This paper analyses the governance of metropolitan planning in two North American cities: San Francisco in the US and Vancouver in Canada. The paper argues that the core planning agency of the Vancouver region, GVRD, has established a strong status as...
This paper analyses the governance of metropolitan planning in two North American cities: San Francisco in the US and Vancouver in Canada. The paper argues that the core planning agency of the Vancouver region, GVRD, has established a strong status as a regional planning organization through a long period of participatory planning practice, leading an orderly coordination of interests among different municipalities and stake-holders; however, this is not the case for the San Francisco region. In the latter case, main roles of metropolitan planning, such as the provision of long-term vision, transit services, and clean water, have been fragmented among many different organizations, such as governments, quasi-, and non-government organizations, special districts, and private sectors. This fragmentation is believed to be a major source of the lack of efficacy, efficiency, and convenience in urban service provision of the region.