Showing papers in "Journal of The American Planning Association in 1988"
TL;DR: The authors compared modal split-how people get from place to place for 12 countries in Western Europe and North America and found that the success of public transportation depends more on supportive urban development and automobile taxation policies than on transit subsidies.
Abstract: Urban transportation systems and travel behavior vary widely, even among countries with similar per-capita income, technology, and urbanization. This article compares modal—split—how people get from place to place—for 12 countries in Western Europe and North America. Differences in travel behavior arise largely from public policy differences, especially from differences in automobile taxation. In addition, variations in transit subsidies, land use controls, and housing programs significantly influence travel choices, although sometimes only indirectly. The success of public transportation depends more on supportive urban development and automobile taxation policies than on transit subsidies. The absence of such complementary policies in the U.S.—unlike the other countries studied—explains the ineffectiveness of the attempt to revive American public transportation exclusively through large subsidies.
143 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe a research method suitable for planning and contrast it with alternative social science approaches that yield different results, emphasizing the role of quality of life within a system of ongoing development processes.
Abstract: The comprehensive notion of community quality of life holds important opportunities for planning. Popular interest in the subject, both as a curiosity and as a goal of many interest groups, may assist with the public relations of planning and may provide a basis for negotiating consensus in planning goals. To date, planners have focused largely on individual elements of quality of life, such as transportation or housing; they have not defined and measured systematically the comprehensive community quality of life. This article describes a research method suitable for planning and contrasts it with alternative social science approaches that yield different results. The community-trend method stresses the role of quality of life within a system of ongoing development processes. The method also seeks greater policy relevance by grounding the measurements in local political reality.
140 citations
TL;DR: An overview of the tourism planning process and some typical planning principles, with emphasis on environmental and socioeconomic considerations, is presented in this article, where the authors present an overview of some typical tourism planning principles.
Abstract: Tourism has become a major global activity, and the planning of tourism is emerging as a specialized type of development planning. Planners have accumulated considerable experience on methodological approaches to tourism planning and a number of techniques, principles, and models have evolved. However, continued research and experimentation are needed, especially to determine optimum forms of tourism development for particular types of areas. This article presents an overview of the tourism planning process and some typical planning principles, with emphasis on environmental and socioeconomic considerations. As tourism continues to expand, the field of tourism planning will offer new opportunities and challenges to the planning profession.
117 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors summarized the theory of how regional urban containment policy should influence the regional land market; they gave special reference to the interaction between greenbelt and exurban land markets separated by containment policies.
Abstract: This article summarizes the theory of how regional urban containment policy should influence the regional land market; it gives special reference to the interaction between greenbelt and exurban land markets separated by containment policies. I apply a model of the theory to a case study. I find first that the demand for exurban land shifts into exurban districts and away from farmland protected in greenbelts. Second, I find that exurban land value rises the closer it gets to greenbelt land, which suggests that it captures scenic and other benefits of greenbelts. Third, I find that nearby exurban development does not affect greenbelt land values adversely, which suggests that farmers and exurban residents may coexist if their respective districts are defined. Planners who wish to protect farmland from urban households seeking low density and rural residential lifestyles within commuting range of urban centers might consider the implications of this empirical note on their efforts.
76 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the impact of impact fees on residential and non-residential real estate under different supply and demand relationships and in the short term and long term.
Abstract: We theorize how the real estate market will respond to development impact fees. We look at the effects of impact fees on residential and nonresidential real estate under different supply and demand relationships and in the short term and long term. We examine prices that developers, homebuyers, and landowners pay or receive. We also explore how impact fees affect the distribution of development among communities in metropolitan areas. We conclude, on the whole, that neither developers nor landowners will bear the major burden of paying impact fees. Rather, consumers—homebuyers, renters, or nonresidential tenants—will pay the major share of development impact fees in the long term.
74 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a revisionist interpretation of the history of land use regulation in the United States, arguing that centralized regulation quietly succeeded, even into the late 1980s' as it increasingly overcame its initial practical disadvantage of unfamiliarity.
Abstract: This article challenges the conventional accounts of the history of American land use regulation over most of the last two decades. It traces the emergence of centralized regulation in the early 1970s and presents the standard (but contradictory) explanations of what has happened to it since: the liberals' interpretation that the regulation faded and the conservatives' interpretation that it bloomed excessively. The article offers a third, more pragmatic interpretation, which reconciles the other two–that centralized regulation quietly succeeded, even into the late 1980s' as it increasingly overcame its initial practical disadvantage of unfamiliarity. The article ends by examining this revisionist interpretation's surprisingly optimistic political and professional implications for planners.
67 citations
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors identify and discuss four critical junctures in the history of the planning profession, focusing on the profession's quests for increased political efficacy, sanction and financial support from the federal government, academic respectability, and validation by the private sector.
Abstract: Present trends in urban planning threaten to alter the profession's fundamental nature. Toward a better understanding of those trends, I identify and discuss four critical junctures (or major turning points) in the history of the planning profession, focusing on the profession's quests for increased political efficacy, sanction and financial support from the federal government, academic respectability, and validation by the private sector. The article concludes with an appeal for a return to the utopian, visionary, reformist spirit that previously fueled the profession.
65 citations
TL;DR: Development impact fees are one-time charges applied to offset the additional public-service costs of new development, expanding the capacity of existing services to handle additional demand.
Abstract: Background Development impact fees are one-time charges applied to offset the additional public-service costs of new development. They are usually applied at the time a building permit is issued and are dedicated to provision of additional services, such as water and sewer systems, roads, schools, libraries, and parks and recreation facilities, made necessary by the presence of new residents in the area. The funds collected cannot be used for operation, maintenance, repair, alteration, or replacement of existing capital facilities and cannot just be added to general revenue. They are essentially user fees levied in anticipation of use, expanding the capacity of existing services to handle additional demand. The amount of the fee must be clearly linked to the added service cost, not some arbitrary amount.
58 citations
TL;DR: In Chicago between 1978 and 1987 massive downtown growth produced industrial displacement as discussed by the authors, the forced relocation of businesses alongside the new investment, jobs, and tax income, which has had different impacts on specific industries, sizes of firms, and owners or tenants.
Abstract: Public and private officials promote downtown growth as the panacea for central cities battered by economic change. Cities have mobilized substantial resources to make that growth happen. The downtown growth strategy, however, increasingly is receiving criticism for ignoring neighborhoods and for producing negative impacts on nearby neighborhoods, residents, and businesses. In Chicago between 1978 and 1987 massive downtown growth produced industrial displacement–the forced relocation of businesses–alongside the new investment, jobs, and tax income. Studies of two Chicago industrial districts show that industrial displacement is widespread but has had different impacts on specific industries, sizes of firms, and owners or tenants, In one district, industries and their industrial council have resisted displacement by opposing loft conversions and proposing municipal zoning legislation to protect viable manufacturing areas. Although it is difficult to achieve effective community organizing and creat...
43 citations
TL;DR: Project Renewal as discussed by the authors is based on lessons from American experience with neighborhood programs in general and with the Model Cities program in particular, and it aims to improve living conditions of residents and to prevent deterioration in its target areas, but those improvements were not enough to overcome the low social and economic status of the neighborhoods and their populations.
Abstract: Project Renewal, Israel's program for social and physical rehabilitation of distressed neighborhoods, is based on lessons from American experience with neighborhood programs in general and with the Model Cities program in particular. A five-year evaluation found that the project has helped to improve living conditions of residents and to prevent deterioration in its target areas, but that those improvements were not enough to overcome the low social and economic status of the neighborhoods and their populations. The major factors that led to the qualified success of Project Renewal were extensive political support, selection of “appropriate” neighborhoods, the opening of some middle class opportunities to lower income populations, and a strategy of public-individual partnership.
41 citations
TL;DR: Boyer and Savageau's Places Rated Almanac as discussed by the authors has been used as a guide to potential migrants and as a tool for reliably comparing places, but it has not had a substantive impact on local policy or planning.
Abstract: Place-rating schemes have caught the attention of both the public and professionals concerned with the welfare of specific geographic areas. The most popular is Boyer and Savageau's Places Rated Almanac. In this article we describe that publication and evaluate its usefulness as a guide to potential migrants and as a tool for reliably comparing places. We conclude that while the information in Places Rated may be of some use to footloose migrants, the volume contains some basic conceptual and measurement problems and therefore is of little use to planners who are attempting to evaluate and understand localities' quality of life. We surveyed 32 planning directors; their responses indicate that although Places Rated is widely known, it has not had a substantive impact on local policy or planning.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the basis for the rational nexus test, its more sophisticated forms, and some applications to particular types of fees, including subdivision dedication requirements and utility charges.
Abstract: Although development fees are relative newcomers to the legal scene, precedents for them exist in subdivision dedication requirements and utility charges. Courts— especially state courts—require that such fees meet a “rational nexus” test. This article describes the basis for that test, its more sophisticated forms, and some applications to particular types of fees. The 1987 U.S. Supreme Court decision in Nollan v. California Coastal Commission adds a federal constitutional requirement for a close fit between the fee and the purpose it serves. The implication of that decision for planning practice is that planners need to conduct more complete background studies than they have done in the past to support a legally defensible development fee program.
TL;DR: In this article, the rational nexus test is applied to attribute facility improvement costs to new development, and the authors discuss how to determine whether fee payers adequately benefit from the fees they pay, and calculate impact fees for water and sewer, road, park, and police facilities.
Abstract: In this article we review how local governments may apply the rational nexus test to attribute facility improvement costs to new development. We also discuss how to determine whether fee payers adequately benefit from the fees they pay, and how to calculate impact fees for water and sewer, road, park, and police facilities.
TL;DR: Progressive planners, those who are involved in radical reform, confront dilemmas in their work that do not apply to traditional social reformers as mentioned in this paper, which can affect the success of their initiatives.
Abstract: Progressive planners—those who are involved in radical reform—confront dilemmas in their work that do not apply to traditional social reformers. Because they seek to transform society into something other than what it is, progressive planners must evolve new responses to everyday problems. At the same time, they must change commonly held perceptions of how society defines those problems. Finally, they cannot avoid working with traditional political and economic organizations. The ability of progressive planners to perceive and confront those dilemmas can affect the success of their initiatives.
TL;DR: This paper conducted 87 intensive interviews, primarily with black Harlem residents, and used additional data from 131 survey respondents, and then developed a Community-Household Model based on resource sharing among households, combined with community and government supports.
Abstract: A flood of landlord-abandoned property fell to city ownership in New York; in response, the city developed programs transferring ownership to tenants, community groups, and screened landlords. A study of tenants in buildings sold through those programs revealed different patterns of response among the more successful cooperatives, co-ops still in crisis, and rental buildings; there were some similarities as well. Gender, race, and age affected tenant response. We conducted 87 intensive interviews, primarily with black Harlem residents, used additional data from 131 survey respondents, and then developed a Community-Household Model based on resource sharing among households, combined with community and government supports. We discuss the implications of the model for planning practice.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors trace the evolution of pedestrian malls in West German cities to show how the concept changed from its ad hoc origins after 1945 and became the major environmental and social feature of their city centers.
Abstract: This article traces the evolution of pedestrian malls in West German cities to show how the concept changed from its ad hoc origins after 1945 and became the major environmental and social feature of their city centers. The analysis covers the effects of lobbying groups on the creation and characteristics of the malls and the general significance of the West German experience for cities in other countries.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a survey of the theoretical strengths and weaknesses of Jacobs's theory of cities and the Wealth of Nations, and give mixed reviews for completeness, consistency, equity, technical design, and impact.
Abstract: Over the last quarter-century Jane Jacobs has developed the argument that the dense central areas of large cities are both quality living environments and the indispensable hatchery of new jobs and economic advances for society as a whole. Her most recent book, Cities and the Wealth of the Nations, extends her earlier urban design and economic thought to the regional, national, and international scales, and it completes the sketch of a general theory of planning. Despite her great popularity, her many formulations have not been summarized for professional planning audiences, located in the context of other planning ideas, or assessed for theoretical quality. This article addresses each of those topics. I find her theoretical strengths to be originality, emotional force, style, and timeliness. I give her mixed reviews for completeness, consistency, equity, technical design, and impact. Her weakest areas are in strategic detail, empirical verifiability, and documentation.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors demonstrate how the method for computing impact fees determines who bears the cost burden and conclude that impact fees, if set properly, can achieve an equity-neutral result.
Abstract: Equity-neutral impact fees should equalize the burden of paying for infrastructure facilities on all residents of a community regardless of when they move there. This article demonstrates how the method for computing impact fees determines who bears the cost burden. The article concludes the following: Impact fees, if set properly, can achieve an equity-neutral result. Equity-neutral fees are highly dependent on inflation, financing, and absorption assumptions. Economies of scale must be significant for cost savings at capacity to outweigh the carrying costs during the period in which the excess capacity is absorbed; it may be preferable to build smaller facilities with smaller excess capacity to be absorbed. An equitable approach should include regular adjustments to accommodate differences between the initial assumptions used for setting impact fees and the actual inflation and absorption rates.
TL;DR: The experience of the oldest state venture fund, the Massachusetts Technology Development Corporation (MTDC), indicates that a state can successfully operate such a fund with an expectation of eventual profit and limited employment impact as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: In recent years, several states have established venture capital funds to provide financing for new and small businesses, generally in technology-based industries, on the grounds that too few sources of venture capital exist for such firms. The experience of the oldest state venture fund, the Massachusetts Technology Development Corporation (MTDC), indicates that a state can successfully operate such a fund with an expectation of eventual profit and limited employment impact. However, state venture funds modeled after MTDC are unlikely to make a significant contribution to state economic development in broader terms, considering such issues as the structure and stability of the economy or the quality of the jobs they create.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors argue that the use of impact fees in all states can be greatly advanced if a standard impact fee enabling act in the tradition of the familiar standard planning and zoning enabling acts were made available to state legislatures.
Abstract: Communities across the nation have received varying degrees of legislative and judicial guidance in the use of development impact fees. The types of guidance range from general, liberal legislation in California, to more rigid judicial and legislative guidelines in Florida, to indirect statutory and unpredictable judicial authorization in Oregon, to vague judicial and little statutory guidance in Colorado. We argue that the use of impact fees in all states can be greatly advanced if a standard impact fee enabling act in the tradition of the familiar standard planning and zoning enabling acts were made available to state legislatures. State legislatures could then adapt the principles of such an act to their particular situations. We offer an outline of such a model act.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors reviewed how San Jose and San Diego, California, Loveland, Colorado, and Manatee County, Florida design and administer their development impact fee programs.
Abstract: While communities across the nation share common constraints in paying for growth, the design and administration of impact fee programs vary considerably among communities that use them to generate new revenue. This article reviews how San Jose and San Diego, California, Loveland, Colorado, and Manatee County, Florida design and administer their development impact fee programs. We selected those communities for review because of their diversity and their aggressiveness in finding ways to pay for growth. San Jose's system of impact charges evolved over two decades. San Diego applies a comprehensive menu of impact fees only to planned communities outside the built-up urban area. Loveland applies a comprehensive capital facility cost recovery system citywide. Manatee County recently applied an impact fee system for the entire county, but fees vary by location within the county. We conclude with some words of wisdom for planners and local government officials who are considering impact fee programs f...
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors address five of the ethical principles for planners and public planning officials that the Board of Directors of the American Planning Association adopted on April 26, 1987, which concern planning processes and political values.
Abstract: This commentary addresses five of the ethical principles for planners and public planning officials that the Board of Directors of the American Planning Association adopted on April 26, 1987. Principles 1 through 5 concern planning processes and political values. All 13 principles appear in full on these pages; my commentary focuses on the first five.
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors show that the U.S. Congress passed the Uniform Relocation Act (P.L. 91-646) in 1970 to minimize the adverse impacts of displacement on individuals and on communities.
Abstract: The U.S. Congress passed the Uniform Relocation Act (P.L. 91-646) in 1970 to minimize the adverse impacts of displacement on individuals and on communities. Based on data from Baltimore, Maryland, this article tests the thesis that the act has achieved its two main goals. The first goal was to move households into decent and affordable housing. The second was to move households into comparable if not more desirable neighborhoods and, in the process, to promote racial integration and “deconcentrate” the ghetto. The study concludes that Baltimore has met both goals only partially.
TL;DR: A visit to a dozen of the better-known planning schools during the 1986-1987 academic year, points up several traits by which one can distinguish planning from other fields, and presents several criticisms of the education enterprise as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Planning education is at an exciting threshold. Planning pervades public and private life; and the potential for understanding, engaging, and advancing society through planning is vast. Planning schools now apply planning to a broad array of subjects, and the definitions of planning seem to vary as much as its applications. This article, the result of visits to a dozen of the better-known planning schools during the 1986-1987 academic year, points up several traits by which one can distinguish planning from other fields, and presents several criticisms of the education enterprise. It concludes that planning education is a high calling and that planning educators are practicing that calling in some remarkable ways.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors outline some of the major concerns that staff should address in designing an impact fee system and emphasize coordinating components of local staff work and facilitating the spending of the revenues.
Abstract: Although much attention has focused recently on the adoption of impact fee assessments, the tasks required to implement an impact fee system successfully receive little emphasis. With ten years experience in administering impact fee assessments, Broward County, Florida has accumulated valuable insights into the implementation process. Based on the Broward County experience, I outline some of the major concerns that staff should address in designing an impact fee system. I emphasize coordinating components of local staff work and facilitating the spending of the revenues.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors document the impact of race riots on the Detroit City Plan Commission, focusing on the archives of the commission and emphasizing the period from 1967 until the city implemented a new city charter in 1974.
Abstract: The events immediately following the 1967 Detroit race riot set in motion organizational changes within the city government that radically altered the status of planning in the city. In this paper, I document the impact of those changes on the Detroit City Plan Commission. Many of the changes developed because of the new postriot environment. Historical evidence focuses on the archives of the commission, and emphasizes the period from 1967 until Detroit implemented a new city charter in 1974.
TL;DR: In this article, the authors identify factors that have contributed to success or failure of Project Renewal, using the theoretical perspective of implementation analysis, including promotion of innovation through a major footloose agency, a pipeline for transfer of technologies from other countries, availability of a policy shelter during the project's formative stages, long-term...
Abstract: Decentralization is an important principle in Israel's national program for social and physical regeneration of distressed neighborhoods. Evaluation of the results indicates that decentralization has been achieved, but in a manner wrought with compromises. However, when we assess it against Israels entrenched tradition of highly centralized decision making, we regard decentralization in Project Renewal as a qualified success. To make the lessons of Project Renewal useful, I identify factors that have contributed to success or failure, using the theoretical perspective of implementation analysis. While the inhibiting factors are generally familiar from the literature on implementation, some supportive factors are unique to Project Renewal and account for its relative success. Those factors include promotion of innovation through a major footloose agency, a pipeline for transfer of technologies from other countries, availability of a “policy shelter” during the project's formative stages, long-term...