Duke 2008 | ASHE | Equity and Efficiency in Health and Healthcare

Zoning refers to land-use regulation controlled by local governments such as counties or municipalities. In principle, zoning is used to segregate incompatible uses, but in practice zoning can be used to protect incumbent businesses and residents. Previous research indicated that environmental hazards are disproportionately located in low-income or African-American neighborhoods. Using yellow page data that we collected for 2005 for 4 US cities: Tampa, Minneapolis, Birmingham, and Oakland combined with zoning information and socio-demographic demographic information, we find that low-income and African-American neighborhoods are also more likely to have alcohol sellers and gasoline stations, even though these populations do not spend money more on alcohol and gasoline. In contrast, chain grocery stores and restaurants are less likely to locate in these neighborhoods. Neighborhood alcohol sellers are not entirely bad because they lower travel costs and provide jobs and tax revenue. Nevertheless, we hypothesize that alcohol sellers are like environmental hazards in being dumped on neighborhoods with little political power. Decreased access to chain grocery stores and greater access to alcohol sellers can have adverse consequences for health.