Urban Structure Lab
Introduction
Urban spatial structure refers to the arrangement and interactions of land uses within an urban area. It reveals the spatial dimension of urban economies, shaping the urban experience and overall urban equity. Urban structure affects how urban residents access jobs, housing, services, places of consumption, infrastructures, and amenities.
The Urban Structure Lab brings together faculty, researchers, and students to explore the evolution of urban spatial structures and its implications for urban planning and policy. Our work centers on three areas:
- Methodology: We compare and apply diverse methods to study how urban spatial structure evolves in Chicago and cities worldwide, sharing our outputs and code openly.
- Applications: Our findings support members’ research on topics such as job accessibility, housing pathways, commuting inequalities, employment suburbanization, industrial policy, and global value chains.
- Drivers of Change: We examine the factors shaping urban spatial structure, including policy-making and state-led interventions in economic development, land use, transport, and housing.
We welcome inquiries from prospective PhD students, visiting scholars, undergraduates seeking an Undergraduate Research Experience (URE), and graduate students interested in pursuing independent studies. For inquiries please contact the Lab coordinators, Dr. David López-García (lopezgar@uic.edu) and Dr. Matthew D. Wilson (mwilso25@uic.edu).
Urban Structure Lab
Our People
Coordinators:
- Dr. David López-García, Assistant Professor, Department of Urban Planning and Policy, lopezgar@uic.edu | View profile.
- Dr. Matthew D. Wilson, Associate Director of Workforce Development, Great Cities Institute, mwilso25@uic.edu | View profile.
Research Fellows Spring 2026:
- Rodrigo Resck, PhD Candidate in Urban Planning and Policy, UIC, rresck2@uic.edu | View profile.
- Nooshin Javidi, PhD Student of Urban Planning and Policy, UIC, njavid2@uic.edu | View profile.
- Dr. Shafaat Nawaz, Fulbright Scholar, muhammad.nawaz@fulbrightmail.org | View profile.
- David Navarro Rodriguez, PhD Student of Urban Planning and Policy, UIC, dnavar21@uic.edu
- Elham Pilegar, Research Specialist, Great Cities Institute, elhamp2@uic.edu | View profile.
- David Segovia, Visiting Research Specialist, dsegovi2@uic.edu | View profile.
- Evan Helchen, MUPP Candidate 26′, helchen2@uic.edu
- Hayden Tillinger, MUPP Candidate 26′, htill4@uic.edu
- Thomas Rose, Urban Studies Major, trose21@uic.edu
Past Research Fellows:
- Maximiliano Man, MUPP 25′.
- Rebecca Perelman, MUPP 25′.
- Tobin Greenwald, MUPP 25′.
- Elise Frank, Urban Studies Major.
- Dr. David Fernandez Guerrero, CREDA, Universitat Politécnica de Catalunya.
Working Paper No. 01
Working Paper No. 01
Review of Methods for the Identification of Employment Subcenters and their Application in the Chicago Metropolitan Statistical Area
by David López-García, Matthew D. Wilson, Kabir Jain, Maximiliano Man, Nooshin Javidi & Elham Pilegar
This article supports the study of urban spatial structures in urban planning by providing a step-by-step guide for applying five distinct methods to identify employment subcenters: double threshold, commuting flows, density peaks, positive residuals, and spatial autocorrelation. We apply these methods to a single study: the Chicago MSA. The results show that applying a distinct method to the same data and area yields highly variable results. We include discussions on selecting the appropriate method and limitations regarding the modifiable area unit problem, the arbitrariness of criteria, the assumption of monocentricity, and identifying the boundaries of employment subcenters.
Working Paper No. 02
Working Paper No. 02
Race, Travel Time, and Earning in Chicagoland: Comparing predicted job accessibility with the commuting burden of public transit.
by David López-García & Kate Lowe
In this study, using the city and metropolitan area of Chicago, we examine the racial distribution of residents across categories defined by actually experienced commute times and earnings, as well as predicted job accessibility. Combining empirical data on lived commute burden and predicted accessibility will help public agencies better target equity-oriented transportation interventions and understand how different communities are situated regarding commute burden and earnings. In addition to these practical contributions, the study raises questions for scholarship on how conceptualizations and measures of predicted accessibility align with actually experienced time burdens within complicated, racialized patterns of lived experiences and job access. Specifically, this project asks: What is the spatial distribution of commute burden by public transit in Chicagoland, and how does it compare with existing measures of predicted job accessibility? How does the commuting burden relate to earnings? What is the scope of differences by race in the cases where predicted high job access does not correspond with reasonable commuting patterns and access to quality jobs?
Description
Coordinated by the Urban Structure Lab at the University of Illinois Chicago and FGV Cidades in São Paulo, the LAC–US Urban Structure Network brings together researchers advancing empirical knowledge on how urban spatial structures evolve across Latin American cities. The network develops comparative research with U.S. metropolitan areas, produces academic publications, and creates open-access spatial layers of employment subcenters for each country studied.
The network is organized through country-specific research teams, each responsible for analyzing the evolution of employment subcenters in their major metropolitan areas. Study periods vary depending on national data availability. All teams apply three identification methods—double threshold (Giuliano & Small, 1991), positive residuals (McDonald & Prather, 1994; McMillen, 2001), and spatial autocorrelation techniques (Baumont et al., 2004; Guillain et al., 2006). A detailed methodological guide for all three approaches is provided in the Urban Structure Lab Working Paper No. 01.
Country Research Teams
Brazil
- Ciro Biderman, FGV Cidades, São Paulo School of Business Administration, FGV/EAESP. ciro.biderman@fgv.br
- Murillo Bark Toda, FGV Cidades, São Paulo School of Business Administration, FGV/EAESP. murillo.toda@fgv.br
- Eduardo José Grin, FGV Cidades, São Paulo School of Business Administration, FGV/EAESP. eduardo.grin@fgv.br
United States
- David López-García, Assistant Professor, Co-coordinator of the Urban Structure Lab, Department of Urban Planning and Policy, University of Illinois Chicago. lopezgar@uic.edu
- Matthew D. Wilson, Associate Director of Economic and Workforce Development, Great Cities Institute, Co-coordinator of the Urban Structure Lab, University of Illinois Chicago. mwilso25@uic.edu
Mexico
- Armando Sánchez Vargas, Professor of Economics, Director of the Institute of Economic Research, Mexican National Autonomous University, IIE-UNAM. asvargas@unam.mx
Argentina
- Cynthia Goytia, Director of the Masters in Urban Economics and Director of the Center for Urban and Housing Policy Research (CIPUV), Universidad Torcuato di Tella. cgoytia@utdt.edu
- Jerónimo Luza, Geospatial Data Scientist, Center for Urban and Housing Policy Research (CIPUV), Universidad Torcuato di Tella. jero.luza@gmail.com
- Ignacio Belogi, PhD Candidate, Instituto de Investigaciones Gino Germani, Universidad de Buenos Aires.
Uruguay
- Diego Hernández, Professor, Social Science Department, Universidad Católica del Uruguay. dhernandez@ucu.edu.uy
- Martín Alesina, Coordinador de Investigación, Centro de Estudios de la Realidad Económica y Social (CERES). malesina@ceres-uy.org
Paraguay
- Juan Carlos Cristaldo, Director of Research at the Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Arts (FADA), founder of the Center for Development and Innovation Research (CIDi), Universidad Nacional de Asunción (UNA). juan.cristaldo@cidi.fada.una.py
- Silvia Arévalos, Coordinator of the Center for Development and Innovation Research (CIDi), Faculty of Architecture, Design, and Arts (FADA), Universidad Nacional de Asunción (UNA). silvia.arevalos@cidi.fada.una.py
Peru
- Manuel Dammert Guardia, Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP). mdammert@pucp.edu.pe
- Pablo Vega Centeno, Associate Professor, Department of Social Sciences, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (PUCP). pvega@pucp.edu.pe
Colombia
- Cesar A. Ruiz Rojas, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Agricultural Engineering, School of Engineering, National University of Colombia. caruizro@unal.edu.co
- Leidy Carolina Fernández Peña, Department of Civil and Agricultural Engineering, School of Engineering, National University of Colombia. lcfernandezpe@unal.edu.co
- Luis Angel Guzmán, Associate Professor, School of Engineering, Universidad de los Andes (UNIANDES). la.guzman@uniandes.edu.co
Ecuador
- Pablo Cabrera-Barona, Coordinator for Research, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales – FLACSO Ecuador. pfcabrera@flacso.edu.ec
- Stephani Torrez Viricochea, Researcher, Department of Economy, Environment and Territory, Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales– FLACSO Ecuador. stephatoviri@gmail.com
Bolivia
- Juan Cabrera, Professor, Universidad Privada Boliviana. Instituto Boliviano de Urbanismo (IBU). juancabrera@upb.edu
- Stefanie Gamarra, Center for Architecture and Urbanism Reserach (CIAU), Universidad Privada Boliviana. stefaniegamarra1@upb.edu
El Salvador
- Carlos Ernesto Grande-Ayala, Professor, Department of Spatial Organization, Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas, UCA El Salvador. cgrande@uca.edu.sv
Guatemala
- Marielos Arlen Marín, Faculty of Architecture, Universidad del Istmo, Guatemala. mamarin@unis.edu.gt
Chile
- Hugo Silva, Economics Institute, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, husilva@uc.cl
Coming soon
Peer review journals
Nawaz, M. S., & Zulfiqar, M. U. (2025) Association of property values in Lahore with walkable proximity to employment subcenters. Journal of Property Research, 42(1), 46–65. https://doi.org/10.1080/09599916.2024.2414742
López-García, D. (2024) Diverging mobility situations in Greater Mexico City: Exploring the factors behind the mobility situations of public transport commuters. Urban Studies, 61(10), 1849-1870. https://doi.org/10.1177/00420980231214728
López-García, D. & Baker, D. (2023) Diverging Mobility Situations: Measuring Relative Job Accessibility and Differing Socioeconomic Conditions in New York City. Annals of the American Association of Geographers, 113(1), 149-168. https://doi.org/10.1080/24694452.2022.2080041
López-García, D. & Gómez-Álvarez, D. (2022) Estructura urbana del Área Metropolitana de Guadalajara, 1999-2019: Un análisis de subcentros de empleo [Urban structure of Guadalajara Metropolitan Area, 1999-2019: An analysis of employment subcenters]. Estudios Demográficos y Urbanos, 37(2), 427-481. https://doi.org/10.24201/edu.v37i2.2053
Books
López-García, D. (2023) Worker mobility and urban policy in Latin America: Policy interactions and urban outcomes in Mexico City. New York and Abingdon: Routledge. ISBN 9781032199719
Coming soon
Coming soon.
Sponsors
The work of the Urban Structure Lab is supported by the College of Urban Planning and Public Affairs (CUPPA), the Department of Urban Planning and Policy (UPP), the Great Cities Institute (GCI), the Center for Urban Economic Development (CUED), two rounds of funding from the Gao-Zhang Research Award for Geospatial Technologies, and one round of funding from the Brasillinois Research Grants Competition.