Sprawl

Sprawl refers to a particular type of land development that is scattered and car-dependent, with low densities, usually located on the edge of declining older suburbs or center cities. It is characterized as an inefficient use of land that threatens both downtowns and rural landscapes.

Sprawl is viewed in a negative light largely because of its inefficiency and costliness. It consumes a great deal of land, is costly in that it require the construction of roads, and extending utilities and services, which it most often does not cover in tax revenue. Other identified negative side affects of have been isolation, social inequality, and traffic congestion, as well as draining and damaging effects on nearby city centers and older suburbs.

Federal contributions to the Suburbs

 * 1916-present Federal subsidies for highways
 * 1920-present Federal income tax deductions for home mortgage interest and property taxes
 * 1933-creation of the Home Owners Loan Corporation which allowed for a home to be paid for in steady increments over the entire period of debt for the first time
 * 1934 passage of the National Housing Act which created the Federal Housing Administration
 * 1934-present Federal Housing Administration Insurance for mortgages to home purchasers
 * 1944-Serviceman's Readjustment Act (aka the GI Bill) helped 16 million soldiers and sailors purchase a home when they returned to the States
 * 1954-1986 Federal Corporate Tax deduction for development of greenfield commercial real estate

Five Components of Sprawl

 * Housing Subdividions (pods or clusters) which are only residential
 * Shopping Centers (strip centers, shopping malls, or big-box retail) which are shopping only
 * Office Parks (business parks) which are work only areas
 * Civic Institutions (schools, churches) located anywhere that the building and parking fits
 * Roadways which connect everything else

These components are found in non sprawling areas but are more integrated creating mixed use places where people can shop, live, and work with limited time in spent in the car

Sprawl and Historic Preservation
Sprawl presents interesting challenges to historic preservationist. Sprawl has historically resulted in disinvestment in downtowns, where most historic resources are located. People have also begun to realize that it is not cost effective or environmentally friendly. With all of these facts, sprawl is already built and, in some cases, the beginnings of sprawl are already eligible to the National Register of Historic Places. Levittowns, for instance, are snapshots of post World War II America and living patterns of Americans from the end of the 2nd World War to today. Do preservationist preserve these neighoborhoods as they are?

Solutions to Sprawl
Since sprawl is already a part of the built environment and tearing it down would not be environmentally-friendly or practical, some plans have been drafted to "reclaim" the suburbs. This is done by increasing density, creating mixed use space, and connecting the disconnected suburbs to nearby larger cities through public transit. This process shares many principals with Smart Growth.