Victoria Morckel
Biographic Data
| ID | 4192050 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Victoria Morckel |
| GIVEN NAMES | Victoria |
| FAMILY NAME | Morckel |
| SIGNATURE | MORCKEL V |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Michigan–Flint |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-0591-3998 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 42 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2014 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 4 |
Toward a Research Code of Ethics for Urban Planners
Population decline and data discrepancies
Accurate population estimates and projections are crucial for urban planning, especially in shrinking cities. This paper evaluates discrepancies between the 2020 decennial census and the 2019 1-year and 5-year estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS). The results suggest that the ACS likely overestimates population figures in rapidly shrinking cities. Additionally, an analysis of comprehensive plans shows that cities experiencing long-t…
“Demolition Planning” in a U.S. Legacy City
This paper presents a case study of participatory “demolition planning” for blighted, vacant properties in the legacy city of Flint, Michigan. It outlines how the Genesee County Land Bank Authority (GCLBA) used residents’ responses to a survey about demolition priorities to create an algorithm that assigns demolition scores to blighted properties in Flint. The survey results showed that residents’ top priority was demolishing blighted properties …
Using Emerging Hot Spot Analysis to Explore Spatiotemporal Patterns of Housing Vacancy in Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Areas
We highlight the use of a newer method—emerging hot spot analysis of space-time cubes from defined locations—for examining the spread of housing vacancy in large Ohio MSAs. Using this method, we discovered that many Ohio MSAs concurrently experienced spread, contraction, and vacancy stabilization in census tracts located adjacent to, or within close proximity of, one another. These results indicate that vacancy proliferation is not solely a matte…
Right Sizing Is Not What You Think It Is
"Right Sizing Is Not What You Think It Is." Journal of the American Planning Association, 87(3), pp. 433–434
Weak housing demand in a shrinking city
This study explores perceived and real effects of a human-made environmental crisis (the Flint water crisis) on residential mobility and housing demand in the weak market city of Flint, Michigan, USA. We surveyed Flint residents in summer 2016 and found that a large proportion of homeowners believed the water crisis negatively affected their property values; more than half wanted to leave the city but felt constrained by the inability to sell the…
Flint (MI) Missed an Opportunity to “Right Size” With Its Water Crisis
The city of Flint (MI) should have right sized its water infrastructure as part of its response to its water crisis, which was a series of government failures that resulted in lead and other contaminants in the city’s municipal water supply. I discuss why right sizing water systems is necessary in shrinking cities and outline a process for right sizing that uses hydraulic models to identify opportunities for downscaling or removing pipelines. Wit…
Legacy city residents’ lack of trust in their governments
We document the level of trust that Flint, Michigan residents had in their local and state governments during the water crisis, a series of government failures that resulted in lead and other contaminants in the city’s water system. We then compare residents’ level of trust to that of nonresidents and use regression analyses to test whether a lack of trust in government predicts the extent to which Flint residents are considering leaving the city…
The direct economic impact of the Flint, Michigan, farmers’ market relocation
This study considers the effects of location on farmers’ market success using the relocation of the farmers’ market in Flint, Michigan, as a case study. It examines whether relocating the market benefitted vendors; whether the direct economic impact (DEI) of the market increased post-relocation; whether spending patterns vary by day of the week and season; and whether different estimates of DEI are obtained when accounting for seasonal variations…
Why the Flint, Michigan, USA water crisis is an urban planning failure
SimCity in the Community Planning Classroom
This article has three objectives. It first examines whether the latest version of SimCity can achieve learning objectives related to systems thinking, problem solving, creativity, and regional understanding in the classroom. Second, it examines whether the game influences student interest in planning. Third, it considers whether the game impacts students’ perception of the discipline. Using instructor observation, students’ game creations, and s…
Using suitability analysis to prioritize demolitions in a legacy city
Abandoned properties are a significant problem facing legacy cities. Given historic and ongoing population losses, many legacy cities turn to demolitions as one solution to their surplus property problems. Unfortunately, cities lack the resources needed to demolish all of the buildings that should arguably come down. Determining which properties should receive highest priority is a difficult task. Therefore, this paper presents an empirical metho…
Improving downtown in a mid-sized legacy city
While many researchers have examined strategies for revitalizing downtowns, few have done so in small or mid-sized legacy cities. This article adds to the literature by examining 1263 survey responses to statements about potential improvements to the downtown area of Flint, Michigan (USA). Descriptive statistics were used to identify perceptions of the most promising strategies for improvement. Those strategies were further analyzed using regress…
Predicting abandoned housing
Abandonment" is a term that has no agreed-upon definition in the housing literature. As a result, different measures of housing abandonment have been used by researchers and practitioners. However, it is not clear whether the various measures capture the same construct. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to test whether three operational definitions of housing abandonment (tax delinquency as a proxy for abandonment, abandonment as identified…
Predicting abandoned housing
Abandonment" is a term that has no agreed-upon definition in the housing literature. As a result, different measures of housing abandonment have been used by researchers and practitioners. However, it is not clear whether the various measures capture the same construct. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to test whether three operational definitions of housing abandonment (tax delinquency as a proxy for abandonment, abandonment as identified…
Legacy city residents’ lack of trust in their governments
We document the level of trust that Flint, Michigan residents had in their local and state governments during the water crisis, a series of government failures that resulted in lead and other contaminants in the city’s water system. We then compare residents’ level of trust to that of nonresidents and use regression analyses to test whether a lack of trust in government predicts the extent to which Flint residents are considering leaving the city…
Using Emerging Hot Spot Analysis to Explore Spatiotemporal Patterns of Housing Vacancy in Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Areas
We highlight the use of a newer method—emerging hot spot analysis of space-time cubes from defined locations—for examining the spread of housing vacancy in large Ohio MSAs. Using this method, we discovered that many Ohio MSAs concurrently experienced spread, contraction, and vacancy stabilization in census tracts located adjacent to, or within close proximity of, one another. These results indicate that vacancy proliferation is not solely a matte…
Why the Flint, Michigan, USA water crisis is an urban planning failure
Using suitability analysis to prioritize demolitions in a legacy city
Abandoned properties are a significant problem facing legacy cities. Given historic and ongoing population losses, many legacy cities turn to demolitions as one solution to their surplus property problems. Unfortunately, cities lack the resources needed to demolish all of the buildings that should arguably come down. Determining which properties should receive highest priority is a difficult task. Therefore, this paper presents an empirical metho…
The direct economic impact of the Flint, Michigan, farmers’ market relocation
This study considers the effects of location on farmers’ market success using the relocation of the farmers’ market in Flint, Michigan, as a case study. It examines whether relocating the market benefitted vendors; whether the direct economic impact (DEI) of the market increased post-relocation; whether spending patterns vary by day of the week and season; and whether different estimates of DEI are obtained when accounting for seasonal variations…
SimCity in the Community Planning Classroom
This article has three objectives. It first examines whether the latest version of SimCity can achieve learning objectives related to systems thinking, problem solving, creativity, and regional understanding in the classroom. Second, it examines whether the game influences student interest in planning. Third, it considers whether the game impacts students’ perception of the discipline. Using instructor observation, students’ game creations, and s…
Improving downtown in a mid-sized legacy city
While many researchers have examined strategies for revitalizing downtowns, few have done so in small or mid-sized legacy cities. This article adds to the literature by examining 1263 survey responses to statements about potential improvements to the downtown area of Flint, Michigan (USA). Descriptive statistics were used to identify perceptions of the most promising strategies for improvement. Those strategies were further analyzed using regress…
Predicting abandoned housing
Abandonment" is a term that has no agreed-upon definition in the housing literature. As a result, different measures of housing abandonment have been used by researchers and practitioners. However, it is not clear whether the various measures capture the same construct. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to test whether three operational definitions of housing abandonment (tax delinquency as a proxy for abandonment, abandonment as identified…
Improving downtown in a mid-sized legacy city
While many researchers have examined strategies for revitalizing downtowns, few have done so in small or mid-sized legacy cities. This article adds to the literature by examining 1263 survey responses to statements about potential improvements to the downtown area of Flint, Michigan (USA). Descriptive statistics were used to identify perceptions of the most promising strategies for improvement. Those strategies were further analyzed using regress…
SimCity in the Community Planning Classroom
This article has three objectives. It first examines whether the latest version of SimCity can achieve learning objectives related to systems thinking, problem solving, creativity, and regional understanding in the classroom. Second, it examines whether the game influences student interest in planning. Third, it considers whether the game impacts students’ perception of the discipline. Using instructor observation, students’ game creations, and s…
Using suitability analysis to prioritize demolitions in a legacy city
Abandoned properties are a significant problem facing legacy cities. Given historic and ongoing population losses, many legacy cities turn to demolitions as one solution to their surplus property problems. Unfortunately, cities lack the resources needed to demolish all of the buildings that should arguably come down. Determining which properties should receive highest priority is a difficult task. Therefore, this paper presents an empirical metho…
Why the Flint, Michigan, USA water crisis is an urban planning failure
Legacy city residents’ lack of trust in their governments
We document the level of trust that Flint, Michigan residents had in their local and state governments during the water crisis, a series of government failures that resulted in lead and other contaminants in the city’s water system. We then compare residents’ level of trust to that of nonresidents and use regression analyses to test whether a lack of trust in government predicts the extent to which Flint residents are considering leaving the city…
The direct economic impact of the Flint, Michigan, farmers’ market relocation
This study considers the effects of location on farmers’ market success using the relocation of the farmers’ market in Flint, Michigan, as a case study. It examines whether relocating the market benefitted vendors; whether the direct economic impact (DEI) of the market increased post-relocation; whether spending patterns vary by day of the week and season; and whether different estimates of DEI are obtained when accounting for seasonal variations…
Flint (MI) Missed an Opportunity to “Right Size” With Its Water Crisis
The city of Flint (MI) should have right sized its water infrastructure as part of its response to its water crisis, which was a series of government failures that resulted in lead and other contaminants in the city’s municipal water supply. I discuss why right sizing water systems is necessary in shrinking cities and outline a process for right sizing that uses hydraulic models to identify opportunities for downscaling or removing pipelines. Wit…
Right Sizing Is Not What You Think It Is
"Right Sizing Is Not What You Think It Is." Journal of the American Planning Association, 87(3), pp. 433–434
Weak housing demand in a shrinking city
This study explores perceived and real effects of a human-made environmental crisis (the Flint water crisis) on residential mobility and housing demand in the weak market city of Flint, Michigan, USA. We surveyed Flint residents in summer 2016 and found that a large proportion of homeowners believed the water crisis negatively affected their property values; more than half wanted to leave the city but felt constrained by the inability to sell the…
Using Emerging Hot Spot Analysis to Explore Spatiotemporal Patterns of Housing Vacancy in Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Areas
We highlight the use of a newer method—emerging hot spot analysis of space-time cubes from defined locations—for examining the spread of housing vacancy in large Ohio MSAs. Using this method, we discovered that many Ohio MSAs concurrently experienced spread, contraction, and vacancy stabilization in census tracts located adjacent to, or within close proximity of, one another. These results indicate that vacancy proliferation is not solely a matte…
“Demolition Planning” in a U.S. Legacy City
This paper presents a case study of participatory “demolition planning” for blighted, vacant properties in the legacy city of Flint, Michigan. It outlines how the Genesee County Land Bank Authority (GCLBA) used residents’ responses to a survey about demolition priorities to create an algorithm that assigns demolition scores to blighted properties in Flint. The survey results showed that residents’ top priority was demolishing blighted properties …
Population decline and data discrepancies
Accurate population estimates and projections are crucial for urban planning, especially in shrinking cities. This paper evaluates discrepancies between the 2020 decennial census and the 2019 1-year and 5-year estimates from the American Community Survey (ACS). The results suggest that the ACS likely overestimates population figures in rapidly shrinking cities. Additionally, an analysis of comprehensive plans shows that cities experiencing long-t…
Toward a Research Code of Ethics for Urban Planners
Urbanization and City Planning (11 works) · Geography (10 works) · Business (8 works) · Engineering (6 works) · Housing Market and Economics (6 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Archaeology (5 works) · Civil engineering (5 works) · Political science (5 works) · Population (5 works)