GEOGRAPHICAL RECORD ANEW AND IMPROVED MODEL OF LATIN AMERICAN CITY STRUCTURE LARRY R. FORD ‘Modes of urban spatial structure take ona life oftheir own. We sil refer to the Concentric Zone Model of Burgess and Hoyt even though it was developed to de- scribe Chicago during the mid-1920s. Thisis not totally bad. Good models, those that illustrate the processes of urban growth and change in straightforward form, are flexible and can be modified to fit particular settings. As heuristic devices they teach conceptual frameworks at very basic levels. The model of Latin American city structure by Ernst Griffin and myself that was published in the Geographical Review in 1980 has held up well, given the number of times it has appeared in citations, Comprehensible at a glance, the model can be ad- justed to fit particular local conditions, On the other hand, cities do change, espe- cially in rapidly growing regions such as Latin America, so it stands to reason that models ought to change as well. Inaddition, models profit from modification every now and then, if only to include some of the insights and suggestions tendered by authors who have critiqued them over time. | therefore offer a new and improved model of Latin American city structure, one which—I hope—combines the simplic= ity and process orientation of the original with a few important new urban charac- teristics (Figure 1). Most of the other models of Latin American city structure that have been put for- ward are more complex and elaborate than the one we designed. For example, the German geographers Jiirgen Bahr and Gunter Mertins included not only a far larger assortment of morphological districts in their models but also arrows aimed at add- ing a dynamic element (Bahr 1976; Bahr and Mertins 1981). Though insightful, these models tend to be unnecessarily complicated, with major patterns and processes given the sameattention as minor intracity flows. The model of Mexican border cities put forward by Daniel D. Arreola and James R. Curtis (1993) provides another exam- ple of complexity, with three timesas many districts and features as our 1980 version. Atop the complexity heap is William K. Crowley’s (1995) attempt to create a model based on the merger of three separate submodels portraying commercial, industrial, and residential land uses. The result is a complete depiction of each possible element of Latin American city structureat an overwhelminglevel of detail—ratherasifamap of the London subway system had been printed on an Indonesian batik fabric, Although these and other models are too complex, it is also possible that our 1980 version is now too simple. The trickis to add newkeyelements without destroy- *% Dr. Foun is a professor of geography at San. Diego State University, San Diego, California 92182-4493. The Geographical Reviow 6 (3): 49-440, Joly 19 ‘Copyright © sop bythe Auetian Geographical Society of New York NEXT438 ‘THE GEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW A New and Improved PREV Model of Latin American City Structure NEXT eee CPE CE! Commersial Zone of Peripheral Squatter Settlements Markee Elite Residential Sector Industria Gentriscation ‘Zome of Hatority Middle-Ciass Residential Tract Zone of In Situ Accretion Fic.1—A new and improved model of Latin American city structure. (Model graphic rendered by Irene Naesse)"REV GEOGRAPHICAL RECORD 89 ing heuristic simplicityand process orientation.A model, afterall, is nota map: Not ceverythingneed be shown. With that in mind, Loffer the modified model depictedin Figure 1. The new model retains the simple, circular form of the original andits essential elements—central business district (cep), commercial spine, elite residential sector, three concentric rings of diminishing residential status (Zone of Maturity, Zone of In Situ Accretion, and Zone of Peripheral Squatter Settlements), and sectors of dis~ amenity. Though not cartographically depicted in the model, all of the zones are as- sumed to contain mixed uses to some extent. For example, all residential areas, include retail, eating, and recreational establishments, and many contain small in- dustrial concerns, These cannotbe included visually without creating amess.Onthe other hand, some changes can be made without adding too much complexity. The new model incorporates six changes, as follows: + The new model's downtown is divided into two parts: cap and Market. This reflects the fact that many Latin American downtowns now have a number of modern office, hotel, and retail structures quite separate from the more tradi- tional and mixed market districts. The contrast between small,street-oriented businesses and self-contained megastructures suggests an increasing split of the downtown into modern and traditional sections. + A mall or competing “edge city” runs along the end of the elite spine sector. Many Latin American cities now have major suburban nodes that compete with the downtown, Not yet as ubiquitous and numerous as in North Amer- ica, these are normally embedded in or at least associated with the elite com- mercial spine. Even so, they need to be recognized. * Aseparate industrial sector culminates ina suburban industrial park. The sec- tor may be built alonga railroad ora highway, and the suburban location rec- ognizes the increasing need for space-extensive factories and warehouse facilities. The original model suggested that small industries were typically dotted throughout the city and that newer facilities were linked toa commer- cial spine. The new model recognizes the separate existence of large-scale manufacturing and distribution, *+ A mall and an industrial park are connected by a periférico, ot ring highway. ‘Most large Latin American cities now have some kind of peripheral highway system, butadjacent development is still limited by the difficulties involved in expanding the infrastructure and upgrading outlying squatter settlements. ‘Theringroad may or may not completely encircle the city butaffectsitin va- riety of ways. For example, the periférico may provide an internal boundary within the elite sector between older, established communities and newer planned unit developments. * Added to the model are middle-class housing tracts, typically located as close as possible to the elite sector and the periférico, in order to ensure access, status, and protection, Although not depicted in the model, a variation sites NEXTPREV “0 THE GEOGRAPHICAL REVIEW middle-class housing tracts and/or government housing projects in the Zone of In Situ Accretion near the suburban industrial park, Finally, the new model includesa small section in the Zone of Maturity near the-cap and the elite sector that is labeled “Gentrification” This is in recogni- tion of the many Latin American cities that have begun to acknowledge their historic landscapes and to establish special protected districts aimed at at- tracting tourists, artists’ colonies, and local elites. Many of these historic dis- tricts are now recognized by United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization as internationally significant. Although quaint, his- toric neighborhoodsare far less common in Latin America than in Europeand North America, they are on the increase. ‘The new model does not necessarily make the original version obsolete or even less useful. In my view, the best way to explain the structure of the Latin American city is to start with the simplest of models and to gradually add modifications and complexities. This new model may serve, then,asa next step once the original model has been discussed. The new features can be added selectively, as desired. The goal is not to come up with a final, all-inclusive model but to maintain the discourse. FurtHer Reapinc Arreola, D:D. and]. R. Curtis. 1993. The Mexiean Border Cities: Landscape Anatomty and Place Per- sonality: Tucson: University of Arizona Press, Bahr, J. 1976. Neuere Entwicklungstendenzen Lateinamerikanischer Grosstadte. Geographische Rundsehaw 28 (4): 125-33. Baht, ..and.G, Mertins, 1981, [dealschema der Solzialraumlicen Differenzierung Lateinamerikan- ischer Grosstadte, Geographische Zeitschrift 69 (4): 33. ‘Crowley, W.K. 1995. Orderand Disorder—A Model of Lat the Association of Pacific Coast Geographers 57: 9-33. Griffin, E.and L. Ford. 1986, A Modelof Latin American City Structure, Geographical Review 70(4): 397—422. Howell, D.C. 1989. A Model of Argentine City Structure. Revista Geogrdfica [Mexico City] 109: 3394139. American Urban Land Use. Yearbook of