Community planning is a form of urban and regional planning that incorporates social, economic, and environmental considerations to guide future development at the scale of neighborhoods, towns, cities, and regions.
The term community planning emerged from Canadian World War II reconstruction plans, as the federal government explored concepts for better community living in addition to the more traditional physical planning concerns incorporated in town planning (UK), city planning (USA), and urbanisme (France). “Community” was a useful modifier for planning activity for three reasons: (1) it implies that human needs will be integrated into planning for the built and natural environments; (2) it suggests that planning should consider quality of life at various scales from the neighborhood to the region; and (3) it conveys the idea that planning is an activity undertaken by.
