Mandates, Plans, and Planners: Building Local Commitment to Development Management

TLDR

The study examines how state policies influence development management across 176 communities in five states. State planning mandates improve local plan quality and, when planners are committed, lead to stronger development management, but general mandates alone have limited impact on planner commitment, whereas single‑purpose mandates are more effective, indicating that complementary measures are needed to enhance planner alignment with state objectives.

Abstract

Abstract Abstract This research investigates how states influence development management, in a study of 176 communities in five states. First, state planning mandates improve the quality of local plans. Second, communities with good plans and planners committed to state policies adopt strong development management programs with land use controls, site design requirements and other techniques. Third, general planning mandates have little impact on planners' commitment to state objectives, while single-purpose state mandates do. These findings suggest that planning mandates are effective, but that greater attention must be given to increasing planners' commitment to state policy objectives, through complementary mandates or those features of planning mandates that build commitment.