School Site Selection in the Inner-City: An Evaluation of Planning Standards

Abstract

City planners constantly seek to establish ground rules for the practice of their profession. Over the years, they have developed many sets of guidelines or standards to minimize the role of intuition. This search for structure is not simply a planners' identity crisis. The attempts to establish standards have deeper roots; they stem from a desire to rationalize the process of planning. Using the example of standards for school site selection in Philadelphia's inner-city area, this article answers two questions: can standards aid planners toward rational decision-making; and how much should planners analyze and challenge the premises which are given as the basis for their decisions? The article then suggests possible ways to increase the effectiveness of planners in the area of public facilities location in general, and school site selection in particular.

Finally, it discusses the functions which standards should perform and the way they can be defined operationally. The use of standards for evaluation of sites is not sufficient in itself, however; it is only part of a more general analysis of alternative solutions. Procedural steps for such an analysis are outlined.