Edge Cities Development - Essay Example

An edge city is a town that has developed its commercial, political, and economic base independent of the central city. Edge city is a phrase for a concentration of shopping, entertainment, and businesses outside the Central Business District (CBD) (Garreau 320). Edge cities are developed in freeways intersections and are likely to be established near major airports. Edge cities are not separate legal entities as the other surrounding counties govern them. Edge cities primarily comprise a mid-rise office overlook surrounded by huge parking lots and scrupulously manicured lawns.

They have hierarchical street networks as opposed to the traditional street grid (McKee and McKee 34). There are specific factors that have contributed to the development of the edge cities: the development of automobiles, which has raised the demand for parking, and the entry of more people into the workplace. An example of a typical edge city is Tyson Corner, which is located outside Washington. Tyson Corner was like a village a few years ago, but it has grown to be the leading retail area in the South of New York City.

  A Recent study in edge cities and urban economics indicates that cities have adopted a polycentric form as opposed to monocentric (Anderson 15). Development of edge city as a recent complement to industrial period downtowns can be viewed as a result of decreased transportation costs of services. The new concentration is a result of modern communication devices and a decline in intracity transportation costs. Edge cities have become exporters of several services such as shopping, financial, medical, office, and university services.

Edges cities allow an analysis of agglomeration and specialization outside the employment centers. One advantage is that the trade flows between edge cities between the central business centers can be examined.