Curtin University of Technology

Department of Urban and Regional Planning

Faculty of Built Environment, Art and Design

Planning Theory 413/ 512

Assessment Three

Final Paper: Planning Theory - Urban Sprawl

Word Count 3109

Lecturers: Oren Yiftachel

Shaphan Cox

 

Students: Joel Quartermaine

Lorenzo Santoriello

Student Numbers:1289 1526

1306 2598

Role of Planning

That main question driving planning in theoretical debates is ‘what is good planning?’ The under lying issues which add to the scale of the question include such questions as; what results in good planning? Urban form? The procedure? Power? Justice? Equity? All of these questions are the foundation for the extensive research and thought that has gone into planning theory.

Planning as a profession does not have any set in stone guidelines for process/decision making etc. As a profession planning is wide ranging and diverse in nature. Because of this openness, there is a lot of room for interpretation of existing ideologies and many theories interlink and overlap making the process of understanding 'what good planning is' become difficult to pinpoint and more importantly defined to town planners in the profession.

Planning is the profession, which links the community with the government through urban form. Due to this ideas of equity within urban planning have increasingly become more dominant at a national level (Alexander n.d.). The prominence of planning to the community is outlined by Alexander;

Increasingly, a citizen’s real standard of living, the health of himself and his family, his children’s opportunities for education and self-improvement, his access to employment opportunities, his ability to enjoy the nation’s resources for recreation and culture…are determined not by his income, not by the hours he works, but by where he lives (Alexander n.d.).

Urban planning, which theoretically guides development and overall layout of the metropolitan area has direct responsibility for a persons welfare and standard of living even though they have no link with a persons personal finance (Faludi 1973).

Procedural Theory

There has been an emergence of three main streams of planning theory; the urban form debate, the procedural debate and the analytical debate. All theories have a basic foundation on the way in which planning is practiced and trying to understand what constitutes ‘good planning’ (Yiftachel 1991). The most relevant theory to urban sprawl at this point is procedural theory. Procedural theory is the characterisation of planning decision making, it is a focus on the decision making process. Procedural theory must be the ‘envelope over substantive theories in practical operation of planning’ (Faludi 1973). This debate is linked with the other planning theories and these links can become clear whilst analysing the process of decision making from a theoretical point of view. The procedural debates due to their vastness in nature does not only apply to planning theory, it stems into other academia such as the ‘field of decision making theories.’ (Yiftachel 1991).  

Within the procedural debate, there are several decision-making theories, which play a significant role in theorising planning from this perspective. One of which is the design process. This theory is based on inspiration as an over arching guidance role that constitutes and results in good planning. The backbone of this approach is the idea advocated by Geddes; ‘survey before plan’. This dominated planning until the 1960s (Yiftachel 1991). The validity of this approach was weakened throughout the 1970s when wide ranging effects that planning decisions have on the wider community was recognised and accountability to the general public was increasing (Yiftachel 1991). This approach was adopted by the 1930 plan in Western Australia (Yiftachel 1991).

The second is the rational comprehensive planning approach. ‘A good planning process is rational, scientific and comprehensive (Yiftachel 1991). It is based on clear objectives, which are based on public input/interest. This approach represents an evolution of the design approach. There has been a lot of criticism of this type of approach but it has been the most dominant and most used by planners in the field (Yiftachel 1991). This was the basis of the corridor plan and the Stevenson and Hepburn plan 1955 (Yiftachel 1991).

Further on in related theory comes the mixed scanning approach. This approach is based upon compromise between comprehension and incrementalism (Yiftachel 1991). It is a compromise between great attention to detail and the broad brush type of approach. The areas, which require great attention to detail, need to be identified in this approach for the desired ‘good planning’ process to be reached.

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Other approaches include the transactive planning approach, which is based on client/ customer service/focus (Yiftachel 1991). The Advocacy planning approach which sets out that disadvantaged groups needed to be assisted then it can push general planning in a better direction (based on the ideas of equity) (Yiftachel 1991).

It is clear that from this procedural focus on planning methods that there is a great diversity in ideologies within the planning profession and there are many options for planning authorities to try to achieve the basic foundation of the profession which is achieving good planning.

Theory in ...

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