Governing for the Public Good: The Problem of City Governance and Planning

Abstract

We discuss the problem of city governance in general and with regards to urban planning in particular. Although cities exist because of their capacity to generate wealth, we do not believe that elected public officials should focus solely on the maximisation of economic growth. Indeed, cities are not only centres of production but also residence and consumption of private and public goods. Elected official should then strive to maximise a social welfare outcome rather than a merely monetary one. Any planning policy is a form of government intervention or regulation. Given the complexity of interconnected public goods and externalities posed by agglomeration, the need for regulation is unavoidable.