air pollution
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One or more chemicals, substances, or physical
conditions (such as excess heat or noise) in high enough
concentrations in the air to harm humans, other animals, vegetation,
or materials.
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bicycle friendly
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Possessing urban design factors that
help make an area that caters to the needs of bicyclists. Factors
include--
- Public amenities such as bicycle racks on streets or by public
buildings
- Regulations that allow riders to take bicycles on
board buses, trains, etc.
- Accessibility such as the position of bicycle paths relative
to roads, quality of the terrain, presence of curb cuts, etc.
- Safety features such as lighting, security measures, and
protection from on-road vehicles
- Aesthetics of bicycle paths and their surrounding areas
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brownfield
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Abandoned or underused portions of land occupied by
vacant businesses or closed military structures, located in formerly
industrial or urban areas. Redevelopment may be complicated by real
or perceived contamination of the site.
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built environment
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Human-formed, developed, or
structured areas.
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community
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A specific group of people, often living in a
defined geographical area, who share a common culture, values, and
norms and who are arranged in a social structure according to
relationships the community has developed over a period of time. The
term “community” encompasses worksites, schools, and health care
sites.
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connectivity
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The ease of travel between two points.
The degree to which streets or areas are interconnected and easily
accessible to one another. An example of high connectivity would be
a dense grid pattern in a downtown area.
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curb cuts
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A space within a curb that is cut away to create a
flat area convenient for bicycles, wheelchairs, and strollers.
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density
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The compactness of development. Common measures of
density include population per acre or square mile and dwelling
units per acre.
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environment
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Everything external to people -- everything other
than behavior and genetics. All conditions that affect people during
their lifetimes.
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feeder roads
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Smaller roadways that “feed” or connect traffic to
larger roadways.
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geographic information systems (GIS)
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Computer-based systems capable of
integrating different types of geological and demographic
information. By creating maps, one may depict an area's natural and
human-made resources, including soil types, population densities,
land uses, transportation corridors, waterways, street patterns,
mass-transit patterns, sewer lines, water sources, and utility
lines.
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global warming
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The progressive gradual rise of the Earth's surface
temperature thought to be caused by the greenhouse effect. Global
warming may be responsible for changes in global climate patterns.
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greenfields
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Newly developed commercial property on what was
previously undeveloped and open space, or farmland.
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greenhouse effect
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The process whereby a portion of the solar heat and
energy traveling through the Earth’s atmosphere toward the earth's
surface is prevented from radiating back into outer space by a
variety of gases (e.g., water vapor, carbon dioxide, and other
gases).
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green space
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Open, undeveloped land with natural vegetation.
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health
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A state of physical, mental, and social
well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.
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healthy community
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A community that is continuously
creating and improving those physical and social environments and
expanding those community resources that enable people to mutually
support each other in performing all the functions of life and in
developing to their maximum potential.
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impermeable
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Incapable of permeating, absorbing, or
diffusing water, thereby creating runoff.
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infill development
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Development that takes place within
existing communities, making maximum use of the existing
infrastructure instead of building on previously undeveloped land.
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infrastructure
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Supportive services such as water and
sewer lines, roads, transit lines, schools, and other public
services.
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mixed-use development
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Juxtaposition of land
classifications, such as residential, office, commercial,
industrial, park, and flood plain within a given area. Land use is
controlled by zoning ordinances that reflect political decisions
often made at the local level.
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modal choices
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Transportation options; one's preferred
method of transportation, such as walking, bicycling, using an
automobile, riding a bus or rail, etc.
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neotraditional development
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Typical of pre-World War II communities,
neotraditional development is characterized by urban regions
comprising many cohesive neighborhoods, each with their own
commercial core and linked to one another by some form of transit.
While a metropolitan area has a central downtown, the many
neighborhood centers provide a secondary service area that can be
reached on foot from people's homes. The neighborhood centers may
include retail establishments, offices, service providers, cinemas,
health clubs, dense housing, and a transit hub.
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New Urbanism
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An approach to development and
redevelopment promoted by many architects, planners, and urban
designers. To qualify as a "new urbanist" project, community
development should meet the following criteria.
- Rule out any development that is gated; that lacks sidewalks; or
that has a branching, tree-like street system rather than a grid
network.
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Connect well with surrounding neighborhoods, developments, or towns,
while protecting regional open space.
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Rule out "single-use" developments that include only housing,
retail, or office space. The various types of building should all be
seamlessly integrated and include workplaces, retail establishments,
and different types of housing.
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Include a neighborhood center within easy and safe walking distance
from all dwellings in the neighborhood. Buildings should be designed
to make the street feel safe and inviting by having front doors,
porches, and windows facing the street instead of having a
streetscape of garage doors.
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Include formal civic spaces and squares.
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Satisfy the "popsicle test" whereby an eight-year-old in the
neighborhood could walk to a store to buy a popsicle without
encountering fast-moving cars.
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nonpoint source
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Large land
area such as a crop field or an urban area that discharges
pollutants into surface and underground water over a large area; any
pollution with a vague, diffuse point of origin is referred to as
"nonpoint-source pollution."
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ozone layer
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The protective layer of the Earth’s
atmosphere, about 15 miles above the ground, that absorbs some of
the sun's ultraviolet rays, thereby reducing the amount of
potentially harmful radiation that reaches the Earth's surface.
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pedestrian
friendly
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An area that caters to the needs of
pedestrians (see "walkable community”).
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percolation
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The extent to which a surface allows
liquids and other substances to filter through it or seep to
surrounding areas.
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permeable
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Description of any surface that allows
another substance (for example, water) to pass through it.
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pervious
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Permeable;
allows something to pass through it.
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point source
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A single identifiable source that
discharges pollutants into the environment. Examples are smokestacks,
sewers, ditches, or pipes. Any pollution with a definable, specific
source of origin is referred to as "point-source pollution."
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pollution
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A change in the physical, chemical, or
biological characteristics of the air, water, or soil that can
affect the health, survival, or activities of all forms of life in
an unwanted way.
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proximity
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The distance between different land uses
such as residential and commercial.
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quality of life
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Referring to an overall sense of
well-being with a strong relation to a person's health
perceptions and ability to function. On a larger scale, quality of
life can be viewed as including all aspects of community life that
have a direct and quantifiable influence on the physical and mental
health of its members.
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runoff
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Water from rain or snow that is not
absorbed into the ground but instead flows over less permeable
surfaces into streams and rivers.
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setback
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The minimum distance required by zoning
laws to be maintained between a building and the street or between a
structure and property lines.
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social capital
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The process and conditions of social
networking among people and organizations that lead to accomplishing
a goal of mutual social benefit, usually characterized by trust,
cooperation, involvement in the community, and sharing.
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sprawl
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A development pattern characterized by the
following traits:
- No boundaries; unlimited outward expansion
- Low-density residential and commercial settlements
- Widespread strip commercial development; sporadic or “leapfrog”
development
- Responsibility for land-use and zoning decisions fragmented among
various jurisdictions
- Private automobiles dominate transportation options; inconvenient
or no public transportation available
- Great differences in economic status among residential
neighborhoods
- Land-use segregated into specific zones; no mixed-use development
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street network or grid
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The patterns formed by roadways and the
extent to which they are connected to each other (i.e.,
“connectivity”). For example,
- The traditional urban block-like grid involves a dense matrix of
interconnected streets typically seen in older urban areas; many
traffic options available
- The hierarchical grid, common in most suburban areas, consists of
sets of dead-end streets and cul-de-sacs that feed into secondary
roadways that ultimately feed into major roadways; traffic collects
on main arteries.
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syndemic
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A term invented to describe a set of
linked health problems; two or more afflictions or epidemics
interacting simultaneously and synergistically (together having a
greater effect than would be expected by adding the effects of
each); epidemic synergy contributing to excess burden of disease in
a population.
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TEA-21
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The Transportation Equity Act for the
21st Century (TEA-21) which was enacted June 9, 1998, as Public Law
105-178. TEA-21 authorizes the federal surface transportation
programs for highways, highway safety, and transit for the 6-year
period 1998-2003. This law provides authorization and funding to
transform outdated transportation priorities.
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traditional development
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Similar to "neotraditional" development.
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transit-oriented development
(TOD)
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Development of commercial space,
housing, services, and job opportunities close to public
transportation, thereby reducing dependence on automobiles. TODs are
typically designed to include a mix of land uses within a
quarter-mile walking distance of a transit stop or core commercial
area.
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urban (or community) design
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An activity during which decisions are
made about the geographic placement of and interaction between natural resources (e.g.,
topography, vegetation) and built elements (e.g., buildings, roads)
in a specific area. Urban designers consider how people will
perceive and interact with the human-made environment.
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urban growth boundary (UGB)
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A line drawn around a metropolitan area,
designating the limits of allowable growth. Land outside the
boundary is protected from new development.
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urban heat islands
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A dome of heat over a city that is
formed as vegetation is replaced by pavement, buildings, and other
structures necessary to accommodate growing populations. The
surfaces of these structures absorb, rather than reflect, the sun's
heat, causing surface temperatures to rise. The displacement of
trees and shrubs eliminates the natural cooling effects of shading
they would have provided.
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urban sprawl
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See "sprawl."
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walkable community
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A community where people can walk safely. A walkable environment that has the
following characteristics:
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Well-maintained and continuous wide sidewalks
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Ramped curbs
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Safe and easy street crossings
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A level terrain
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Well-lighted streets
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A grid-patterned street design
- High street connectivity
- A safety buffer between pedestrians and motorized vehicles (such
as trees, shrubs, streetside parked cars, green space between
pedestrians and cars)
- A slow traffic pattern
- Minimal building setbacks
- Cleanliness
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Land-use patterns characterized as mixed use with high-unit density
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zoning
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Local codes
regulating the
use and development of property within specific categories.
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