Planning for Economic Development: A Social Justice Approach

• Main Author: Henderson, Alex
• Other Authors: Milgrom, Richard (City Planning)
• Published: 2014
• Subjects: planning; scenarios; development; economic; justice
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1993/24058

I begin by asking the question: what are socially just forms of economic development? In an era where the inequality of wealth is extreme, it is imperative for planners to understand the philosophical literature about social justice, especially as it pertains to economic development. I attempt to show how ‘socially just economic development’ is possible, in a capitalistic context, when planning works toward increasing the equality of capability for the least advantaged. I posit that this kind of socially just economic development can happen when social enterprises or mainstream businesses are encouraged to locate near to and hire from disadvantaged neighbourhoods. The problem with contemporary urban economic development is that most centres of employments are planned in places that are only truly accessible by people who own vehicles. The other issue is that older and outmoded areas of employment, which are typically closer to less advantaged inner-city neighbourhoods, are often subject to pressures from residential redevelopment or competition from newer employment centres. In addition to this, the role for alternative inner-city employment, such as social enterprises, is not always properly understood. My thesis contains an empirical portion that involves scenario planning. A scenario planning exercise was conducted with stakeholders in the North End and Point Douglas in Winnipeg. The scenario planning yields insights into possible neighbourhood changes that might occur over the next twenty years. These findings are meant to give context for developing planning policies that could produce more socially just outcomes in these neighbourhoods.