This case study examines the relationship between agriculture and urbanization in the context of Oregon's comprehensive land use planning system. The first article assesses the historical relationship between rural real estate development and investment in agriculture in Jackson County southern Oregon. The second article uses the theory of global urbanization to reflect on the patterns of urbanization in Jackson County and suggests that global urbanization might provide a useful framework for connecting urban political ecology and exurban political ecology. The third article focuses on the political economies of farmland preservation in Jackson County where there have been repeated calls for increased local control of land use planning. / 2016-09-29

Little research has been conducted on the effects of housing price cycles on preferences for environmental landscape attributes over time (Cho, Kim, & Roberts, 2011). If the economic value of scarce resources like water resource amenities depends on consumer preferences, then it is useful to address possible effects of cyclical variation in the housing market on these values. This issue is addressed in the primary research question for this thesis: Did the 2007-2009 recession and consequent real estate bust affect marginal willingness to pay for water resource amenities for properties in proximity to the lower St. Johns River (SJR) in Duval County, FL? Prior published studies on the most recent real estate cycle were used to evaluate the timing of housing market impacts during the most recent recession. Also, sales price and sales volume distributions for Duval County were evaluated to compare trends. Based on prior research and results, three separate hypotheses were generated and tested using the hedonic pricing method for residential properties in Duval County. The first hypothesis was that the recent recession impacted the implicit prices of water resource amenities for residential properties in proximity to the SJR. Two separate regression models were developed to test different recession periods (2007-2012 and 2008-2012) based on sample data. Time fixed effect binary variables were used to construct recession interaction effects with water related amenities (proximity to the SJR as well as tributary and riverfront properties). Results showed that during the recession period, sales prices for houses further away from the river experienced a greater negative impact than those closer to the river. This result is similar to research by Cohen, Coughlin, and Lopez (2012) who suggest that, higher priced or high tier residential houses (in this case, those closer to river) tend to hold their value more than low tier residential houses. Also, consistent with research by Bin, Czajkowski, Jingyuan, and Villarini (2015), sales prices for tributary and riverfront homes were not impacted by the recession. A second hypothesis was developed to test whether sales prices for houses in Duval County recovered to pre-recession levels. A regression model was constructed with a separate recession interaction effect variable for 2013-2015 and results indicated that the housing market did not make a full recovery from the recession. A final hypothesis was developed on the significance of interaction variables water quality indicator Chlorophyll-A and a recession effects binary variable. All water quality interaction variables introduced within the model were not significant at the 1% or 5% levels. Future research might include testing interactions with parcel land area and recession time effects and also examining other water quality indicators including Secchi Disk, dissolved oxygen, or turbidity. It may also be useful in the future to use an alternative method of measuring implicit prices of environmental characteristics, such as the repeat sales method.

This research examines how the harvesting behavior of nonindustrial private forest landowners, and their use of forestland for non-timber amenities, is affected by adjacent landowner behavior. The uncertainty an individual landowner has regarding adjacent landowners' preferences, and how the production of non-timber amenities on their own stands relies on the condition of adjacent stocks, is specifically addressed. Economic characterizations of substitutes and complements are employed to investigate the differences in optimal stock levels at the steady state in the production of amenities under various levels of cooperation among landowners. It is shown that there are externalities present when landowners do not coordinate management actions when parcels are spatially interdependent. The effects of spatial interdependencies on landowner behavior are further explored using data from a survey of forest landowners in Central Virginia. Findings suggest that forest landowners are willing to coordinate activities, and such decisions are determined by similar characteristics that function in predicting landowner behavior regarding timber harvesting. Further, landowners' decisions to use own and adjacent parcels were correlated, hinting at the spatial interdependencies of stocks in amenity valuations. Both the theoretical and empirical analyses suggest that the lack of coordination among landowners and its effects on stock management would be best addressed through the use of incentives to drive spatially efficient outcomes. / Ph. D.

This Thesis called "Amenity migration and regional identity in the Prachatice region" looks into comparing the strenght of regional identity of inhabitants and amenity migrants in the field of interest area ORP Prachatice. Amenity migration is quite new term that can be translated as "pleasure migration". This specific type of migration stems from the hum desire to live in areas with high quality environment. This usualy includes the transition of population from urban to countryside environment. For the use of this Thesis the area of interest was chosen area of ORP Prachatice that consist of three executive offices - PÚ Netolice, PÚ Prachatice and PÚ Volary. The whole area of interest offers on a quite narrow territory three different environments. The aim of this Thesis is the comparison of the level of regional identity among inhabitants in relation to the diverse environment and also the comparison of the strenght of regional identity between the group of permanent inhabitants and amenity migrants. The results of the Thesis which are being evaluated from the questionare research are aiming at the mobility of the population, evaluating the quality of elements of surrounding environment, regional symbolism, the positive and negative side of the region, inhabitant awareness and the subject of...

The property "Löjtnanten 1" is situated in Västra Skogen, Solna, and is owned by the Solna municipality. The question at issue answered in this study is "Is it profitable to convert the multistory car park "Löjtnanten 1" to a dwelling-­‐house?". Several matters are addressed to answer that question, amongst other things the demand for condominiums in the area, the effect of competing supply, the acceptable price per square meter from a market point of view, and how the issue of parking may be resolved. The study has been made with support from JM AB, a developer of housing and residential areas in the Nordic region.  As described in the vision, the project will increase the attractiveness of the area by the refurbishment of the nearby centre and commercial premises. The area is one of the development areas in the Master Plan for Solna, "ÖP 2006". The market analysis performed shows that the project is feasible if the turnover of residents in the applicable areas exceeds 5 percent. The project is also economically viable at a price level of SEK 38 000 – 42 000 per square meter. The project calculation shows a limited profit and presumes that the municipality price the land at a break-­‐even level factoring in the long term positive effects provided by a refurbishment of the nearby centre. / Fastigheten Löjtnanten 1 ligger belägen i Västra Skogen, Solna, och ägs av Solna kommun. Frågeställningen som besvaras i arbetet är ”Är det ekonomiskt lönsamt att omvandla parkeringshuset Löjtnanten 1 till bostäder?”. För att svara på den frågan har marknadsområdet undersökts för projektet, vidare har storleken på efterfrågan för nyproducerade bostadsrätter i området skattats liksom effekten av konkurrerande utbud. Arbetet belyser också vilket kvadratmeterpris som marknaden är beredd att betala samt hur parkeringsfrågan kan lösas. Studien är genomförd med stöd av JM AB, projektutvecklare av bostäder och bostadsområden. Enligt visionen i arbetet skulle projektet öka attraktiviteten i området genom en samtidig upprustning av närförortscentrumet och de kommersiella lokalerna. I Solna översiktsplan, ÖP 2006, anses området vara ett av utvecklingsområdena i Solna kommun. Den genomförda marknadsanalysen visar att projektet kan genomföras om omsättningen i det befintliga bostadsbeståndet inom marknadsområdet är högre än 5%. Projektet är ekonomiskt genomförbart vid en prisnivå inom intervallet 38 000 – 42 000 kr/kvadratmeter boyta. Projektkalkylen visar på en begränsad vinst och förutsätter att kommunen sätter markpriset till en ”break--‐even nivå”samt beaktar långsiktiga positiva effekter av ett upprustat närförortscentrum.

Master of Landscape Architecture / Department of Landscape Architecture/Regional and Community Planning / Timothy Keane / Stormwater management within the urban context has evolved over time. This evolution has been categorized by five paradigm shifts (Novotny, Ahern, & Brown, 2010). The current paradigm of stormwater management utilizes hard conveyance and treatment infrastructure designed mainly to provide protection for people from typical 1-5 year frequency storms. Consequently, this infrastructure is sometimes unable to deal with larger sized, 50 to 100 year events which can have serious consequences. Manhattan, Kansas has suffered multiple flooding episodes of severe proportion in the past decade. The dilemma of flooding within the Wildcat Creek watershed is a direct example of the current paradigm of stormwater management. This once ecologically healthy corridor is fed by conveyance systems that do not address the hydrologic needs of the watershed; decreasing the possibility for infiltration and groundwater recharge. Vegetated stormwater management systems must be implemented to help increase infiltration and address flooding problems within the Wildcat Creek watershed. The aesthetic performance of designed landscapes has a tremendous effect on the appreciation and care given to them by the surrounding population (Gobster, Nassauer, Daniel, and Fry, 2007). Landscape architecture has the ability to aid in the visual appeal and ecological design of vegetated stormwater management systems (SMS) by utilizing existing frameworks that address aesthetic reaction of the outdoor environment (Kaplan, Kaplan, and Ryan, 1998). This document evaluates design alternatives of vegetated SMS in order to discern a set of variables that inform the relationship between each systems aesthetic and amenity performance and their ecosystem and hydrological performance. Identified variables are combined into a set of guidelines for achieving different levels, or patterns of aesthetic performance found within the Understanding and Exploration Framework et al. (Kaplan, Kaplan, and Ryan, 1998) and amenity performance listed by Echols and Pennypacker’s Amenity Goals et al. (2007) through vegetated SMS. These design guidelines illustrate how aesthetic theory can be applied through ecological systems in order to increase the coherence, legibility, complexity, and mystery (Kaplan & Kaplan, 1989) of existing sites. Creating spaces where ecological and socio-cultural activities can coexist addresses the local characteristics of aesthetics with the universal dilemma of stormwater management.

L’Ouest du Montana, écrin de nature sauvage dans les montagnes Rocheuses, est depuis les années 1990 au cœur de dynamiques de migrations d’aménités et de gentrification rurale : celles-ci s’appuient sur des récits multiples - fictionnels tout autant que biographiques - qui mettent en scène des trajectoires de vie intimement liées à l’environnement. Réinvesti au nom de nouvelles valeurs dominantes, il constitue aujourd’hui un champ puissant que les individus mobilisent à travers leurs pratiques et représentations. Devenu avant tout support d’activités récréatives plus ou moins distinctives, ou paysage à contempler, l’environnement est déterminant dans la mutation socio-territoriale de l’Old en New West. Or, les dynamiques migratoires contemporaines ne sont ni socialement ni spatialement homogènes, et les inégalités d’accès à l’environnement sont manifestes. Il s’agit alors d’interroger l’existence d’élus et d’exclus dans l’archipel du New West, et plus généralement de soulever l’enjeu des inégalités socio-environnementales dans l’Ouest du Montana. En les analysant au prisme de la grille de lecture « capital environnemental », cette thèse tend alors à saisir le rôle de l’environnement, pensé dans toutes ses dimensions, dans la fabrique socio-territoriale d’un Ouest du Montana en mutation et à interroger la manière dont il génère et entretient de profondes inégalités et injustices. Dans un contexte de fortes recompositions socio-territoriales, il est au cœur de nouveaux investissements stratégiques qui déterminent les rapports de force. / A shrine of wilderness amidst the Rocky Mountains, Western Montana has been at the heart of a dynamic of amenity migration and rural gentrification since the 1990's : fictional and biographical stories support that dynamic and tell of life paths that are intimately tied to the environment. Individuals are now compelled to determine themselves in regard to that powerful field that has been reinvested through prevailing new values. From Old West to New West, social and territorial change is in itself determined by the environment as a field for more and less distinctive recreational activities or as a landscape to contemplate. Nevertheless, contemporary migratory dynamics are neither socially nor spatially equally shared and nor is access to the environment. Let us question the existence of outcast and chosen few in the New West Archipelago and raise the issue of Western Montana social and environmental inequities in general. Using « environmental capital » as a framework to interpret these inequities, this thesis tends to focus on how the environment, in its multiple forms, plays its part in the transformation of Western Montana and how it creates and sustains deep inequities and injustice. In a time of strong social and territorial change the environment is at the heart of new strategic investments that determine the balance of power.

Most sociological analyses of community attachment have focused on the strength of attachment, with little concern for the qualities or attributes of a place to which people become attached. In cases where dimensions of attachment are the focus of analysis, the literature is rather narrowly focused on social dimensions, re ferring most often to connections with family, friends, and other social networks and largely ignoring the realm of natural environment factors. Two primary premises motivated this study. Fi rst, sociological understandi ngs of community attachment wou ld benefit from an expanded analytic framework that incorporates more complex arrays of both social and natural environment dimensions. Second, it is important to understand what variations in attachment may mean for the broader well-being of rural communities. Initial analyses of the data demonstrated four key results. First, factor analysis of fi fleen indicators of attachment produced two distinct dimensions of community attachment, social and natural environment. Second, the nature of the response patterns indicates that strength of natural environment attachment is widely shared amongst a variety of res idents, regardless of length of residence, historical roots to the area, or life cycle. Third, participation in collective action and perceptions of open communication (measures of well-being) within a respondent's community explained only a small portion of the variance in both social and natural environment attachment. Fourth, Structural Equation Modeling demonstrated that there is a causal relationship between attachment and community well-being, though that relationship appeared to be non-recursive. In contrast to much of the previous empirical work on community attachment, this research provides strong evidence of the natural environment dimension and provides justification for further research. This research provides one model to be considered and expanded upon in future research efforts in this area, and supports the need for further attention to the use of multiple dimensions of attachment and their associations with community well-being.

Drawing from literature on place, this dissertation studies place dynamics in relationships between people and a mixed amenity place. Using Great Salt Lake (GSL), Utah, as a case study, I use a social constructionist approach to examine the sense of place held by those who live nearest to the lake. I analyze qualitative interview and focus group data as well as quantitative survey data to discern the meanings the lake holds for these nearest neighbors and to examine distinctions between people who see the lake differently. This study is relatively unique in its examination of relationships with a mixed amenity place, as prior place research has focused on high amenity places such as resort locations. A number of distinctions were found. Place attachment to GSL was less widespread than seen with high amenity places, and there were some residents for whom the lake held negative meanings. The lake held multiple meanings for many research participants, including combinations that appeared incongruous in mixing both positive and negative lake images. Some participants appeared to have no sense of the lake. Additionally, there was evidence of social stigma related to living near the lake. This study can help natural resource managers, community leaders and policy makers to better understand the relationships between local residents and GSL, which prior place research has shown to be a useful indicator of environmental concern, commitment to the place, and support for resource management. There were many things residents did not appear to know about the lake, including, for example, the natural workings of the lake ecosystem, the effect built features have had on this ecosystem, and the economic contributions to local communities, counties and the state from lake-related enterprises. Also of interest, these nearest neighbors talked about how changes related to the lake have affected them. This study provides justification for further work on people-place dynamics with mixed amenity places, as it revealed dynamics not be seen in research on higher amenity settings. The study also demonstrates the need for continued social science research on GSL, to provide further understanding of people's relationships with this important place.

This thesis concerns two topics related to policy effects of hillside and ridgeline development in Knox County, TN and attempts to quantify the values of different aspects of forest land in the area, particularly how the amenity values of forest land affect the prices of surrounding houses. The first essay conducts a cost-benefit analysis to determine the willingness of individual landowners for reforestation given explicitly stated costs and benefits of reforestation. A sequence of hedonic models was used to estimate differences in non-use values attributable to deforested and to forested areas, allowing the establishment of an overall price-distance relationship between the amenity values attributable to both areas and their proximities to housing locations. The results showed that the benefits from reforestation were greater than the opportunity costs of barren/grassland replaced and the houses with the greatest gains from reforestation were within one mile of the target site. Amenity value benefits for reforestation vary between sites but the sites with the greatest gains were those with the largest area, the lowest land cost, and the most houses within one mile. The second essay examined the effects of forest views on house prices and also the effect that the economy had on consumers’ value of those views. This study applied a sales hedonic model to two time periods with markedly different economic climates, the housing boom of 2002-2006 and the recession of 2008. Amenity value gains from forest views were then mapped out for the county for both periods to find those areas that had the highest gains in both periods. The results showed that while the views of forest land increase house values in both periods, the average marginal implicit price gain decreased over 13 percent from the boom period to the recession. Maps of the value gains highlighted the south-western, eastern and northern parts of the county, which contain high income suburban communities, with consistent value gains in excess of $70 per acre.