Vancouver Election Preview

With Vancouver municipal elections on November 19th, I thought now was a good opportunity to reflect on what are the key issues that should be being debated in the weeks ahead.  I stress 'should be' because unfortunatley the past weeks have been dominated by the continued occupation of the Vancouver Art Gallery.  For a group that claims to want to discuss the 'big issues', it is ironic that their occupation of VAG has deflected all attention away from the real substantive issues facing the city.  So to put this right, here are my top three issues that prospective politicians should be focusing on in Vancouver.   

Lecture Review - Patsy Healey on Progressive Planning

Reading a lecture script on planning theories and governance structures is not easy.  But the hard work can be worth it, as it is for Patsy Healey's recent RTPI Nathanial Lichfield Annual Lecture (full script available here).  Healey is Emeritus Professor at Newcastle University and through her work on strategic spatial planning has received the RTPI Gold Medal and become a fellow of the British Academy.  I have always found her work engaging with its ability to mix both abstract planning and public policy theories with the everyday reality of city life and the role of the planning profession.  

Her RTPI Lecture captures the current enthusiasm for localism but instead of critiquing the Conservative Government's Localim Bill she digs deeper to deconstruct what form local political action should take.  This is wise because the fundamental issues of governance and civic capacity must be understood before exploring the types of planning controls needed.  Healey's main concern is the way in which debates over governance often break down into shouting matches between polarised sides calling for either less or more Government.  She categorizes these sides as either market idealists or idealised communitarianism.  Instead, Healey proposes a form of 'network governance' that blurs the boundaries of state, economy and cicil society.  This allows for a more flexible state of governance that retains some Government safeguards but permits experimentation and capacity building at the local level.  It is only within this networked governance does Healey believe true local planning can emerge.

Viewing Planning as a Public Health Tool

The origins of planning, in particular in the UK, can be closely traced to increasing public health concerns.  The growing industrialization of nineteenth century cities created specific health impacts, from the air pollution generated by factories to the overcrowded housing for workers.  Early urban planning models were therefore partly driven by a desire to address the worsening state of public health.  Most notably, Ebenezer Howard’s Garden City Movement referred to a utopian town where the air and water were pure and smoke and slums had been eliminated.  Even the urban renewal of the 1960’s was loosely justified as a tool to eliminate overcrowding and the associated negative health conditions.  Yet reading most current city plans it would be easy to forget the close connections between health and the built environment.  Health issues may crop up in relation to environmental impacts, but very rarely is public health fully considered as a topic to which planning can effectively contribute.

It was therefore refreshing to attend the Walk21 conference held in Vancouver in early October to reconnect the health and planning professions. 

'Spacing Vancouver' - Book Review of Block by Block

My review of the Jane Jacobs themed book Block by Block can be found here on the 'Spacing Vancouver' blog.

 

Guest Article: Reigning in the Chain Stores

Nick Havard recently spent time in British Columbia and has kindly guest authored this article for Musings of an Urbanist.  Nick explores the issues surrounding food and grocery stores in Vancouver and why the city could do more to build on the healthy attitudes of the local population.  Thanks Nick!

I don’t recall seeing many fruit and vegetable shops in Vancouver when I visited recently. However, when we did find these shops the quality was fantastic. I noticed occasional roadside stalls on the drive to Calgary, but generally it seemed pretty difficult to stay away from the big chains, especially in the cities. I suppose this isn’t all that different from the high street in England, but it just seemed to me that it was more of a challenge to quickly pick up an apple in Vancouver than it is over here.