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This paper looks at the consequences of the recent property market boom-bust cycle from the planners’ perspective. It takes the case of Dutch local governments and, in particular, the instrument of public land development. The analysis focusses on the question whether the economic downturn has given rise to a reconsideration of the intertwinement of public and private roles inherent to public land development. The paper sheds light on the formal changes in land management strategies in the recent years and asks whether these formal institutional changes result in less controversial land management, in terms of efficiency, effectiveness, fairness and democratic legitimation. It concludes that, although at first sight the findings suggest a paradigm shift in Dutch land management strategies, municipalities have not sorted out robust new alternatives. Public land development creates serious path dependencies and current changes in the regulatory space of land management are mostly pragmatic and show lots of traces of the old model. If local authorities keep pursuing their active, entrepreneurial, involvement in the land market in an ad-hoc manner, they face challenges regarding how to keep control over the discretionary power. It raises serious new dilemmas on transparency and predictability of municipal behaviour. There is a risk of ending up in a patchwork situation where different regulatory aspects are changed inconsistently. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Based on a case study of the Stadshaven port redevelopment in Rotterdam, this paper explores whether existing spatial planning mechanisms and processes can be used to facilitate local-level investment in climate-resilient public infrastructure and/or whether new processes and mechanisms are required to encourage investment in climate adaptation. The study reveals several key findings. First, a lack of conventional funding sources or formalised regulatory framework allowed room for experimentation with existing mechanisms and flexible strategies. Second, project planners are currently ambivalent towards introducing new mechanisms as a means to overcome implementation challenges. The case provides evidence about the role of the governance process, not simply as a means of system coordination that exists in isolation from institutional norms and values, but rather as a space for innovation, which can contribute towards reducing the financial gap associated with climate adaptation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC) has existed for over three centuries and has developed into the financial capital and most important economic hub of Vietnam. This profile outlines the history of HCMC's development and its impact on current conditions and physical structure of the city. The paper analyzes some of the problems with respect to urban land use that have occurred in HCMC in the transitional period after Doi Moi and discusses the city's future challenges, in the perspective of climate change and further economic and population growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]