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- Planning in Real-Time  208 kb | by Brown, David | david.brown@mcgill.ca  |
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| Short Outline |
| Three case studies from Trinidad illustrate how policies, projects and programs can ‘jump-start’ development. The need for proactive planning that balances formal and informal planning procedures and development processes is highlighted. |
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| Abstract |
This paper presents three contrasting case studies that illustrate attempts to ‘jump-start’ the development process in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad. The first focuses on the sequence of community development initiatives in a squatter settlement on the outskirts of the City, the second, on an ambitious waterfront project that has led to substantial investment in the central business district which has been in decline for decades, and the third on an inner city commercial street where a program involving shop owners, vendors, community organizers, planners and the police has been implemented to balance formal and informal commercial activities, create an agreeable shopping experience and reduce crime.
While each of these case studies deals with a different planning policy, project or program, all three emerged within the same context – a post-colonial planning regime that retains much of the formality of the colonial structure and has had limited effectiveness in dealing with current development imperatives. The discussion focuses on the relative roles of government, the private sector (whether formal or informal), special interest groups and citizens in the planning and development processes. The need to take a proactive planning approach that strikes a balance between formal and informal planning procedures and development processes is highlighted. Finally, lessons for other jurisdictions in both the developed and developing world are offered. |
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| Keywords |
| proactive planning, balance between formal and informal planning approaches |
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Case Study presented on the ISOCARP Congress 2007: Urban Trialogues
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