ECN3600: Urban and Land Use Economics
4 Advanced Liberal Arts Credits
Cities are great places where populations gather, interact, and create new ideas. At the same time, cities represent problems such as traffic, crime, and economic inequality. Why do cities exist in the first place? Why are buildings in the city center taller and more expensive? How do we explain land use patterns and housing prices? Does building infrastructure relieve congestion or create pollution? Does gentrification help revitalize inner cities? This course offers a rigorous survey of urban and spatial economics, building upon previous knowledge in introductory economics courses. Core theories in urban economics will be introduced, as well as ideas in economic geography, spatial econometrics, and sustainable development. Further skills in data analysis and visualization especially through GIS will be developed.
Prerequisites: ECN 2002