This study extends the Vertical Enclave Model (VEM), a framework I developed in a prior thesis on Indo-Guyanese homeownership patterns in Queens, to Washington Heights, a renter-majority Dominican community where the original model’s ownership-based mechanism does not apply. The resulting renter-adapted variant, the VEM-D, is tested against the enclave’s spatial evolution from 1980 to 1990. Instead of dispersing amid rapid demographic growth, the enclave’s footprint experienced a dual process of local densification and geographic expansion: the historic core in Upper Manhattan maintained an Enclave Density Index far exceeding the statewide average, while density in the adjacent zone nearly doubled over the decade. This trajectory supports cumulative causation theory, showing the enclave matured into a stable, permanent urban fixture rather than a temporary hub. A logistic regression restricted to renter households, with one record per household to avoid duplicating shared household-level outcomes, indicates that residence in higher-EDI borough-year contexts is associated with modestly lower odds of severe rent burden: each additional unit increase in the Enclave Density Index corresponds to roughly 9 percent lower odds, and each additional household member to roughly 14 percent lower odds. Because EDI varies across only four Manhattan/Bronx-by-census-year values, this association is descriptive rather than a person-level or causal protective effect of enclave density. This pattern carries a stratification premium linked to arrival timing: the Settler cohort arriving during the 1980-1990 wave shows roughly 50 percent higher odds of severe burden than early arrivals, a probability-scale gap of about 7.6 percentage points. The VEM-D’s paradox is that the enclave grew rather than dispersed under this migration pressure, but that growth carried a measurable cost that fell disproportionately on the newest arrivals.

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Geography & Environmental Sciences, Hunter College The City University of New York 2026

This study quantifies environmental justice disparities in PM2.5 exposure among communities surrounding John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City. Using a buffer-based proximity analysis validated by the Airport Cooperative Research Program, PM2.5 exposure estimates were assigned to 1,042 census tracts within a 10-mile radius, ranging from 8.5 μg/m³ in areas 0-1 mile from the airport to 6.5 μg/m³ beyond 5 miles. Demographic data from the 2019-2023 American Community Survey were integrated to assess exposure disparities. Statistical analysis revealed that high-minority census tracts (>86.9% minority) experience significantly higher PM2.5 concentrations than low-minority tracts (6.79 vs. 6.55 μg/m³; p < 0.001), representing a 3.7% disparity with a medium-large effect size (Cohen's d = 0.74). Spatial Error Model regression, selected via Lagrange Multiplier diagnostics (AIC = -1,708 vs. OLS AIC = 624), confirmed that minority percentage remains a significant predictor of PM2.5 exposure (β = 0.0007, p = 0.009) after controlling for spatial autocorrelation (Moran's I = 0.93, p < 0.001). Modifiable Areal Unit Problem analysis across three spatial scales demonstrated robustness at the census tract and block group levels, but findings were not statistically significant at the coarser ZCTA scale. Local Indicators of Spatial Association identified pollution hotspots in southern Queens and the Rockaways, where 1.77 million residents in high-minority tracts face disproportionate chronic exposure. These findings document systematic environmental injustice, demonstrating that minority communities bear a disproportionate share of airport-related pollution and providing evidence for targeted mitigation and equitable policy interventions.

Section 9 Lab 3 Part 1

Section 9 Lab 3 Part 2

GTECH Final Project Data Visualiation using R

Section 09 Lab 3 Interactive Web Map