The Hoyt model is another attempt to divide up a settlement. It looks slightly more irregular and is to some extent a slightly more accurate model than the Burgess Model. However, again, it has the same weakness as the burgess model and can only be used to give a very general idea about the land use within a city.
The Different Areas of the CBD
This model attempts to separate different areas of the CBD by their land use. This is helpful in defining the core and frame of the CBD in Stamford. As the diagram above demonstrates, the inner core is the most central and therefore most expensive part of the CBD. It has a high shoppping quality index with many specialist shops or department stores. Because of its high land value, buildings also tend to be the tallest in the CBD. There tend to be more commercial offices as its convenient location is ideal for businesses such as banking.
‘‘The core is the area with the greatest concentration of daytime population, and there is a general absence of permanent residential population. It is a centre of specialized functions, a focus of headquarters offices for businesses, government and industry.’’ (The central Business District: A study in Urban geography by Raymond E. Murphy)
Slightly further away from the inner core is the outer core of the CBD. Land value in the outer core is slightly cheaper than the inner core, allowing small shops or business and entertainments such as theatres and cinemas to develop. It also intersets slightly with the zone of discard and assimilation.
The frame of the CBD is the cheapest amongst the different areas of the CBD. This allows businesses with a lower profit margin to develop, such as social services, education, care sales and services and some light manufacturing. It is less developed and it has a more varied functions. This is also where the zone of discard and assimilation tend to be.
The CBD of a settlement is always constantly advancing and retreating. Zones of assimilation are where the CBD is advancing, whilst the zones of discard are where the city centre is retreating. As the industry and economy of the city develops, some areas of the CBD would gradually decline and their land use would gradually become residential. The zone of discard consists of these areas which would no longer be considered to be part of the CBD. On the contrary, some areas which were originally considered to be outside the CBD could become included within the CBD due to the rapid commercial and industrial developments in these areas. These areas are in the zone of assimilation.
Changes in the CBD
Recently, a large out of town Morrisons opened outside the CBD in Stamford. This has a huge impact on the CBD of Stamford, as people might no longer shop in the CBD, as they have the choice of shopping in out of town supermarkets like the Morrisons. These out of town shops are highly advantaged in competing against shops in the CBD, as they do not have to pay the high rent which the shops in CBD pays, and therefore could reduce the prices of their goods, which in turn attracts more customers, creating a multiplier effect. As a result, shops in some parts of the CBD might be forced to close down. The land use in these parts of the CBD might turn residential, creating a zone of discard.
Geographical location and history
Stamford is a small ancient town in Lincolnshire approximately 100 miles north of London. It is rather close to Peterborough, approximately 14 miles away. Situated near A43, A16 and A1, it is a very accessible place. It has population of 18,000 with a recorded history well over 1000 years. Started as a Danish settlement, Stamford became renowned for its glazed wheel-thrown pottery. Then, it prospered with an economy mainly based on wool under the Normans, due to its convenient location and its connection with the North Sea with the river Welland. It became an inland trading port because of its accessibility. Due to it being located in a low lying valley, it has the rich alluvial soil vital for agricultural purposes. The river also provides reliable water supply for the locals. In the 15th century, the wool industry moved towards East Anglia and Stamford’s industry declined. Now, Stamford is a peaceful and attractive town with historical buildings. It has over 600 listed buildings, the majority of the county Lincolnshire. Most buildings are built in the 18th century; therefore they are mainly Georgian and Jacobean. Stamford has an industry mainly based on services and tourism, although there are still some agricultural activities.
Justification of the project
As settlement is part of the GCSE Specification, an attempt to investigate and delimit the CBD of Stamford is a useful exercise to reinforce our knowledge on this topic. It is also rather straight forward and does not too much time. Stamford is the perfect location for such a project. Firstly, it is only 18 miles away from Oundle, saving us a lot of time from travelling to a further location. It is a town large enough to exhibit a CBD, but also small and compact enough to allow a significant amount of data to be collected by a small group of people within a short duration. It has a low crime rate comparing to neighbouring towns, reducing the risk of danger in the duration of data collection. The ability to delimit a CBD within a town or city is very important, as it is helpful for businesses to choose a suitable location for their offices or shops. It is also important for the council in order to take the necessary measures such as installing CCTV cameras, placing the ‘street furniture’ and enforcing parking restrictions.
Methodology
The data was collected by a group of Oundle school Fifth form students on 15th September who are currently studying Geography GCSE. A whole morning was dedicated to the data collection, from around 9 to 12, although some managed to finish before then. The weather was rather nice, allowing us to collect accurate data without great difficulty, as rainy weather would affect the number of pedestrians and increase the difficulty of any outdoor data collection.
Risk assessment
With such large number of students spread across a town, risk assessment is rather important. Stamford is on the whole a low hazard area, with a low crime and accident rate. This is partly the reason Stamford was chosen to be studied. We are all given a map of Stamford; therefore it was unlikely that someone would be lost. However, lots of arrangements had still been made in order to minimise the chance of any mishap. Firstly, we brought our mobile phone and some coins, enabling us to report any incidents quickly. Secondly, students worked in small groups of two or three, reducing the risk of any danger. Also, teachers were stationed at a cafe, and were able to reach us quickly if anything happened. We were also rather careful whilst crossing the roads in order to prevent road accidents.
Primary data
The students were split into small groups of 2 and 3, as stated from above. Each group was assigned four points to collect data from, three on a transect and one in the centre of Stamford. These transects and locations had been chosen with care by the teachers beforehand in a stratified manner with roughly equal spacing to maximise the effectiveness of the data collection. The points in the centre of Stamford are evenly spread out within the centre whilst the transects are all located in different directions from the central area, as demonstrated from the map above. The timings were also arranged to improve efficiency and reliability of the data collection. My group was allocated transect 5 and point 7 in the centre. The data collection is focused on several main ideas, mainly based on the hypotheses made previously.
Pedestrian Count
Pedestrian counts were taken at both the central area and the transects. Students were all allocated the same time for their counts, as numbers of pedestrians vary significantly during different times of the day.
The timings for the pedestrian counts are as follows:
Transect point 1: 0920 hours
Transect point 2: 0950 hours
Transect point 3: 1020 hours
Point in the central area: 1140 hours
For five minutes starting from the allocated time, number of pedestrians passing a certain point is counted and recorded. This is done by fixing one’s sight at a point directly opposite across the street and counting the pedestrians crossing that line of sight. Tallying is a good way of keeping track of the number of pedestrians.
To improve the accuracy, the count is repeated twice, and the average of the three was taken. This minimised the significance of any anomaly. Also, Oundle students are not included in the count, as they are not part of the Stamford population. This is taken as a measure to help delimit the CBD of Stamford based on the hypothesis made earlier that number of pedestrians forms a negative correlation with the distance from the CBD.
Land Use
Land use was also recorded along both sides of the transect. This was done by another member of a group during the pedestrian count. The use of buildings around were observed and recorded onto a transect map given by the school. A standard key of A-H was used to label the shops according to the table below, with A-E being typical CBD land-uses while F-H are non CBD land-uses.
Shopping quality and street appearance
The shopping quailty and street appearance were accessed in both the central area and the transects. However, unlike the pedestrian count and land use, it is highly subjective; therefore better accuracy is needed. A total score is given to each of the shopping quality and street appearance, based on the scoring system below. The shopping quality is out of 25, while the street appearance is out of 30. The lower the score, the higher and better the shopping quality and street appearance. Both members within a group estimated a score separately, and an average was taken in the end if there were any disagreements between the scores. Again, this is based on the hypothesis made earlier that shopping quality and street appearances are better towards the CBD.
Parking restriction, CCTV cameras and street furniture
Areas with parking restrictions, street furnitures and CCTV cameras are marked out on a map in both the transects and the central area. This is based on the hypothesis that parking restrictions, number of CCTV cameras and amount of street furniture forms a negative correlation to the distance away from the CBD.
Secondary data
Apart from the primary data collected personally within our groups, data from other groups will also included in this project to give a complete picture of results. With the aid of these secondary data, we could make a more accurate analysis on delmiting the CBD of Stamford. These data are all put together onto a goad map. Other data such as land uses might also be obtainable from the Internet. Data collected by students in previous years might also be useful when showing the parking restrictions and the street furnitures. In addition, photos and maps from the school geography department will be helpful in presentation of the collected data.
