ECON 374 : Special Topic: Urban Economics

Business and Economics

2021 Semester Two (1215) (15 POINTS)

Course Prescription

Explores the growth and impact of cities, as well as the role of policies that impact their form, structure and economy. What explains the explosive growth in urbanisation over the last 100 years? How do firms and individuals decide where to locate? How can we address current urban problems like crime, poverty, traffic congestion, sprawl, gentrification and pollution?

Course Overview

This course is an introduction to the economics of cities, providing students with a theoretical understanding of how residents, workers, developers and government interact to shape the built form around us. The course begins with an interrogation into the competitive urban equilibrium under a monocentric model of urban form, and gradually introduces greater complexity. We will discuss the implications of these economic models for key urban features including housing affordability and congestion. 

The second part of the course concentrates on policy evaluation and economic methodology, including cost benefit analysis and hedonic pricing techniques. The course concludes with an overview of the political economy of New Zealand cities, asking how our institutions shape urban policy and the planning agenda. 

You can expect plenty of guest lectures, with backgrounds in urban politics, economics and planning, to bring a rich and rounded flavor to  the wonderful complexity of the cities around us. Come prepared for a high degree of participation.

Course Requirements

Prerequisite: ECON 201

Capabilities Developed in this Course

Capability 1: Disciplinary Knowledge and Practice
Capability 2: Critical Thinking
Capability 3: Solution Seeking
Capability 4: Communication and Engagement
Capability 6: Social and Environmental Responsibilities
Graduate Profile: Bachelor of Commerce

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:
  1. Analyse resident, business and developer responses to urban prices in a competitive equilibrium (Capability 1 and 2)
  2. Apply models of competitive behaviour, accounting for differences in urban fundamentals (for instance, transport and geography) (Capability 1, 2 and 3)
  3. Evaluate a range of urban policies and assess how it impacts the competitive outcome and key outcomes of interest (for instance, housing affordability) (Capability 3 and 6)
  4. Develop an understanding of the evaluation toolkit used in urban policy, including cost benefit analysis (Capability 1, 2 and 3)
  5. Explain and communicate economic ideas and intuition effectively, using written, diagrammatic illustration and mathematical tools of economics (Capability 2 and 4.2)
  6. Describe and present economic methodologies to evaluate urban policy (Capability 4.1 and 4.3)

Assessments

Assessment Type Percentage Classification
Final Exam 50% Individual Examination
Test 20% Individual Test
Presentation 30% Group Coursework
Assessment Type Learning Outcome Addressed
1 2 3 4 5 6
Final Exam
Test
Presentation

Workload Expectations

This course is a standard 15 point course and students are expected to spend 10 hours per week involved in each 15 point course that they are enrolled in. 

For this course, you can expect 3 hours of lectures, a 1 hour tutorial (weeks 1-6) or workshop (weeks 7-12), 3 hours of reading and thinking about the content and 3 hours of work on assignments and/or test preparation.


Delivery Mode

Campus Experience

Attendance is required at scheduled activities including tutorials and lectures. There may be site visits.
Lectures will be available as recordings. Site visits will not. Other learning activities, including tutorials, will be available as recordings.
The course will include live online events including group discussions and tutorials.
Attendance on campus is required for the test and exam.
The activities for the course are scheduled as a standard weekly timetable.

Learning Resources

All course material posted on CANVAS by your lecturer
Recommended Textbook:
Brueckner, 2011, Lectures on urban economics

Reference textbooks:
Glaeser, 2014, Triumph of the City, Penguin Group
Fischel, 2015, Zoning Rules! The economics of land use regulation, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy
Bertaud, 2019, Order without design: How markets shape cities, The MIT Press. 
Glaeser, 2009, Cities, Agglomeration and Spatial Equilibrium, Oxford University Press 

Student Feedback

At the end of every semester students will be invited to give feedback on the course and teaching through a tool called SET or Qualtrics. The lecturers and course co-ordinators will consider all feedback and respond with summaries and actions.

Your feedback helps teachers to improve the course and its delivery for future students.

Class Representatives in each class can take feedback to the department and faculty staff-student consultative committees.

Information on Canvas will be streamlined.
The policy memo has been replaced with a test to give better student feedback
We are investigating the potential for a site visit. This will depend on class size.

Digital Resources

Course materials are made available in a learning and collaboration tool called Canvas which also includes reading lists and lecture recordings (where available).

Please remember that the recording of any class on a personal device requires the permission of the instructor.

Academic Integrity

The University of Auckland will not tolerate cheating, or assisting others to cheat, and views cheating in coursework as a serious academic offence. The work that a student submits for grading must be the student's own work, reflecting their learning. Where work from other sources is used, it must be properly acknowledged and referenced. This requirement also applies to sources on the internet. A student's assessed work may be reviewed against online source material using computerised detection mechanisms.

Inclusive Learning

All students are asked to discuss any impairment related requirements privately, face to face and/or in written form with the course coordinator, lecturer or tutor.

Student Disability Services also provides support for students with a wide range of impairments, both visible and invisible, to succeed and excel at the University. For more information and contact details, please visit the Student Disability Services’ website http://disability.auckland.ac.nz

Special Circumstances

If your ability to complete assessed coursework is affected by illness or other personal circumstances outside of your control, contact a member of teaching staff as soon as possible before the assessment is due.

If your personal circumstances significantly affect your performance, or preparation, for an exam or eligible written test, refer to the University’s aegrotat or compassionate consideration page https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/academic-information/exams-and-final-results/during-exams/aegrotat-and-compassionate-consideration.html.

This should be done as soon as possible and no later than seven days after the affected test or exam date.

Learning Continuity

In the event of an unexpected disruption we undertake to maintain the continuity and standard of teaching and learning in all your courses throughout the year. If there are unexpected disruptions the University has contingency plans to ensure that access to your course continues and your assessment is fair, and not compromised. Some adjustments may need to be made in emergencies. You will be kept fully informed by your course co-ordinator, and if disruption occurs you should refer to the University Website for information about how to proceed.

Student Charter and Responsibilities

The Student Charter assumes and acknowledges that students are active participants in the learning process and that they have responsibilities to the institution and the international community of scholars. The University expects that students will act at all times in a way that demonstrates respect for the rights of other students and staff so that the learning environment is both safe and productive. For further information visit Student Charter https://www.auckland.ac.nz/en/students/forms-policies-and-guidelines/student-policies-and-guidelines/student-charter.html.

Disclaimer

Elements of this outline may be subject to change. The latest information about the course will be available for enrolled students in Canvas.

In this course you may be asked to submit your coursework assessments digitally. The University reserves the right to conduct scheduled tests and examinations for this course online or through the use of computers or other electronic devices. Where tests or examinations are conducted online remote invigilation arrangements may be used. The final decision on the completion mode for a test or examination, and remote invigilation arrangements where applicable, will be advised to students at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date of the assessment, or in the case of an examination when the examination timetable is published.

Published on 13/02/2021 10:31 a.m.