Public Control of Land Use: Are Existing Administrative Structures Appropriate?

In the post-World War II period, a transformation of urban processes has occurred which raises questions about the appropriateness of "territorial" government. This change has manifested in activities and problems that transcend and defy identity by spatial propinquity or physical boundedness. As such, a significant mismatch occurs between territorial and political boundaries, raising questions of representation and administrative legitimacy. Those patterns of governance based on the territorial model - both local government and centralized areawide bureaucracy - are ill-equipped to handle the variety of unique decisions and diverse constituencies surrounding most major land use control situations. Instead, the trans-territorial complexity of metropolitan settlement raises the possibility of a new perspective which views land use control through an open system of concurrent government. This non-hierarchical system operates through an intergovernmental coordination of interest and knowledge specific agencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]