Planning Strategies in an Age of Active Citizenship Active Age of in an Planning Strategies Beitske Boonstra, MSc Planning Strategies in an Planning Strategies Age of Active Citizenship in an Age of Active Citizenship Civic initiatives in spatial development are on the rise. Beitske Boonstra works A Post-structuralist Agenda for Self-organization They emerge from civil society spontaneously and are as research scientist at in Spatial Planning unpredictable, dynamic, and multiplicit. Therefore, TNO Strategy & Policy for they are often at odds with the inclusionary and Environmental Planning. disciplinary confines of participatory planning and She holds a Master existing planning frameworks. Planning strategies that degree in Urbanism answer to the dynamics of civic initiatives, meeting the (Delft University of complexity of an age of active citizenship, have so far Technology) (2005) and been seriously underdeveloped. Based on empirical defends her PhD in Urban studies of civic initiatives in Denmark, the Netherlands and Regional Planning and England, and a theoretical hybrid of complexity (Utrecht University) in theory (self-organization), actor-network theory 2015. At TNO her research (translation), and assemblage theory (individuation), projects are positioned on this book argues toward a spatial planning that does the crossovers between fit the age of active citizenship. A spatial planning that spatial planning, economic focusses on conditions that open up, on navigation, development, public and on creating consistency between a redundancy administration, new of spatial initiatives. And most importantly, the book technologies and process argues toward a flat ontology of planning, in which innovation. She works there are no a priori differences between the intentions under commission of local, and performed behavior of planning actors – including provincial and national citizens, entrepreneurs, governments, and many others. governments, and she is participant and initiator of national and international Beitske Boonstra, MSc research consortia. Beitske is frequent speaker on conferences and (guest) lecturer at various Dutch universities. Planning Strategies in an Age of Active Citizenship A Post-structuralist Agenda for Self-organization in Spatial Planning Planningsstrategieën in een tijd van actief burgerschap Een poststructuralistische agenda voor zelforganisatie in ruimtelijke planning (met samenvatting in het Nederlands) Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor aan de Universiteit Utrecht op gezag van rector magnificus prof. dr. G.J. van der Zwaan, ingevolge het besluit van het college voor promoties te verdediging op vrijdag 11 november 2015 des middags te 12.45 uur door Beitske Boonstra geboren op 29 september 1981 te Velsen Promotoren: Prof. dr. ir. L. Boelens Prof. dr. T.J.M. Spit Planning Strategies in an Age of Active Citizenship A POST-STRUCTURALIST AGENDA FOR SELF-ORGANIZATION IN SPATIAL PLANNING Beitske Boonstra, MSc PhD Series InPlanning, book 7 © Beitske Boonstra, October 2015 The research presented in this dissertation was conducted under supervision of Utrecht University and University of Ghent. The research was partly funded by TNO (Netherlands Organisation of Applied Scientific Research) as part of the research programs “Stad als Systeem” and “ERP Zelfredzaamheid”, and by the Dutch research program “Knowledge for Climate, Climate Proof Cities (Theme 4)”, funded by the Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment. This publication has been made possible with contributions from Utrecht University, TNO Strategy & Policy and TNO Smart Cities. ISBN e-book 978-94-91937-15-6 Internal and cover design André Diepgrond (In Ontwerp, Assen) Photo cover Hans Gerritsen, Scapino Ballet Rotterdam, “Pearl” Digital access InPlanning Technical Team InPlanning Editor in Chief Gert de Roo PhD Series InPlanning Published by InPlanning Oude Kijk in ’t Jatstraat 6, 9712 EG Groningen, The Netherlands [email protected] www.inplanning.eu InPlanning is legally registered as cooperative under KvK 58997121 In Planning is the Platform supporting AESOP, the Association of European Schools of Planning, for sharing information on spatial planning. The InPlanning PhD Series supports the publication and distribution of PhD theses produced within Schools of Planning. The InPlanning PhD Series is part of the InPlanning portfolio of books, journals, posters, videos, documentaries and other information carriers. The InPlan- ning PhD Series is available on the InPlanning App for tablets (iOS and Android) and via www.inplanning.eu. This work is intellectual property and subject to copyright. All rights reserved, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the ‘Auteurswet’ (Copyright Law) of the 23th of September 1912, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from InPlanning. Violations are liable to prosecution under Dutch Law. To do TABLE OF CONTENTS 6 Table of contents Summary 9 Samenvatting 15 1 The Challenge of Civic Initiatives in Spatial Planning 23 1.1 Wanted! Active and Involved Citizens 24 1.2 A Short History of Participatory Planning 30 1.3 An Inclusionary Practice 38 1.4 Research Question and Objectives 44 2 The Emergence of Complexity 49 2.1 Turning to Complexity 50 2.2 Complexity in Governance and Planning 55 2.3 Divergent Readings of Complexity: Romantic and Baroque 59 2.4 Divergent Understandings of Complex Adaptive Systems 63 2.5 The Road to take Concerning Civic Initiatives 73 3 A Post-Structuralist Understanding of Self-Organization 77 3.1 A Post-structuralist Ontology 78 3.2 Post-structuralist Self-Organization 84 3.3 Post-structuralist Perspectives on Space, Place, and Planning 99 4 A Diagram of Processes of Becoming 111 4.1 Four Forms of Behavior in Processes of Becoming 112 4.2 Translation in Three Intentionalities 125 5 The Empirical Perspective: Introduction to the Case Studies 133 5.1 Multiple Case Study Research 134 5.2 Tracing the Individual Cases 138 5.3 Plotting the Traces on the Diagram 141 5.4 Formulating Answers to the Research Questions 146 6 A Practice of Do-It-Yourself, Together: The Case of Co-housing, Denmark 151 6.1 The Netherlands and Denmark: A Different Context for Co-housing 154 6.2 Three Co-housing Projects 163 6.3 Conclusions 183 TABLE OF CONTENTS 7 7 A Legal Framework for Collective Action: The Case of Business Improvement Districts, England 193 7.1 BIDs: A Trajectory with Many Ambiguities 195 7.2 An English Referential Case Study 207 7.3 The BIDs of Birmingham 215 7.4 Conclusions 257 8 Policy to Put Citizens in the Lead: The Case of Almere, the Netherlands 277 8.1 A Short History of the Planning and Planning Ideas of Almere 279 8.2 Four Civic Initiatives 288 8.3 Conclusions 316 9 Conclusions: Planning Strategies that Fit an Age of Active Citizenship 331 9.1 Conclusion 1: Conditions that “Open Up” 335 9.2 Conclusion 2: The Need for Navigators 342 9.3 Conclusion 3: The Flat Ontology of Planning Strategy 352 9.4 Conclusion 4: The Art of Creating Consistency 362 9.5 The Great Beyond: Critical Reflections and a Flight Forward 370 Bibliography 375 Acknowledgements 413 About the author 417 8 SUMMARY 9 SUMMARY Civic initiatives in spatial development are on the rise. Whereas for a long time they were just a fringe movement, sometimes even a stand in the way of planned urban development, civic initiatives today are increasingly seen as valuable strategies for urban development. Chapter 1 illuminates the motivation for this research on civic initiatives. It describes how many European governments, including the Dutch, speak eagerly of “active citizenship”. They wish for citizens to be involved in public policy processes and in “civic initiatives.” So far, spatial planning mostly focused on strategies for citizen involvement through participatory planning. In participatory planning, citizens can exert influence on goals set by governmental agencies, through procedures and frameworks that are set by the same governments and planners. This results in disciplinary processes of thematic, procedural, and geographical inclusion. Civic initiatives differ from this prevailing partici- patory practice. They are issue-oriented projects serving a specific but dynamic community interest, which are often not at all related to any ongoing public policy. Civic initiatives can be undertaken by residents, entrepreneurs, artists, etc., in loose and informal structures, and differ fundamentally from initiatives in the private (individual), public and business sphere. They are spontaneous, dynamic, multiplicit and hard to fit within any disciplinary constraints. Civic initiatives are thus often at odds with participatory planning. Other planning approaches, such as framework planning or participatory budgeting, or planning as close as possible to citizens’ life world, seem to be in line with the ideas of active citizenship, but nonetheless stay within the same premise of a disciplinary role of government and planners. Together with an ongoing diversification in society, decentralization, dispersion of power, and increasing resource interdependency (e.g. land, property, knowledge, competences, capital, authority), the emerging practice of civic initiatives in spatial development, therefore poses serious challenges to contemporary spatial planners. Planning strategies that answer to the dynamics of civic initiatives, meeting the complexity of an age of active citizenship, have so