Latin American City Model

The Latin American City Model (also called the Griffin-Ford model) is an urban structure model showing a central CBD with a wealthy commercial spine extending outward, rings of declining housing quality, and informal squatter settlements (the periférico) on the city's edge.

What is the Latin American City Model?

The Latin American City Model, often called the Griffin-Ford model, explains the internal structure of cities like Mexico City, Bogotá, and Lima. At the center sits a thriving central business district (CBD), a legacy of Spanish colonial planning that put the plaza, cathedral, and government buildings in the middle. From the CBD, a commercial spine of shops, offices, and high-end amenities extends outward, and the wealthiest residents cluster along it in an elite sector.

Moving away from the center, housing quality drops. The zone of maturity has older but solid, fully serviced homes. The zone of in situ accretion is a work-in-progress area where residents gradually improve their houses over time. On the outermost ring sits the periférico, made up of informal squatter settlements (think favelas or barrios) with limited access to water, electricity, and sewage. Disamenity zones, like steep slopes or polluted corridors, cut through the city and hold the poorest residents. The big idea is that the income pattern runs opposite to the classic North American model. In Latin American cities, wealth concentrates at the center and along the spine, while poverty pushes to the edge.

Why the Latin American City Model matters in AP Human Geography

This model lives in Topic 6.5, The Internal Structure of Cities, in Unit 6. Learning objective AP Human Geography 6.5.A asks you to explain city structure using various models, and EK PSO-6.D.1 specifically lists urban models drawn from Latin America alongside the Burgess concentric-zone model, the Hoyt sector model, the multiple-nuclei model, the galactic city model, and bid-rent theory. The Latin American model is your proof that urban models aren't universal. Colonial history, rapid rural-to-urban migration, and informal economies produce a city shape that North American models simply can't predict. That's exactly the kind of regional comparison the exam loves.

How the Latin American City Model connects across the course

Burgess Concentric Zone Model (Unit 6)

The Latin American model is basically the Burgess model with the income gradient flipped. Burgess puts the poor near the CBD and the rich on the edge; the Latin American model puts the elite near the center and squatter settlements on the periphery. If an exam question describes where the rich live, you can tell these two models apart instantly.

Central Business District (CBD) (Unit 6)

Both models start with a CBD, but in the Latin American model the CBD stays vibrant and desirable because of its colonial plaza roots. It doesn't hollow out the way many North American downtowns did.

Periphery (Unit 6)

The periférico of squatter settlements is the model's signature feature. Rural migrants arrive faster than formal housing can be built, so informal settlements grow on cheap land at the city's edge. This connects directly to rural-to-urban migration patterns you studied with push and pull factors.

Galactic City Model (Unit 6)

Both are alternatives to the classic Burgess and Hoyt models, but they explain different worlds. The galactic city model captures car-dependent North American sprawl with edge cities, while the Latin American model captures rapid urbanization in developing countries. Together they show why one model can't fit every city.

Is the Latin American City Model on the AP Human Geography exam?

Multiple-choice questions usually hand you a description or map of a city and ask which model fits. The giveaway for the Latin American model is the location of wealth and poverty. If the elite live near the center or along a spine and informal settlements ring the outside, that's Latin American. Watch out for stems that describe the opposite pattern (poor inner ring, rich periphery), because that points to Burgess instead. Stems describing mixed land use with no clear zones point to the Southeast Asian model, and high-income corridors radiating outward point to Hoyt's sectors. On FRQs, this model supports comparison tasks. You might be asked to explain how urban structure differs between a city in the periphery of the world economy and a North American city, or to explain a consequence of squatter settlements. No released FRQ has used the term verbatim, but EK PSO-6.D.1 names regional models explicitly, so being able to describe the spine, zone of maturity, and periférico in your own words is fair game.

The Latin American City Model vs Burgess Concentric Zone Model

Both models use rings around a CBD, which is why they get mixed up. The difference is the direction of the wealth gradient. In the Burgess model (built from 1920s Chicago), housing quality improves as you move outward, so the poorest residents live in the zone of transition next to the CBD and the rich commute from the edge. The Latin American model reverses this. The elite live near the center and along the commercial spine, and the poorest residents live in squatter settlements on the periphery. On the exam, ask one question first: where do the wealthy live? Near the center means Latin American; on the outer ring means Burgess.

Key things to remember about the Latin American City Model

• The Latin American City Model (Griffin-Ford model) describes cities with a strong CBD, a commercial spine lined by an elite sector, and informal squatter settlements called the periférico on the outer edge.

• Housing quality declines as you move away from the center, which is the opposite of the Burgess concentric zone model's pattern.

• The thriving central plaza and CBD reflect Spanish colonial planning, showing how historical forces shape urban structure.

• The periférico grows because rural-to-urban migration outpaces formal housing construction, forcing migrants into informal settlements without full services.

• EK PSO-6.D.1 lists Latin American urban models alongside Burgess, Hoyt, multiple-nuclei, galactic city, and bid-rent theory as tools for explaining the internal structure of cities.

• On model-identification questions, locate the wealthy first. Wealth at the center and along a spine signals the Latin American model.

Frequently asked questions about the Latin American City Model

What is the Latin American City Model in AP Human Geography?

It's an urban model (also called the Griffin-Ford model) showing a central CBD, a commercial spine with an elite residential sector, a zone of maturity, a zone of in situ accretion, and a ring of squatter settlements called the periférico on the city's edge. It appears in Topic 6.5 under EK PSO-6.D.1.

Do rich people live in the center or the suburbs in the Latin American City Model?

Near the center. The elite cluster along the commercial spine extending from the CBD, while the poorest residents live in informal settlements on the periphery. That's the reverse of the typical North American pattern.

How is the Latin American City Model different from the Burgess model?

They flip the income gradient. Burgess (based on 1920s Chicago) puts low-income housing in the zone of transition next to the CBD and wealth on the outskirts. The Latin American model puts wealth at the center and along the spine, with squatter settlements on the outer ring.

What is the periférico in the Latin American City Model?

The periférico is the outermost ring of informal squatter settlements, like favelas in Brazil or barrios elsewhere in Latin America. These areas grow rapidly because rural migrants arrive faster than cities can build formal housing, so they often lack water, sewage, and electricity.

Is the Latin American City Model the same as the Griffin-Ford model?

Yes. Griffin-Ford is just the name of the geographers who developed it, so the two names refer to the same model. The AP CED groups it under urban models drawn from Latin America.