What is urban planning?

Leon's mom, Susie, is an urban planner. She directs the development of cities and towns. Leon thinks this would be a pretty great job… if he could plan a whole city, he would want... ...sports fields and ice cream shops on every corner and - ... wait a second Leon! An urban planner doesn't just do whatever they like.

Urban planning is about trying to make a city that works well for everyone, both in the present and in the future. Here’s how it works: Let’s say a real estate developer wants to build 100 new houses. How about... over there? There’s lots of land and a beautiful river.

But wait! Susie knows that this river floods every spring. If the houses are built there, they will be damaged by water. And that river is also home to many species of fish. Pollution from construction could threaten their habitat.

Before a project even starts, Susie needs to ask questions, such as: what could be the environmental impact of this project? This is probably not a good place to build. The developers will need a new plan before it can be approved by Susie. So we can see that it is important for an urban planner to consider the climate and location of a place: the physical environment. There are other issues that Susie needs to think about as well.

This developer wants to build expensive apartment buildings. But in this area, many people don’t have homes at all. As an urban planner, Susie is aware of the community needs and the problem of homelessness in this area. This is because urban planners must always think about the people who live in an area, asking themselves questions like: who lives in this place, and what do they need? It's important for an urban planner to fit resources like housing and transportation into a community in a way that works for the people who live there.

Susie may suggest a policy that all new residential buildings need to have a percentage of apartments that are affordable. By considering the social environment, urban planning can make a difference in peoples’ lives in cities. What else is involved in making a city work well? What does a city need to meet social and environmental needs? Money!

Maybe a local university wants to build a new dormitory. Urban planners may ask questions like: Who will pay for this project? What economic benefits will it bring? From an urban planning perspective, Susie thinks a new dormitory is a great idea. This will attract many new students who will be spending money living in the city.

Some might decide to stay in the city even after they graduate, getting jobs, becoming customers for local businesses, paying taxes... Cities make money from taxes that they can invest in roads, transit, schools, and more. Considering the economic environment of a place is also important for urban planning. With these three environmental factors in mind — physical, social, and economic — urban planners meet with different groups, like the government and members of the community. Through this collaboration, they try to help cities manage changes and solve problems.

That’s certainly not an easy job! It’s important to keep the whole community in mind when urban planning. So you might need to rethink all those ice cream shops… right, Leon? Well… maybe we can have one?