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Neighborhood Dynamics: Tools & Methods Each of us live in a neighborhood, sometimes more than one. Many of us also need to use neighborhood-oriented geodemographic information in our work and business. Since neighborhoods do not follow a well-defined set of national, or even regional, boundaries, specialized resources can help to organize and analyze data for these areas. How have neighborhoods of interest to you changed since Census 2000? New data continue to become available to update Census 2000 demographics. There are continuing new opportunities to integrate the Census 2000 geographic and demographic data into neighborhood decision making. How do/should neighborhood areas relate to small statistical areas such as census tracts, block groups, and blocks? How can cross-cutting sociometrics, such as health care, housing, and education, be effectively analyzed in the neighborhood context? The document Neighborhoods and Geodemographic Analysis to reviews these topics in more detail (requires userid; available to Proximity clients and used in the Proximity GeoDemographics WebCourse). Proximity helps organizations define neighborhood areas and and helps stakeholders make use of neighborhood-related data and analyses. Defining neighborhood boundaries. Proximity software tools can help develop neighborhoods and perform neighborhood analyses. Cluster analysis and related multivariate methods are used to help automate the process of building neighborhood geographic infrastructure areas and boundaries. Use the software to make use of a variable set of underlying standard Census geographic areas, a set of user specified subject matter items that are attributes of sameness or cohesiveness (or converse), contiguity measures, and distance measures. Defining a neighborhood using census blocks. "Manually" define your neighborhood in terms of census blocks or block groups. Census blocks are the smallest geographic level for which Census 2000 data are tabulated. • Start FactFinder: http://factfinder.census.gov • Click on "Maps and Geography" in left column; choose "Reference Maps"; enter street address (e.g. 206 coast with zip 92307); click Go. • Navigate to area view of interest; census block codes (4000) and census tracts (82) in San Diego, CA County are visible. • Write down county, tract, block codes of interest. Getting data for a neighborhood by census block. Access demographics for the blocks of interest. Assume these blocks of interest are 4000, 4001, and 4002 in census tract 82 in San Diego, CA county. • Click on link "All Data Sets" above the map. • Census 2000 Summary File 1 is selected; use this data source as it provides access to block level data. • Click on "Quick Tables" in right column. • Select "Block" as geographic type. • Select California, San Diego County, tract 82, block group 4. • Select blocks 4000, 4001, 4002; click Add; click Next. • Click Detailed Tables; choose P3 (or any table group); click Add; click Show Result. • Data displayed. To add your data or move these data to your computer in Excel file. Click "Print/Download" (above data table) and then Download. Click Microsoft Excel radio button; click OK and then proceed to opened or save the file. Learn More about How to Develop Neighborhood Statistics. The above steps show how to access block level for a custom defined neighborhood. You might prefer to use alternative tools providing more flexibility. Or, you might prefer to mix data for different types of geography. How do you get more up-to-date data? Why isn't income data available at the block level? What is the reliability of the data? Which subject matter should I choose? Have I selected the subject matter than most closely matches my subject interests? Participate in the Proximity GeoDemographics Workshop. Get answers to these types of questions. Additional Neighborhood Data Resources. Proximity maintains wide-ranging geographic and demographic data that can be integrated into neighborhood analyses. See sample data for the Houston area at http://proximityone.com/48201.htm. (Houston superneighborhoods are covered in some detail in the above mentioned document.) Keep up-to-date with information from Census 2000 that relate to neighborhoods. Visit the Census Data Access and Use website. Geodemographic Analyses and Neighborhood. Proximity helps organizations meet needs relating to planning and market analyses where neighborhoods play an important role. WebCourse. Our WebCourse features use of GIS/mapping tools to develop and use the type of maps presented in the Neighborhoods and Geodemographic Analysis document. |
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