the role
of the property tax, while Archer
[1973] attributed sprawl to the failure
of the residents of the new areasto be
confronted by the full costs of development.
Land values play a critical role in the
allocation of land, thereby shaping the
The author is Assistant Professor, Program in
Social Ecology, University of California,Irvine. He
wishes to thank Professors J. Bonham, F. Stuart
Chapin Jr., A. Allan Schmid and an anonymous
refereefor theircommentsand suggestions.
'For a summary of the costsof sprawl, see
Clawson [1971, pp. 140, 152-59, 320]. The most
r
comprehensive eviewis the report by the Real Estate
Research orporation 1974].
C
[

Land Economics ? 53 * 4 * November 1977

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Land Economics

pattern of development. Maisel [1963],
Neutze [1970] and Muth [1971] have
provided theoretical statements about
the determination of land values that are
particularlyapplicable to the issues of
concern here. Empirical studies of differences in land values between urban
areas include those of Maisel [1964],
Mittelbach and Cunningham [1964],
Schmid [1968] and Witte [1975].2
The density at which land is developed for residential purposes is the
final important characteristic of development at the urban periphery. Harrison
and Kain [1974] have examined thedensities of fringe development over
time and the cumulation of this incremental development to form the urban
pattern. Two studies, by Neutze [1968]
and Schafer [1964], have focused on the
development of apartments at the urban
fringe.3
This paper addresses this triad of
characteristics of peripheral urban residential development: urban sprawl, land
values and density of development....