THE PRACTICE of URBAN PLANNING in CANADA by JOHN
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THE PRACTICE OF URBAN PLANNING IN CANADA by JOHN KENT GERECKE B.A. University of Saskatchewan, 1969, A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF .MASTER OF ARTS in the school of Community and Regional Planning We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standards THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA May 1971 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study, I further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the Head of my Department or by his representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. School of Community and Regional Planning The University of British Columbia Vancouver 8, Canada Despite the presence and growth of urban planning, urban problems persist and in some instances are worsening. A major problem of urban planning appears to be an inability to achieve a high level of accomplish• ment. Urban planning in Canada was examined by the Federal Task Force on Housing and Urban Development in 19^9. They found it to be reactive, neg• ative, without sociological or. ecological concerns, and lacking in vision. These judgments are intuitive and require verification, but no empirical evidence is available on the practice of Canadian urban planning. The objective of this study, therefore, is to provide empirical evidence on the practice of urban planning in Canada in 1970 as a basis for its further assessment. To guide this study, the following hypothesis was tested: that the practice of urban planning in Canada follows the traditional model (physical orientation, reliance on long range plans, and an apolitical stance). A three stage approach was adopted to test the hypothesis and describe the practices examination of 1. procedural variables, 2, external variables, and 3. planning decisions. Procedural and external variables were iden• tified from theoretical literature and empirical studies done in the U.S.A. Data was collected through a questionnaire mailed to the 7k urban planning directors in Canada of which 53 responses were received. For further under• standing of the practice, three hypotheses about the determinants of the practice were tested using the Chi-square statistic (the practice is deter• mined by 1. location of the agency, 2. local power structure, and 3. a com• plex of variables). In search of a more definitive explanation, a multi• variate statistical technique was applied to the data. Lastly, an analysis of the important planning decisions over the past five years was made. This study has found that the traditional hypothesis cannot be accept• ed. Rather the practice has been modified in a complex way which de-emphas• izes comprehensive planning, new ideas and the apolitical stance, and places new emphasis on physical development, zoning and subdivision regulations. Furthermore, Canadian, urban planning has not met urban problems because it has a limited approach. This limited approach has not been fully recognized or appreciated which leaves a void in the total planning spectrum. I. INTRODUCTION 1 The Problem . 1 Objectives ....... 3 Methodology 6 Review of Previous. Studies .............. 9 Questionnaire Survey ... 14 Organization of Balance of this Thesis ........ 15 II. PROCEDURAL CONCEPTS IN THE PRACTICE OF URBAN PLANNING . 17 Development of Planning Procedures .......... 18' Procedural Concepts ....... 21 Summary ......... .......... 28 III. URBAN PLANNING PROCEDURES IN CANADA . 29 Nine Procedural Variables Measured .......... 29 Summary 40 IV. DETERMINANTS OF THE PRACTICE OF URBAN PLANNING IN CANADA 45 Three Hypotheses .... 46 Multivariate Analysis of the Canadian Planning Practice 55 Summary . ......... ^2 V. IMPORTANT URBAN PLANNING DECISIONS IN CANADA 1966-1970 . 64 Important Planning Decisions Classified by Subject Matter 65 Analysis of Subject Matter for Important Planning Decisions ...................... 67 Types of Community Planning Activity by Cities 7^ Summary . 76 VI. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 78 Procedural Variables 79 External Variables , 85 Three Hypotheses 85 Decision Analysis . .« . 86 Task Force Questions , . ..... 86 Testing the Traditional Hypothesis ..... 89 Concept of "Limited Function" . 93 BIBLIOGRAPHY ' . 100 APPENDICES 106 APPENDIX A: LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL 107 APPENDIX B: QUESTIONNAIRE 108 APPENDIX C: : UNIVERSE AND RESPONDENTS Il6 APPENDIX D: WALKER'S CONCLUSIONS .... 118 APPENDIX E: SELECTED SURVEY RESULTS 120 APPENDIX F: UNIQUE CONCEPTION OF PLANNING 123 APPENDIX G: SUMMARY OF CHI SQUARE RESULTS 124 APPENDIX H: SIGNIFICANT CHI SQUARES 126 LIST OF TABLES I. Method of Goal Identification . 29 II. Method of Data Collection 30 III. Participation in Plan Preparation ........... 31 IV. Form of Recommendation 32 V. Implementation ..................... 32 VI. Research Function 33 VII. Strategy Alternatives ......... 34 VIII. Date of Establishment of Planning Agencies 37 IX. Role of Agency 37 X. Principal Role of Planning Directors. 39 XI. Expected Procedures for Traditional Model of Planning . 43 XII. Directness of Communication to Decision Makers .... 4? XIII. Local Power Structure 49 XIV. Best Classification Variables 57 XV. Principal Function of Planning Agencies i .-' . Vv \ 6} XVI. Important Planning Decisions Classified by Subject Matter 66 XVII. Summary of Decision Types ....... 68 XVIII. Classification of Important Decisions Initiated by Directors 71 XIX. Types of Important Decisions Initiated by Directors . 72 XX. Cities by Type of Planning Activity 75 ACKNOWLEDGMENT I have been extremely fortunate academically to have received assist• ance and guidance from Professor Brahm Wiesman. It is through such a per• son that the much sought after bridge between theory and practice in plan• ning will emerge. In making this meagre accomplishment I am particularly indebted to my wife, Wendy, for her encouragement, perseverence, support, and many extradorinary skills including typing and proof reading this document. For encouraging me to strive toward this educational achievement, I am indebted to the many professional planners under whom I have worked. Particularly I must express my appreciation to Ned Ames and Julian Whittl• esey. Finally I acknowledge the financial support provided me through Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation Fellowships over' the past two years without which this project could not have been completed. INTRODUCTION This study examines the practice of urban planning in Canada in 1970 as it was carried out by the professionally staffed agencies in local gov• ernment. The practice will be described in terms of its procedures, ex• ternal determinants, and the most important planning decisions made in the community in the preceding five years. Data for this study was obtained by a bilingual questionnaire mailed to all planning directors in Canada. Fifty three responses were received out of a possible total of seventy four. For this study, the practice of planning means the urban planning activity conducted by Canadian municipalities through a full time professional staff. The Problem The rise of urban planning in this country has coincided with an in• creasing awareness and concern for city problems. Planning has held gr&at promise but in spite of its achievements it has not had a resounding success in curing urban ills. The major problem of urban planning therefore appears to be an inability to achieve a high level of accomplishmnet. Grave city maladies such as poor housing, poverty, lack of open space, inadequate transportation, pollution, landscape deterioration, and social pathologies persist and are in some instances worsening.* The sporadic success of Lithwick, N.H., Urban Canada; Problems and Prospects, report prepared for the Honorable R.K. Andras, Minister responsible for Housing and Urban Development, Government of Canada, Ottawa 1970, p. 19. planning leads one to ask to what extent urban planning is equipped to meet such challenges? Most urban critics would agree with the limited success of urban plan• ning but where is the evidence to support such a broad claim? This reveals an overriding problem of insufficient information about the practice of planning to permit objective evaluation. In the United States there has been only six major empirical studies of the contemporary practice of plan• ning and none in Canada. The American studies by Walker,. Meyerson and Ban- field, Daland and Parker, Altshuler, Rabinovitz and Burby are elaborated on later in this chapter. A preliminary study by Hitchcock at the University of Toronto will also be mentioned.^ The best evidence for the Canadian scene at present is from the 19°9 "Report on the Task Force on Housing and Urban Development.The Task Force had the opportunity of examining urban planning across the country, and from their cursory review they were "dis• appointed" and "discouraged" by what they saw. Even in the best of situations urban planning was a reactive and not a pre-emptive process....So much of it was concerned with minutiae while the need for a grand urban design goes begging. So much of it was a negative scripture, written in "thou shalt not's", when the: zsee Walker, R.A., The Planning Function in Urban Government, (Chic• ago i University of Chicago Press, 1940)j Meyerson, M., and Banfield, E.C., Politics, Planning and the Public Interest,