PLAN310: Planning Law & Ethics
Daniel Iwama
All systems of planning are meditated by law. This is true whether planning action is embedded in government (i.e., official community planning, land-use regulation, etc.), or occurs outside the apparatus of the state. Furthermore, given that much planning in British Columbia happens on legally unceded lands where Indigenous systems of planning already existed at the time of European contact, the authority which gives planning the force of law should itself be investigated. In this undergraduate course, we will explore the laws and ethics of planning practice using selected readings, group discussion, and targeted learning assignments. Topics will range from the practical to the philosophical, empowering students to interpret the legal context of the planning discipline, whether they choose to enter it professionally or not.
Module 1: Introduction / Planning & Social Control
Planning as power; State violence; Governance; The "noir" of planning
Module 2: The Legal Context of Planning in BC || Emergence of Zoning
Zoning; Scales of law/authority in BC; The municipality
Module 3: Regulatory Mechanisms 1: Official Community Plans
Land-use by-law; Community engagement; Policy; Visions of future
Module 4: Regulatory Mechanisms 2: Development Cost Charges & Community Amenity Contributions
Growth & development; Legal tools for public benefit; "The public"
Module 5: (inter)Faces of Indigenous/Settler Law in Canada
Jurisdiction; Territorial authority; Legal pluralism
Module 6: Planning at the Municipal/Indigenous Community Interface
Stakeholders and Rightsholders; UNDRIP implementation; Collaborative governance; Decolonizing the city
Module 7: Land Use & Spatial Justice
Law/space/norms; Boundaries & Exclusion; Right to the city; Justice in planning
Module 9: Contestations of Planning Law in BC
Urban development politics; Chinatowns; Activism; Transformative planning
Module 10: Impacts of Foodscapes in Law
Agricultural Land Reserve; Urban-rural interface; Food security planning; Urban growth boundaries