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The Language of Sprawl

Most Americans have a general understanding of what sprawl is, but do they have the words to describe different aspects of it, or different types of development patterns?

Delores Hayden, author of A Field Guide to Sprawl, tries to give them those tools.

Her book defines and discusses 51 terms that characterize modern building and development patterns. Dramatic aerial photographs by Jim Wark accompanying each definition bring her prose to life. His aerial images capture the large scale of many current development patterns.

Hayden argues that it is important that people do have the terminology because “Naming is critical to identification. Identification is critical to action.” Having the terminology can help people define the problem, she emphasizes: “Knowing the slang phrases for everyday places sharpens observation.” Most of the terms described in her book would likely be considered slang terms (and anti-sprawl).

A few of the terms are listed below. Test your knowledge of “sprawl talk” by matching the terms with a brief definition.

1. Edge nodes
2. Snout house
3. Boomburb
4. Ground cover
5. Water feature
6. TOAD
7. Starter castle
8. Logo building
9. Sitcom suburb
10. Putting parsley around the pig
11. Zoomburb
12. Power center
13. LULU
14. Litter on a stick
15. Ball pork
16. Privatopia
17. Rural slammer

A. a house of exaggerated size and aspirations
B. neighborhoods of traditional Cape Cod or Colonial house with neat front lawns
C. construction of prisons in remote areas
D. landscaping a bad spot or bad project
E. a community where residents are legally bound to obey the covenants, conditions, and restrictions of a homeowner association
F. a grouping of several unconnected big box outlets (large discount stores)
G. locally unwanted land use
H. a stadium built with public funds for the use of a privately-owned ball team
I. a place growing even faster than a boomburb
J. a building designed as a trademark that can be spotted from a distance
K. billboards
L. house with a protruding garage that takes up most of the street frontage
M. inexpensive, easily bulldozed building such as self-storage units, constructed to generate income while a developer
holds land, waiting to build a more profitable project
N. growth areas of commercial real estate usually outside older downtowns and near interstate highways
O. temporary, obsolete, abandoned, or derelict site
P. a rapidly growing urban-sized place in the suburbs
Q. artificially constructed display of water

THE ANSWERS

Boomburb– a rapidly growing, urban-sized place in the suburbs
Zoomburb– a place growing even faster than a boomburb
Water feature– artificially constructed display of water
TOAD– temporary, obsolete, abandoned, or derelict site
Starter castle– a house of exaggerated size and aspirations
Snout house– house with a protruding garage that takes up most of the street frontage
Sitcom suburb– neighborhoods of traditional Cape Cod or Colonial house with neat front lawns
Rural slammer– construction of prisons in remote areas
Putting parsley around the pig– landscaping a bad spot or bad project
Privatopia– a community where residents are legally bound to obey the convenants, conditions, and restrictions of a homeowner association
Power center– a grouping of several unconnected big box outlets (large discount stores)
LULU– locally unwanted land use
Logo building– a building designed as a trademark that can be spotted from a distance
Litter on a stick– billboards
Ground cover– inexpensive, easily bulldozed building such as selfstorage units, constructed to generate income while a developer holds land, waiting to build a more profitable project
Edge nodes– growth areas of commercial real estate usually outside older downtowns and near interstate highways
Ball pork– a stadium built with public funds for the use of a privately-owned ball team