Why Allow Planners to Do What They Do? A Justification from Economic Theory

Abstract

There is little discussion among practicing planners about why they should plan. The goodness of planning is axiomatic—it has been elevated to the facts-exempt status of an article of faith. Unfortunately for planners, a significant number of the citizens for whom they would plan do not share this belief. A rigorous theory which explains why planning should be done in terms that are intelligible to both the planners and the planned can mitigate the conflict between them, provide suggestions about the desirable scope and methods of planning, and (not coincidentally) make planners happier individuals. The economic theory of public goods provides the rudiments of such a theory.