Gated Communities and Spatial Inequality

Abstract

In this article we analyze gated communities as a nexus of social and spatial relations within the context of urban inequality. We apply Tickamyer's (2000) sociological framework for incorporating space into the study of inequality, which allows us to substantiate the arguments that the process of gating increases urban inequality. The contributions of this article are three: (1) We generate a new systematic theoretical approach toward the study of gated communities, which we consider as middle range theory; (2) We argue that gated communities reproduce the existing levels of social stratification and that they also define a new, permanent differentiation order in the spatial organization of cities in the United States (in this respect we also arrive at six hypotheses, which can be tested in future research); (3) We introduce the term "gating machine," where the combination of the interests and actions of local governments, real estate developers, the media, and consumers suggest that prevailing structural conditions assure the future proliferation of gated communities."Welcome to the Sonoran Desert, home of Trilogy at Vistancia. In this pristine setting you will find a gated, private community that will nourish the soul, comfort the heart and excite the imagination." Trilogy Resort Communities by Shea Homes Website (2007)

Planning for resilience: A case study of Kitimat, BC.

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Gated communities revisited: defended homes nested in security enclaves

“…The phrase 'tessellated neoliberalism' was coined (Atkinson and Blandy, 2017) to express how market values are materialised in an interlocking pattern of domestic fortresses and defended neighbourhoods. What has been aptly termed 'the gating machine' (Vesselinov et al, 2007) comprises a potent combination of prevailing structural conditions: neoliberal state policies that bolster responsible home ownership and aim to reduce public spending; an emphasis on the market which opens the way for developers and the security, insurance and associated industries to make profits; loss of place-based community; an increase in house prices causing homes to be viewed primarily as financial assets; fear of crime fuelled by the media; and a lack of will and policies by local governments to prevent the further growth of gated communities. With the accompanying rise in security technologies designed and marketed for the protection of individual homes, gated communities now emerge as a visible intermediate layer of defence between the home and national territories.…”

From picket fences to iron gates: suburbanization and gated communities in Phoenix, Las Vegas and Seattle

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