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Who is involved when a city grows too fast?

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Systems Analysis

Urbanization impacts many systems of a city. It will impact the environment, local government, economy, transportation, education, and more. Each of these systems are impacted differently. 

Environmental System

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Urbanization is constantly changing the environment. It affects consumption of food, energy, water, and land. Urban areas have very different consumption patterns than rural areas. Urban populations consume much more food, energy, and durable goods than a rural population. Urban consumption of energy assists in creating heat islands that change local weather patterns. These heat islands that often occur in our cities become traps for pollutants. Cloudiness and fog occur more frequently, thunderstorms and severe hailstorms occur more often, and it may reduce the amount of snow days in the city. Urban areas also affect the runoff patterns for water. These urban areas tend to produce more rain, but lower the water tables. In these urban areas runoff occurs more rapidly, which leads to flood volume increasing. 

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Transportation System 

Each metropolitan city will have some type of public transportation systems. Public systems will include buses, subways, trains, or light rails. The city also has to implement the roads and how cars will move about the city. Public transit is not typically free, but is usually low cost. Transportation systems that have been implemented into cities need to have frequent stops to allow for the majority of people to get where they are going. This can also cause public transit to become long and inefficient, so many people will take on the burden of getting a car. This increases the need for larger roads, more parking spaces, increased traffic and more pollution. As urbanization causes an increased demand for improved transportation systems, many cities focus on roads instead of public transit.

Social System ​

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Oftentimes, urban areas allow for better living standards. In cities, it is normal to find superior educational facilities, better access to healthcare, modern housing, and more. New technology often comes to cities first. This means better communication, medical facilities, and social amenities that attract new residents. In rural areas, you may struggle with access to the internet, access to healthcare, education, social services, and more. You will not struggle to find any of this in a city.  With all this, there are negatives. Population explosions cannot be planned for. Housing problems may come up and this can lead to poor housing conditions. You may also find an influx of crime in urban cities, this may be caused by poor housing and unemployment. 

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Economic & Business System 

An important part of every city are the businesses, who create the local economy and provide jobs, goods, and services to the citizens. Public or private businesses are impacted by urbanization, through an increase of demand. This demand can be great for businesses who see an upswing in customers, creating more jobs. If those employees can't live close to their work, they contribute to the transportation system by having to use public transit or drive into the city.

Unsustainable urbanization can also cause overpopulated areas which can prompt social instability causing businesses to migrate elsewhere. Especially when urbanization can create poor infrastructure as the local government is stretched thin. 

How does it impact the people?

Stakeholder Analysis

The core definition of a stakeholder includes either an individual, organization, or group who is directly or indirectly affected by the outcome of a project. The stakeholders in a major urban city can be identified as four main divisions: users, drivers, resource providers, and framework enablers.

 The users are the people who will be walking on the implemented pathways and structures. These include citizens, tourists, and essentially any public group or individual that takes advantage of the resource. Drivers as the people who implement the technology and structure to actually create the change. By creating a team of manufacturers, consultants, and businesses to help mold. These drivers need tools and resources, and the next stakeholder that comes into sight is the resource providers. There are the universities, urban planners, and tech companies interested in investing. The framework enablers are those who oversee the project and implementation such as city councils, elected officials, committees who create standards, as well as financial organizations who have a say in the process as well. These stakeholders all play a role of investment into the structure. Each stakeholder in a city element is more intertwined than a general business.

Local Government 

The local government is in charge of how a city is zoned, planned and designed. They have the authority to accelerate or hinder a project or new development within the city. The choices that the local government makes impacts the citizens because of how the city is laid out. They are also in charge of public services, like transportation stakeholders.  

Citizens 

Citizens of a city are the stakeholders that use the systems that a city provides. They use the transportation system to get where they need to go, they use businesses for goods, services, and jobs, etc. The local government controls how the city is planned, zoned and designed, impacting businesses, housing developments and more. 

Developers 

Developers and investors have the opportunity to design and implement important aspects into the city in meaningful ways. They can place infrastructure for citizens and businesses to collaborate and progressively work towards a more sustainable city and living. The investors have the opportunity to work with both community members, government planners, and developers to make changes that will actually be utilized by community members.

Businesses 

The businesses that will be implemented into the neighborhoods will have the opportunity for the community members to have easier access that will promote more frequent visits whether the business is large or small. It will also provide more jobs for the local citizens and will increase community member activity together. The government officials, developers and investors, and community members can work to make retail spaces available and promote the goals that are trying to be reached

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