Optimization of land use in a new urban district/ created by Zongzhen Yang, Xiaocchong Zhu and Douglas R. Moodie

This paper optimizes the use of land in a new city district with the aim of maximizing the quality of life (QOL) of its workers and the productiveness of its living facilities, such as schools, shops, leisure places, and medical centers. First, the study analyzes the demands of workers for living facilities, and thus the impact of factors (such as commuting time, housing price, living facilities, nearby facilities, and accessibility to the central business district (CBD) on the workers’ housing decisions. Second, the study analyzes how workers select their housing. Third, the study establishes a land use model to simultaneously maximize the QOL and the number of people using the living facilities. The study then demonstrates an example. The example shows that if one ignores QOL, then some housing and medical facilities will be developed in the new district, but little for commercial and educational uses. When emphasizing QOL equally with the productiveness of living infrastructure, about half of the workers working in new district will live there and have a high QOL.