LAND USE PLANNING

Main articles: urban planning

'Land use planning' is the term used for a branch of public policy which encompasses various disciplines which seek to order and regulate the use of land in an efficient and ethical way.
Despite confusing nomenclature, the essential function of land use planning remains the same whatever term is applied. The Canadian Institute of Planners offers a definition that:
"''[Land use] planning means the scientific, aesthetic, and orderly disposition of land, resources, facilities and services with a view to securing the physical, economic and social efficiency, health and well-being of urban and rural communities"''[1]

Contents

Nomenclature

Functions of land use planning

See also

External links

Nomenclature

In the English speaking world, the terms ''land use planning'', ''town and country planning'', ''regional planning'', ''town planning'', ''urban planning'', and ''urban design'' are often used interchangeably, and will depend on the country in question. In Europe the preferred term is increasingly ''spatial planning'' or more recently ''territorial cohesion'' (for regional and trans-national planning).
In Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and New Zealand, the term ''town planning'' is common, although ''regional planning'' and ''land use planning'' are also used.
In the United States, the terms ''urban planning'' and ''regional planning'' are more commonly used.

Functions of land use planning

At its most basic level land use planning is likely to involve zoning and transport infrastructure planning. In most developed countries, land use planning is an important part of social policy, ensuring that land is used efficiently for the benefit of the wider economy and population as well as to protect the environment.
Land use planning encompasses the following disciplines:

★ Architecture

★ Environmental planning

★ Landscape architecture

★ Regional Planning

★ Spatial planning

★ Sustainable Development

★ Transportation Planning

★ Urban design

★ Urban planning

★ Urban Renaissance

★ Urban renewal
Architecture, urban design, urban planning, landscape architecture and urban renewal usually address the selection of physical layout, scale of development, aesthetics, costs of alternatives and selection of building materials and impact upon landscape and species.
Environmental planning, will often address the implications of development and plans upon the environment, for example Strategic Environmental Assessment. At the very local level environmental planning may imply the use of tools to forecast impacts of development decisions, including roadway noise, and pollution, surface runoff and flooding assessments.
Because of the many disciplines and knowledge domains involved, land use planners are increasingly making use of Information Technology, such as Geographic Information Systems, and Spatial Decision Support Systems, to assist with analysis and decision-making.

See also

★ Context theory

★ Eminent domain

★ Environmental impact assessment

★ Geographic information system

★ Land Allocation Decision Support System

★ Principles of Intelligent Urbanism

★ Regulatory taking

★ Spatial Decision Support Systems

★ Transit-oriented development

★ Zoning

External links

★ [2] A definition from Manchester Metropolitan University.

★ [3] Schindler's Land Use Page (Michigan State University Extension Land Use Team)

★ [4] Combining deliberative and computer-based methods for multi-objective land-use planning], Matthews et al.

★ [5] The 'Smart Growth' network.