Governmental Reorganization and Metropolitics: Determinants Central to a Normative Theory of Metropolitan Planning

Abstract

The precept central to this research is that the current methodologies of urban planning are inappropriate for the proper management and planning of urban change in metropolitan areas even when practiced in an environment composed of reorganized local governmental structures and revamped systems of functional assignment procedures. Specifically, the primary objective was to examine the relationships among metropolitan planning, government reorganization strategies, urban political systems of decision making, and the forces of metropolitanization, in an attempt to uncover better evidence as regards the growing lack of success with metropolitan planning in managing land development and in providing adequate services to the public. Careful analysis has revealed that the forces of urban centralization and decentralization have created pressures for areawide planning. However, metropolitan planning was found to be largely ineffective for three reasons: (1) planning methodologies and the planning process are fragmented and too narrow in scope to deal with the relatedness of various social, economic, and political factors of metropolitan decision making; (2) metropolitan planning lacks an appropriate areawide governmental basis to effectuate sound planning and management of urban change; and (3) the separation of planning from the politics of metropolitan decision making has relegated the role of planning to the public officials rather than with the planning agencies who are responsible for the proper conduct of that function. To correct the long-term implications of this evidence, this research proposes the immediate creation of Metropolitan Planning and Development Authorities by State legislatures with Federal backing and fiscal incentives. Recommendations as to the specifics of this proposal are fully substantiated by the conclusions of the analysis contained herein. The conceptual and operational basis of these MPDAs would be a normative framework for metropolitan planning. Such a framework is fully described in this study. When viewed from the realistic standpoint as concerns the need for a broad-based strategy that can accomodate the proper planning and management of our metropolises, these proposals and recommendations are deemed as necessary and warranted.