2019 Theses Master's

Fragmented + Unequal: A Study on Municipal Incorporation and Spatial Exclusion in St. Louis County, Missouri

Bone, Caitlin

The objective of this research is to examine the role of local governments and administrative boundaries in perpetuating the exclusion of marginalized populations in St. Louis County, Missouri. Through a mixed methods approach of qualitative and quantitative analysis, this work aims to understand the relationship between municipal boundaries and population distributions. Primary source research includes analysis of local statutes to understand the legal framework through which municipalities are created in the St. Louis context. The quantitative methods used in this study utilize Geographic Information Systems (GIS) to analyze existing United States Census Bureau demographic data, St. Louis political administrative boundaries and Land Use Parcel Data. Qualitative methods include semi-structured interviews with members of the St. Louis community to further understand the local experience of municipal fragmentation and resulting regional disparities.