Exurb


An exurb is an area outside the typically denser inner suburban area of a metropolitan area, which has an economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing density, and growth. It shapes an interface between urban and rural landscapes holding an urban nature for its functional, economic and social interaction with the urban center, due to its dominant residential character. Confusingly, the term "exurb" was used starting in the 1950s as a synonym for a commuter town, as the word exurb was coined by Auguste Comte Spectorsky, in his 1955 book The Exurbanites, to describe the ring of prosperous communities beyond the suburbs that are commuter towns for an urban area. However, especially since a landmark report by the Brookings Institution in 2006, the term is generally used for areas beyond suburbs and specifically less densely built than the suburbs to which the exurbs' residents commute.

Definition

According to the Brookings Institution, to qualify as exurban, a census tract must meet all three of the criteria described below.
  1. Economic connection to a large metropolis.
  2. Low housing density: bottom third of census tracts with regard to housing density. In 2000, this was a minimum of per resident.
  3. Population growth exceeding the average for its metropolitan area.
Exurban areas incorporate a mix of rural development and in places, suburban-style development. In long-settled areas, such as the U.S. Northeast megalopolis, exurban areas incorporate pre-existing towns, villages and smaller cities, as well as strips of older single-family homes built along pre-existing roads that connected the older population centers of what was once a rural area.

Exurban counties in the United States

In a 2006, the Brookings Institution identified the following counties and parishes as exurban: