The Seven Key Reasons Why Urban Planning is a Must – And Why Developers Should Follow Planning Rules and Trends
As cities continue to grow, so do their challenges and complexities. Urban planning presents an all-encompassing solution to those challenges.
The reality is that developing urban areas requires substantial forward-thinking and careful planning. The growth of cities and towns should follow specific objectives defined by a state or territory in collaboration with local councils.
Cities depend on urban planning for functionality, growth, and to bring in new businesses. And every vital aspect of an urban environment is influenced by how its layout is planned. This includes key infrastructure, transportation, and city area layouts and densities.
But why is this a hot topic in Australia?
Urban planning is of immense importance since over 80% of Australians are city residents, work in urban areas, or both.
The main aspect that attracts such a large number of people to Australian cities involves the quality of life. It’s primarily based on infrastructure and easy access to vital institutions and services, such as healthcare and education.
Also, highly developed cities largely contribute to society’s economic health and productivity. A city without good urban planning could be unappealing to citizens. Therefore, the population will drop and the productivity along with it. Urban planning also plays a role in property development since sustainability depends on adhering to the state-set objectives.
Simply put, how cities grow impacts the economy, ecology, and quality of life. And as a property developer, you need to understand this process for you to choose the best sites, come up with plans that will get approved, and ultimately make a profit.
So now, let’s discuss the seven reasons why urban planning is crucial.
The 7 Reasons
Reason No. 1 – Planned City Growth
As opportunities for work and education improve, cities attract more people. And one of the key goals of urban planning is to maximize the benefits of city living for the growing population.
City growth is unavoidable but predictable, which is good news. After all, this means that planning for future expansions is a necessity.
With that in mind, city development is most efficient when orderly and in accordance with a clear vision. That’s why having a framework that considers the present and future needs of the population will be beneficial.
With enhancing city living as a core idea, the following factors go into proper city planning:
- Public welfare
- Equity
- Efficient emergency measures
- Community participation
Ultimately, planned city growth establishes a strong relationship between the local leaders, various departments, and its citizens. The result is a community that can follow a common goal of productivity and better living.
Reason No. 2 – Improved Health and Quality of Life
Quality of life is one of the top concerns of most city dwellers.
As you know, more significant opportunities can indeed attract people to urban areas.
But once settled, they often face higher living costs with a substantial impact on their quality of life. Traffic also becomes a key factor for the quality of life, requiring frequent updates to infrastructure and regulations.
With urban planning, these concerns regarding the quality of life are accounted for. And the infrastructure and public spaces will be regulated and correctly distributed.
After all, with a thoroughly planned layout, a city can give its residents access to vital services, facilities, attractions, relaxation areas, and other points of interest while minimising unfavourable aspects of urban life.
Reason No. 3 – Less Environmental Impact
With the planet facing issues involving global warming, cities are forced to adapt to environmental considerations. The United Nations even came up with a list of development goals to achieve sustainability. And they did it by making various impact assessments mandatory for property development projects in urban areas.
City planning is crucial because it enables efficient waste handling, better control of greenhouse gas emissions, and more competent distribution and use of resources. Planting trees, focusing on public transport, and raising awareness about the environment are some of the essential measures to reduce ecological harm.
In terms of urban planning, this means that developers must adhere to stricter rules and regulations to avoid having their developments harm the environment. Therefore, feasibility studies must account for new environmental concerns. And doing due diligence is more important than ever to determine a site’s profitability.
This is where Archistar can help. The platform enables you to perform studies and research suitable locations while factoring in modern urban planning trends and new regulations.
Reason No. 4 – Better Economy and Resource Utilisation
Well-planned cities have booming markets and tonnes of job opportunities. Of course, this can improve the local economy and urban life. However, cities still need substantial investments to keep growing the economy, so they compete for funding.
With urban planning, cities can facilitate more jobs and lower living costs.
The expansion of nearby rural areas into urban environments can make this happen. So can distributing more economic activity in a coordinated fashion.
Ultimately, city development needs economic considerations to enhance the living standard of residents.
Reason No. 5 – National Development
Urban areas are known centres for development and growth. They’re the foundation of progress in many nations.
Now, the UN estimates that more than 3 billion people will live in cities by 2050. This means that cities’ impact on regional and national development will soon be a driving factor.
Together with economic development planning, urban planning aims to create policies and different programs that improve the quality of life of those living in urban areas. Therefore, well-planned cities will power nations. In contrast, urban areas with poor planning will prove detrimental and unattractive to buyers and investors.
National urban policies don’t just benefit big cities, though.
One of the overarching goals is to make sure that urbanization doesn’t leave significant portions of a country’s population behind. Instead, a proper plan helps facilitate inclusion, social integration, and sustainability.
Reason No. 6 – Disaster Prevention and Greater Credibility
Better urban planning can generate better predictions and responses to natural disasters. Cities could prevent most calamities – or at least reduce their harmful effects – if they take better care when planning their infrastructure,
This can be done through various steps, such as:
- Making sure critical infrastructure is placed in safe areas
- Conducting vulnerability studies and taking the results into account during the planning process
- Proactively coming up with post-disaster reconstruction plans
The better a city is planned, the more prepared it will be for future events.
Also, facilitating access to crucial infrastructure, healthcare facilities, utilities, and resources can help cities create predictable and favourable conditions and gain credibility. Credibility and trust will then fuel a city’s growth, economic stability, and community engagement.
Reason No. 7 – More Efficient Problem Solving
Reacting to issues doesn’t mean you’re solving problems. What we’re referring to by efficient problem-solving is better anticipation.
If a problem is anticipated, a city can protect against it beforehand. Even in a worst-case scenario, this would mean a problem will take less effort to solve.
So, how does this work with urban planning?
Through anticipation and utilising thought-out spatial patterns and infrastructure, cities can quickly and easily deal with potential challenges like natural disasters, unexpected population growth, a new health crisis, resource management, and others, by planning property developments and infrastructure around those issues.
Urban Planning Challenges for Developers
The new emphasis on urban planning significantly impacts today’s property developers.
And the foremost challenge is that developers must abide by strict rules, regulations, and requirements when developing residential and commercial properties in urban areas. This can limit a developer’s site choices and designs and even reduce a project’s profitability.
However, keep in mind that good urban planning will attract more and more buyers.
Although keeping track of new planning and development best practices is harder, you must capitalise on them to increase your profits.
Planning for Better Life in Urban Areas
Lack of proper urban planning can create economic, social, and environmental issues that lead to disastrous project results. But you can avoid such problems using better data, and creating projects that can be quickly approved.
Archistar can be used by town planners and developers to make optimal planning and development decisions. Identify and analyse sites up to 30 times faster and improve your workflow, even with the changing laws due to urban planning. Not to mention save time and costs.
Make your projects even more profitable. Don’t hesitate to contact the Archistar team and schedule a demo today.
Get started for free: [https://www.archistar.ai/]
