Cities 94 (2019) 96–105

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Cities
journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/cities

Understanding strategic spatial planning to effectively guide development of T

urban regions
⁎
Anna M. Herspergera, , Simona Grădinarua,b, Eduardo Oliveiraa,c, Sofia Pagliarina,d,
Gaëtan Palkaa,e
a
Land Change Science, Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Switzerland
b
Centre for Environmental Research and Impact Studies, University of Bucharest, Romania
c
Earth and Life Institute, Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium
d
Otto-Friedrich Universität Bamberg, Germany
e
CNRS UMR 6554 LETG, Université Rennes 2, France

A B S T R A C T

Strategic spatial planning is increasingly practised throughout the world to develop a coordinated vision for guiding the medium- to long-term development of urban
regions. However, from a theoretical and conceptual perspective, strategic spatial planning is hard to grasp, as it is multidimensional, embedded in sociopolitical and
institutional complexity and highly context-dependent. Moreover, current planning debates mainly focus on the outputs of the strategic planning process while
largely neglecting the impact that strategic spatial plans can have on urban transformations. Here, we show an empirically-based analytical framework grounded on
an analysis of 21 European urban regions, representing the key components of plan-making and plan-implementation as well as the main interrelationships among
them. The proposed framework (SPlaMI) reflects current planning practices and intends to contribute towards consolidating a European understanding of strategic
spatial planning while providing the basis for dialogue with broader discourses on sustainable development in a global context.

1. Introduction community and environmental issues, come together in divers institu-

tional settings to prepare strategic plans by developing interrelated
Cities and urban regions have become central to ensuring a sus- strategies for the management of spatial change (Albrechts et al., 2017;
tainable future (Acuto, Parnell, & Seto, 2018; McPhearson et al., 2016; Cremer-Schulte, 2014; Haughton et al., 2010; Newman, 2008).
Rees & Wackernagel, 1996). To address economic, social and environ- The analysis of strategic spatial planning processes is a very de-
mental issues, strategic spatial planning has been increasingly under- manding procedure (Flyvbjerg, 2004; Healey, 2007; Olesen, 2014;
taken at the urban-regional level in Europe since the 1990s (Albrechts & Yiftachel, 1994). Furthermore, current knowledge of this process is
Balducci, 2013; Albrechts, Balducci, & Hillier, 2017; Albrechts, Healey, fragmented; for instance, attention has been mostly paid to governance
& Kunzmann, 2003; Balducci, Fedeli, & Pasqui, 2011; Haughton, processes, while little effort has been made to connect these to physical
Allmendinger, Counsell, & Vigar, 2010). Although motivations behind transformations in terms of land cover and land-use change (Schmitt &
embarking on strategic spatial planning are multifaceted, the common van Well, 2016). More importantly, comprehensive conceptualizations
objective has been the identification of a coherent spatial development of strategic spatial planning are also lacking. The latter might be rooted
strategy to frame the medium- and long-term development of urban in prevailing methodological approaches: empirical studies on strategic
regions, often in connection with specific strategic urban development spatial planning typically focus on a single case and rarely on a few of
projects (Albrechts, 2006; Balducci et al., 2011; Haughton et al., 2010). them. As a matter of fact, cross-case comparisons are hardly performed
From a theoretical and conceptual point of view, strategic spatial in the literature (Elinbaum & Galland, 2016; Pagliarin, 2018). To the
planning is hard to grasp, as it is multidimensional, embedded in so- best of our knowledge, studies conducted on larger samples that could
ciopolitical and institutional complexity, influenced by power config- increase the evidence base and allow for generalizations are still
urations and highly context-dependent. In order to situate this paper in missing; however it is crucial to gain a better understanding of how
current debates, we refer to the following working definition: strategic strategic spatial planning works.
spatial planning is the process through which a variety of public and Strategic spatial planning is composed of plan-making and plan-
private actors with a stake in the region such as public-sector planners, implementation. Although the two phases sometimes overlap in prac-
politicians, private land holders, and organizations representing tice, it is useful to differentiate them for heuristic reasons. The strategic

⁎
Corresponding author at: Head of Land-Use Systems Group, Swiss Federal Research Institute WSL, Zürcherstrasse 111, 8903 Birmensdorf, Switzerland.
E-mail address: anna.hersperger@wsl.ch (A.M. Hersperger).

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cities.2019.05.032
Received 29 March 2018; Received in revised form 6 May 2019; Accepted 25 May 2019
Available online 07 June 2019
0264-2751/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
A.M. Hersperger, et al. Cities 94 (2019) 96–105

spatial plan-making phase involves the development of visions and 2.1. Case study selection
decision frameworks with the aim of representing, managing and in-
fluencing urban transformations (Albrechts et al., 2017). Strategic To select the case studies, we followed a two-step procedure.
spatial planning is a social process (Healey, Khakee, Motte, & Needham, Initially, 35 European urban regions with a strategic spatial plan in
2006) through which a range of actors from diverse institutional set- force were listed. Then, 21 Western European urban regions were
tings come together to develop strategies and projects for the man- jointly selected by the authors (see Fig. 1) based on the following cri-
agement of spatial changes (Healey, 2009; Kunzmann, 2013). The final teria:
and main output of this phase is usually a plan that stipulates an overall
development strategy for the urban region, as well as strategic urban i. Sufficient representation of the range of spatial planning systems,
projects. These stipulations are thereafter called planning intentions. In traditions and cultures in Europe (EC, 1997; ESPON, 2007)
order to be truly strategic, the plans focus on a list of selected themes, ii. A variety of territorial governance arrangements and institutional
(e.g., housing, transportation, green infrastructure), for which they settings (Le Galès, 2002; Nadin, Smas, Schmitt, & Cotella, 2016)
specify a long-term vision and short-term actions (Albrechts & Balducci, iii. A range of times at which strategic spatial planning was introduced
2013). The plan often contains both cartographic representations to at the urban-regional scale, from earlier to more recent
visualize the planning intentions, and a written part, which usually iv. A variety of visual representations of planning intentions, (e.g.,
describes the socio-economic and ecological context including the maps or diagrams) included in the plans (Dühr, 2007).
challenges posed, presents and justifies the planning intentions and
provides guidelines for implementation and monitoring. The visual 2.2. Data collection
elements play a crucial role in communication (Dühr, 2007; van
Duinen, 2013). Data on the case studies were collected by employing theoretical
Plan-implementation is the process by which plans are turned into sampling: a loop-like method which continues until the research
urban transformations, as it fosters the envisioned change and prevents reaches a point of saturation and no new information is emerging from
undesired activities and developments (Clifford & Tewdwr-Jones, the data. Data sources consisted of 96 in-depth, semi-structured inter-
2013). In a similar manner to plan-making, plan-implementation is a views with academics and regional planners in the study areas, com-
multifaceted process in which context and mechanisms, availability and plemented by an online questionnaire and extensive content analysis of
access to resources, power and discourse all play an important role the strategic spatial plans and supporting material, (e.g., plan-im-
(Smith, 2017). Even though plan-implementation is crucial for effective plementation guidelines). The interview questions delved into the ter-
planning, this phase has received remarkably little research attention in ritorial governance arrangements, institutional and political settings
the literature on strategic spatial planning, or that on planning eva- and the actors' responses to structural conditions linked to the phases of
luation (Elinbaum & Galland, 2016; Pagliarin, 2018; Rudolf, Grădinaru, strategic plan-making and plan-implementation. A content analysis of
& Hersperger, 2017). However, there seems to be a growing interest in the strategic spatial plans was performed to identify the main planning
the implementation phase, and recent case studies have explored the themes, (e.g., development patterns or housing goals) and the type of
conditions behind successfully implemented strategic urban projects spatial information included in the plans (e.g., degree of detail or pre-
(Cassatella, 2013; Olesen, 2017) and stressed the importance of local sence of cartographic visualizations). To optimize time and research
statutory plans, (e.g., at the municipal level) in implementing strategic resources, a subset of nine urban regions was intensively researched,
plans (Mäntysalo, Kangasoja, & Kanninen, 2015; Searle, 2017; van den while other urban regions were analysed by focusing on specific re-
Broeck, 2013). search elements (Table 1). Similar methodological strategies have been
Although we recognize the outstanding importance of contextual shown to be effective in previous studies (Dawson, Elbakidze,
specificity in the formulation and implementation of strategic spatial Angelstam, & Gordon, 2017; Moulaert, Rodriguez, & Swyngedouw,
plans, we argue that a comprehensive conceptualization of its main 2003; Salet & Gualini, 2007).
components and interrelationships is nevertheless possible and neces-
sary. In this paper, we synthesize research on 21 European urban re- 2.3. Data analysis
gions with diverse national planning systems (Fig. 1), to propose an
empirically-based analytical framework for strategic spatial plan- A grounded theory research approach (Corbin & Strauss, 2008) was
making and plan-implementation (abbreviated as the SPlaMI frame- adopted to analyse the case studies and identify the key components of
work, derived from the underlined letters in “Strategic spatial Plan- plan-making and plan-implementation. Grounded theory is a research
Making and plan-Implementation”). The framework reflects current methodology which operates inductively and can be used to develop a
planning practices, contributes to the expansion and organization of practical theory from empirical evidence (Allan, 2003). This approach
existing knowledge about strategic planning and makes a step towards appeared to be suited for the aim of this paper. The research involved a
the consolidation of an understanding of how planning unfolds and constant interplay between data collection and analysis over the period
influences urban development in Europe. The SPlaMI framework is thus January 2016 to November 2017. Strategic spatial plan-making and
formulated as an analytical but empirically based framework to support plan-implementation were addressed as two separate phases. The key
planning researchers in their efforts to generate knowledge on how components were identified from the perspective of the following ele-
strategic spatial planning works. ments: i) governance, ii) planning intentions as expressed in the plans,
i.e., the plan's strategy for future urban-regional development and iii)
external factors stimulating the regional plan-making and plan-im-
2. Research Methodology plementation processes (Hersperger, Oliveira, Pagliarin, Palka,
Verburg, Bolliger, and Grădinaru, 2018).
The SPlaMI framework is based on a multi-case investigation ap- In addition to the ongoing interplay between data collection and
proach. Case studies are an appropriate research strategy for examining analysis the authors engaged in eight one- to two-day collaborative
the dynamics of a specific territorial and institutional setting workshops to synthesize the data into the analytical framework.
(Eisenhardt, 1989). Multi-case designs facilitate an exploration of the Following the constant comparison method (Draucker, Martsolf, Ross,
differences and similarities within and between cases (Schmitt & van & Rusk, 2007), components that emerged after a workshop were re-
Well, 2016; Yin, 2003). assessed in the next workshop. Early workshops focused on selection of
case studies and definition of a preliminary set of key components of
plan-making and plan-implementation. Subsequent workshops were

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Fig. 1. Case studies and the associated planning systems. Source: authors' own elaboration.

used to refine and clarify the list of components, as well as their in- 3. The SPlaMI framework
terrelationships, based on the collected data. Excel spread sheets and
Word documents were used to code the components, describe them and The SPlaMI framework (Fig. 2) illustrates the key components and
provide examples from the case studies, while diagram drawings helped interrelationships necessary for making and implementing a strategi-
to visualize the coding process. As more data was collected, and itera- cally oriented and realistic strategic spatial plan, as derived from our
tively re-reviewed, codes were grouped into the components and their empirical research. Reading the diagram from left to right, a strategic
interactions displayed. This collaborative process of data analysis spatial planning process starts with the plan-making phase rooted in
helped to structure the components and organize them into an over- trust building, and leading to the strategic plan as the main output. The
arching, empirically based framework – the SPlaMI framework. The process continues with the plan-implementation phase, during which
final two-day workshop was conducted in November 2017 and included actors and funding are instrumental in realizing the plan through
a group of five European strategic-planning experts. The discussions physical changes on the ground, designated here as urban transforma-
lead to a better understanding of planning for mixed land uses, as well tions. These two phases often overlap in practice, and sometimes stra-
as the role of market forces and power relations in urban transforma- tegic urban projects or objectives discussed in the plan-making phase
tions (Bacău, Schmid, & Oliveira, 2018). may have already been partially implemented.
The key components and their relationships have been formulated

Table 1
Focus of investigation in the case studies.
Focus Cases

Intensively researched cases (focus on all aspects) Barcelona, Copenhagen, Dublin, Edinburgh, Hannover, Helsinki, Lyon, Milan, Stockholm
Focus on plans Barcelona, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, Edinburgh, Hannover, Helsinki, Lisbon, Lyon, London, Milan, Stockholm,
Turin
Focus on projects Amsterdam, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Lyon, Manchester, Milan, Stockholm, Stuttgart
Focus on governance Barcelona, Cardiff, Copenhagen, Dublin, Edinburgh, Hamburg, Hanover, Helsinki, Lyon, Milan, Oslo, Stockholm, Stuttgart,
Vienna
Focus on external forces Amsterdam, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Hamburg, Lyon, Manchester, Milan, Stockholm, Stuttgart

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99
Fig. 2. The SPlaMI framework: plan-making (left side) and plan-implementation (right side) phases. Reading the diagram from left to right, a strategic spatial planning process unfolds along an imagined timeline and
starts with the plan-making phase which leads to a plan as a main process-related output, among other things. The process continues with the plan-implementation phase, where the planned projects and development
strategies get realized, resulting in urban transformations (see also Tables 2 and 3). Source: authors' own elaboration.
Cities 94 (2019) 96–105
A.M. Hersperger, et al. Cities 94 (2019) 96–105

to represent strategic spatial planning practices through generalizations leadership (orange ellipse) and negotiation (pink ellipse), as both
that go beyond the site-specificity of cases without ignoring their components play a central role in plan-making across the urban regions
complexity. The framework thus seeks to balance generality and pre- assessed. Secondly, we address consensus-building amid conflict, and
cision across the breadth of components and interactions. It represents the actors involved, i.e., experts, citizens and interest groups, as well as
the structural relations between the key components by: the relative the importance of a consolidated planning practice in plan-making (all
location of the boxes, the arrows connecting selected boxes, the or- in blue rectangles). Thirdly, we focus on how plan-making is as much
ientation of arrows, and the implicit timeline from left to right. When about coordination (blue line) as it is about trust (grey frame). Fourthly,
one direction dominates, the arrows are oriented (e.g. negotiation or- we focus on the content of strategic spatial plans (light-pink ellipse) in
iented to development strategy); more complex relationships are re- terms of development strategy and strategic urban projects (both yellow
presented by bidirectional arrows (e.g. the bidirectional relation be- ellipses).
tween negotiation and interest groups). The identification of the actor Leadership, understood here as the ability of a public entity to guide
categories followed the literature on strategic spatial planning (e.g. the strategic spatial planning process at the urban-regional level, is
Healey et al., 2006) and on territorial governance (ESPON/Nordregio, required to effectively organize a negotiation process. Strong leadership
2013). Up to now, many of these components have often been ex- facilitates the formulation of a development strategy and strategic
amined independently of each other or selectively. The synthesis of urban projects. The leadership can rest in different settings or institu-
their diversity and interrelationships into a framework helps to bring tional contexts and in a given case, for example, a political leader, a
together different aspects of strategic spatial planning in a way that spatial planning department or a specially established office can lead
takes into account the complexity of spatial planning practices in Eur- spatial planning processes. In Oslo-Akershus, for instance, the plan-
opean urban regions. Since strategic planning is a context-dependent making process was characterized by sustained coordination efforts
endeavour, it is expected that in one urban region certain components among municipalities. A joint office composed of representatives from
and contexts play a more important role than in another. This aspect is Oslo and Akershus County Councils guided the entire preparation of the
omitted in Fig. 2 in order to create a generalized and intelligible ana- Regional Plan for Land Use and Transport 2015. Our findings reveal
lytical framework. The next two sections, however, elaborate which that this joint office played, through its leadership, a decisive role in
components play a central role in our case studies. introducing compact urban development and efficient commuting into
the plan for this Norwegian urban region. In Hannover, which is em-
4. Plan-making phase bedded in more formal governance structures than Oslo-Akershus, the
Region Hannover with a directly elected regional parliament played the
The left side of the SPlaMI framework (Fig. 2) shows the main leading role in coordinating the plan-making process.
components of the plan-making phase and illustrates the multiple in- Negotiation is a process by which spatial principles, land-use claims
terrelationships between these components. The figure is com- and planning intentions are debated in an effort to agree on jointly
plemented by Table 2. The description refers to examples drawn from produced outcomes, such as a development strategy or strategic urban
the case studies and is organized as follows. First, we focus on projects (cf. Ruming, 2012). A negotiation process normally covers a

Table 2
Main components and interrelationships of the strategic spatial plan-making phase as outlined in Fig. 2.
Source: authors' own elaboration.
Component Description of component and main interrelationships

Leadership in plan-making Leadership is about oversight, vision and the ability to secure the participation of all relevant actors. It aids negotiations involving various
actors, coordinates the plan-making process and can directly influence the content of a development strategy or give rise to new strategic urban
projects.
Negotiation in plan-making Negotiation is the process of setting up priorities as it identifies key land uses by balancing public and private interests. Negotiation is supported
by a process of consensus-building and involves leadership, interest groups and expert knowledge. These actors come together to negotiate on
various economic, social and environmental ‘objects of negotiation’. Negotiation can directly influence the content of a development strategy or
result in new strategic urban projects.
Consensus amid conflict Consensus-building is a process that incorporates the interests and perspectives of interest groups, experts and civic society, which together
coordinate their decision-making in a search for common ground amid and beyond conflicts. It often precedes negotiation.
Expert knowledge Expert knowledge supports plan-making and is provided by experts (academic and non-academic) from different fields of research. Experts
often directly participate in negotiations and support consensus-building.
Civic participation Civic participation (or citizens' involvement) refers to the involvement and active participation of citizens through analogue or electronic
means, (e.g., social media). Civic participation is linked directly to finding consensus amid conflict.
Interest groups Interest groups are groups formally or informally constituted. They are an inherent part of the process because they pursue their own stakes in
the plan-making process. Interest groups can be directly involved in negotiations and they also influence consensus-building.
Consolidated planning practice Consolidated planning practice is the experience in dealing with strategic spatial planning at the urban-region level; a consolidated planning
practice strongly facilitates consensus-building.
Coordination Coordination is a process of a purposeful and collaborative alignment of the interests and perspectives of public entities and private interests.
Coordination supports the interrelationship between negotiation and consensus-building.
Trust Trust is a necessary support condition for leadership, negotiation and consensus-building. Trust is strongly interrelated with leadership and the
overall planning process.
Planning legislation Planning legislation can determine the issues a plan has to address and thus can influence development strategies.
Events Events are occurrences that are triggered by out-of-the-region factors such as decisions by international bodies on locations for sport and
cultural celebration. Events can have a considerable impact on negotiations and can directly stimulate new strategic urban projects.
National government Some decisions by the national government are binding and can thus directly influence the development of strategic urban projects.
Development strategy A development strategy frames the medium- and long-term development of urban regions. A development strategy is shaped by the outcomes of
a negotiation process, leadership and planning legislation. The content of a development strategy ‘fuels’ the content of the strategic spatial plan.
Strategic urban projects Strategic urban projects are a fast-track plan-implementation approach to ensure that spatial transformation happens on the ground in key
strategic domains. These projects can be directly influenced by events, national government decision-making, leadership and negotiations.
Positioning strategies, i.e., strategies supporting an urban region in spotlighting their strategic domains, such as a strong financial sector, good
tourism infrastructure or high-quality educational facilities, often initiate the development of strategic urban projects.
Strategic spatial plan A strategic spatial plan is the final output of the plan-making phase. It is a written document which often contains cartographic representations
for visualizing the intended developments.

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number of ‘objects of negotiation’. These issues are pressing domains in interrelations between negotiation and consensus-building. For ex-
urban regions, such as economic activities, competitive positioning, ample, in Cardiff urban region, the coordination of the municipalities
housing needs, environmental conservation, social issues and trans- supported regional decision-making processes. The involvement of
portation. In negotiation processes, the goals and perspectives of in- various actors at the urban-regional level, such as housing developers or
terest groups such as chambers of commerce, environmental NGOs, Natural Resources Wales was also identified as a key aspect of Cardiff's
transport associations and cultural groups, as well as the claims of ci- strategic plan-making quest. In the Italian case of Milan, coordination
tizens, are deliberated in the light of expert knowledge. For example, between Città Metropolitana di Milano and municipalities was central to
plan-making in Greater Copenhagen in Denmark is the result of a the whole practice of strategic spatial plan-making at the urban-re-
combination of a bottom-up and a top-down approach to strategic gional level. In order to provide inputs to the strategic plan, munici-
planning at urban-regional level. Joint decision-making between the palities interacted with local interest groups to take into account their
Danish Business Authority and the municipalities composing Greater demands.
Copenhagen is a primary practice. The municipalities played a key role Trust refers to the confidence relevant actors have in the strategic
in the preparation of the Finger Plan 2015, a strategic plan for the spatial plan-making process and procedures. Within an arena of open
development of the Copenhagen urban region, by proposing the allo- and hidden agendas and power relations, trust strengthens the role of
cation of transportation infrastructures and improvements to the public the leadership in the overall planning process. It is an important com-
parks network, as well as demanding more land for housing and eco- ponent for securing fluid negotiations and for consensus-building, i.e.,
nomic activities. The meetings with municipalities entailed negotiations overcoming conflicts between public and private actors. In Oslo-
on the issues to include in the Finger Plan and the issues to omit. In the Akershus urban region, for instance, negotiation benefits from a solid
Scottish urban region of Edinburgh, negotiations between local gov- trust among the entities involved. There is trust that negotiations
ernments and private interest groups, mainly from the housing and among the Oslo City Council, Akershus County Council and private
transportation sectors, were paramount during the preparation phase of interest groups located in this urban region will continue until all are
the Strategic Development Plan for Edinburgh and South East Scotland confident that their interests are taken into consideration.
2016. These negotiations are a give-and-take exercise in which private The final output of the strategic spatial plan-making phase is a
interest groups such as housing developers demand land for a new strategic spatial plan that contains a development strategy and/or
housing settlement and public entities request their support in infra- strategic urban projects. The development strategy might refer to the
structure provision. densification of residential areas, the development of employment
Consensus-building amid conflict supports, and ideally precedes, districts or the delineation of zones for environmental protection and
negotiation. It involves the region's experts from universities and re- the preservation of cultural heritage. For instance, the Stockholm RUFS
search centres, (i.e., expert knowledge), citizens, (i.e., civic participa- strategic and development plan envisions eight sub-centres for urban
tion) and interest groups and can benefit from a consolidated planning growth to rebalance the more developed northern and less developed
practice. Consensus-building has been a key aspect of successful plan- southern parts of the Stockholm urban region. Strategic urban projects
making in the Helsinki-Uusimaa urban region. In Region Hannover, the greatly varied in size in our sample of urban regions and included, for
preparation of the Regional Spatial Planning Programme 2016 involved example, the redevelopment of railway stations (Stuttgart, Milan,
consensus-building on, for example, retail matters and housing devel- Helsinki-Uusimaa, Vienna), the construction of key transportation in-
opments, between environmental protection NGOs, citizens (via frastructures (Barcelona, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Amsterdam) and the
workshops for example) and expert knowledge. strengthening of economic poles, such as Central Business Districts
Expert knowledge contributes to scientifically-informed decisions, (CBDs) or exhibition centres (Amsterdam, Lyon, Manchester, Stuttgart).
innovation and experimentation in plan-making. To determine the The content of the plan is strongly influenced by leadership and
ecological value of certain areas in the Helsinki-Uusimaa urban region, negotiation. The SPlaMI framework also shows that planning legislation
for instance, the University of Helsinki was asked several times to share can directly influence the plan, for example in terms of the formal
knowledge and provide input on green infrastructures and intraregional structure of the strategic plan and the spatial precision of cartographic
transportation issues. In Copenhagen and Stuttgart, experts have been visualizations. In the case of London, the Greater London Authority Act
mainly involved in matters regarding landscape conservation and nat- 1999 establishes that transportation, housing and environmental as-
ural resources protection. pects should be included among the policy themes and that the plan
Civic participation is needed for a broad acceptance of the plan. should contain ‘diagrams, illustrations or other descriptive or ex-
Social media platforms and other tools greatly support widespread civic planatory matter relating to its contents’. In the case of German urban
engagement in some of the case studies. For instance, the Regional Plan regions, the legal basis for approving a strategic regional plan is the
for Land Use and Transport in Oslo and Akershus 2015 is the result of Ordinance on Territorial Planning, which defines the policy themes.
coordination efforts among municipalities; this includes not only the Strategic spatial projects can be further influenced by events originating
participation of trade unions and environmental protection organiza- outside urban regions, and by national government decision-making,
tions but also citizens' involvement, individually or through grass-roots particularly in the form of funding. Location decisions made by the
movements. International Olympic Committee (a supra-regional organization) and
Consolidated planning practice, understood as the experience and other national- and international-level sporting and cultural organiza-
expertise of actors in an urban region in dealing with strategic spatial tions are examples of such events. A well-known example is the 1990
planning, also influences strategic plan-making and is especially valu- strategic plan for Barcelona. The selection of Barcelona to host the 1992
able for the process of consensus-building. A consolidated planning Summer Olympic Games stimulated actors to embark, in the mid-1980s,
practice is clearly visible in the Nordic and German cases, as they on a process of strategic plan-making under the auspices of the political
pursue strategic spatial planning as a continuous learning and im- leadership of the then mayor, Pascual Maragall (García, 2003). The
provement process. For example, the above-mentioned Finger Plan for plan-making process served as a platform for negotiation among var-
Greater Copenhagen has been world-renowned since 1947 and strategic ious interest groups and the 1990 strategic plan was used to reach a
regional planning has been carried out in the Stockholm region since consensus over the strategic issues to be realized for and beyond the
1952. Likewise, the Verband Region Stuttgart has been responsible for Olympics.
regional planning since its foundation in 1994. These urban regions Overall, current strategic spatial plan-making practices are char-
have been dealing with strategic spatial planning at the urban-regional acterized by negotiations involving the participation of a wide range of
level for some decades, leading to a consolidated practice. interest groups, representing mainly economic interests but also en-
Coordination, often a key task of leadership, strengthens the vironmental preoccupations. This is transversal to the 21 case studies.

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In line with Oliveira and Hersperger (2019) we acknowledge that ne- address the role of the legal framework (grey frame) and of funding
gotiations during the plan-making phase are embedded in power con- (blue line), since these are necessary components that sustain the pro-
figurations. The SPlaMI framework thus accommodates real estate de- cess of plan-implementation. Secondly, we discuss the various roles of
velopers and business representatives as well as environmental the main actors involved in the process (green line and yellow ellipses),
advocacy groups that can directly enter the negotiation process. While whose multiple interactions affect the implementation of planning in-
some authors are critical of the involvement of economic interests in tentions (burgundy ellipse). In the plan-implementation phase, actors'
the realm of strategic spatial planning (Olesen, 2014), other scholars interactions are mainly addressed in terms of negotiation (fuchsia el-
contend that the involvement of various groups in the strategic plan- lipse), leadership (orange ellipse), political consensus and cooperation
making processes can provide planners with a tool that can effectively (both blue ellipses). Finally, we consider the role of external events
contribute to stronger plans that are more likely to be implemented in (light-blue ellipse) in affecting the implementation of the strategic plan.
reality (Burby, 2003). In this respect, Albrechts (2006) asserts that in- The legal framework is one of the most decisive components during
terest groups possess valuable substantive and procedural compe- the plan-implementation phase. In short, the more binding the strategic
tencies, and that their participation in strategic spatial plan-making plan, the more consistently local plans will sustain the urban transfor-
processes helps to legitimize the contents of the plan. The tight inter- mations envisioned in the strategic spatial plan. For example, the
relationships between the components of the plan-making phase help to Stuttgart Regional Plan, issued in 1997 and updated in 2009, contains a
overcome issues of legitimacy and transparency if all those representing guideline for strategic development, but also links the spatial planning
different interests are involved. framework at the Land level (Baden-Württemberg) with local plans: the
It is important to emphasize that these components of the plan- Stuttgart regional plan is binding for local authorities, but it is issued
making phase are not exclusive. We acknowledge that in other urban only after a consultation and negotiation process with local authorities
regions, under various political, economic and social conditions and has been completed (see above: plan-making phase). In contrast, the
embedded in a context-specific spatial planning system, other compo- exclusive strategic character of the plan as a development guideline and
nents and interrelationships might emerge during strategic spatial plan- as a platform for discussion, as in the case of Barcelona, supports local
making. plans but does not steer them substantially.
A second decisive component is funding. The role of funding me-
chanisms in plan-implementation has been increasing, mainly due to a
5. Plan-implementation phase scarcity of overall financial resources available in the public domain
following recent financial and economic uncertainty (Oliveira &
The right side of Fig. 2 illustrates the main components of the plan- Hersperger, 2018). Funding, or the setting up of funding mechanisms, is
implementation phase and a selection of the multiple interrelationships a complex process in itself and involves a myriad of actors. Of course,
between governance actors and components. Many have been omitted the respective roles and the importance of the involved actors vary
for purposes of readability. Table 3 complements the figure. In our greatly from one implementation process to another, and sometimes
framework, the plan-implementation phase ideally starts after the from one urban region to another. During plan-implementation, actors
strategic spatial plan has been approved, although – as mentioned from the public and private sectors may modify previous agreements on
above – we are aware this is a simplification. Drawing from our em- funding sources, hence exerting an indirect influence on physical
pirical research, we describe the components as follows. First, we

Table 3
Main components and interrelationships of the strategic spatial plan-making phase as outlined in Fig. 2.
Source: authors' own elaboration.
Component Description of component and main interrelationships

Legal framework The legal framework affects how the strategic plan is implemented locally. The more binding the strategic plan, the more consistently local
plans will sustain the urban transformations envisioned in the strategic spatial plan. In the implementation phase, the legal framework is
related to funding and can shape planning intentions.
Funding Funding is a crucial component for plan implementation, as it refers to the process of securing financial resources for all aspects of
implementation. Funds often come from a combination of sources (represented by the actors in Fig. 2) and are established in intense
negotiation and cooperation processes. Political leadership at different governmental levels can be decisive in attracting and securing
funding.
Actors National governments, as well as regional and local authorities, negotiate and cooperate with private actors for plan implementation.
Representatives of other interests can participate, resist or even disrupt the implementation process. This is particularly true in the context
of controversial strategic urban projects. Political consensus facilitates actors' interactions in negotiation and cooperation processes.
Planning intentions Planning intentions refer to the plan content in terms of development strategy and strategic urban projects.
Negotiation in implementation In implementing the strategic spatial plan, actors negotiate on how funding and planning intentions can be reconciled. Negotiation is a
necessary part of collective decision-making and typically unfolds on many levels, from the very concrete to the general. It can, for example,
be structured in public-private partnerships or conflict resolution processes. Special attention needs to be given to hidden agendas and
exclusion practices. Political leadership and consensus can facilitate negotiation.
Leadership in plan-implementation Leadership refers to the key role and recognized reputation of a politician in prioritizing planning intentions, securing funding, creating
political consensus among actors and facilitating cooperation and negotiation.
Political consensus Political consensus refers to a solid cross-party agreement on the development strategy and strategic urban projects to be realized.
Generally, political consensus ensures that commitment to plan implementation, particularly in terms of funding, is maintained after
elections or changes in political and institutional scenarios. Political consensus is reinforced by the leadership of a respected and
charismatic political leader.
Cooperation Cooperation refers to actors' combined efforts in maintaining their commitment to the implementation of the planning intentions.
Cooperation also involves actors' attitudes to overcoming conflicts and resistances. Political consensus and leadership can facilitate
cooperation.
Events Events refer to unexpected (inter)national happenings that trigger local/regional actors to prioritize or modify the implementation of a
certain development strategy or strategic urban project. A response to events often requires the cooperation of many actors to gather the
necessary financial resources. In general, events are favourable when they stimulate the release of funds, and unfavourable otherwise.
Urban transformation Urban transformation refers to physical transformations in the urban region in terms of land cover and land use. An urban transformation
can be observed when the development strategy and the strategic urban projects are actually implemented, i.e., when planning intentions
are realized.

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transformations and on their adherence to the plan's development managed, trade-fair agency (Ente Fondazione Fiera), the Milan city
strategy. Notably, the funding of strategic urban projects is often highly council, the Lombardy regional government and the Italian State. The
controversial, and the adoption of a critical perspective can help to relocation of the fair, strongly supported by the Lombardy regional
disclose unbalanced agreements, hidden agendas and the exclusion of government, implied the regeneration of (and hence rent-extraction
certain interests in favour of others (Logan & Molotch, 1987; Moulaert from) the old facility and the completion of transport infrastructures
et al., 2003; Swyngedouw, Moulaert, & Rodriguez, 2002). along the north-west axis of the Milan urban region. Cooperation
Public entities, private investors and representatives of other in- among the actors was crucial for the implementation phase. Again, in
terest groups are the prime actors during the plan-implementation the example of Copenhagen Ørestad, the cooperation between the
phase and are directly linked to funding, as can be seen by their position Danish State and the city of Copenhagen was a key element in sus-
in Fig. 2. Public actors and private investors can have a considerable taining the coherence and commitment necessary to implement Ørestad
influence on the realization of strategic urban projects, especially when (although the initial detailed master plan was occasionally amended).
these projects remain strategically prominent beyond the urban region Another example, the renovation and expansion of the logistics hub
in which they are to be implemented, (e.g., waterfront redevelopment). of Barcelona in the mid-1990s, experienced tenacious resistance from
The key actors in the public sector are national, regional and local civil society that was overcome in negotiation and cooperation pro-
governments. An example where the role of the regional authority is cesses. The mayor of El Prat municipality, where the planned expansion
particularly important is Stuttgart's Verband Region. Its elective char- of the logistics hub should have taken place, together with environ-
acter and its key competencies in transport infrastructures make the mental groups, protested against this expansion. The strong resistance
Verband Region a crucial player in the definition and funding of trans- was also fuelled by the fact that the renovation of the Barcelona lo-
port policies, which are included in the regional strategic and land-use gistics hub was part of a more comprehensive strategy to redevelop the
plans issued by the Stuttgart regional authority. In turn, the case of port and expand the airport, with large negative impacts on the sur-
Copenhagen Ørestad is illustrative of the key role played by the na- roundings and the inhabitants of the El Prat municipality. Eventually,
tional government in financially supporting the implementation of this the opposing parties successfully negotiated with the Barcelona muni-
new district (Knowles, 2012). Although not originally included in the cipality, the Catalonian regional government and the Spanish State to
Greater Copenhagen Finger Plan, Ørestad was conceived to form the maintain and protect the ecological habitat of the Llobregat river delta.
‘thumb’ of the Finger Plan's ‘hand’. To turn the tide in Copenhagen, The original development plan for the logistics hub was hence im-
which was at the edge of bankruptcy by the end of the 1980s, the plemented in a modified version to safeguard environmental quality.
Danish State and the city of Copenhagen cooperated and formed a This result was also attained thanks to the actors' cooperative attitude
publicly owned, but privately managed, agency (By & Havn, City & and willingness to overcome this conflict and find a satisfactory solu-
Port) to act as a promoter for the new development that would occur in tion. However, our empirical research confirms that powerful re-
Ørestad. However, as private investment did not appear within the presentatives of other interests, such as housebuilders, possess a greater
expected time, the Danish State acted as a developer: a university capacity to influence decision-making in the plan-implementation
building and state-owned radio and TV studios were located in the process than do environmental NGOs or citizen-led movements.
upper part of Ørestad. Without the support of the Danish State, the A broad political consensus among the key actors, as well as the
development of the ‘thumb’ of the Finger Plan would have been much presence of a key political person whose leadership is recognized, can
deferred. strengthen the coherence of plan-implementation over time, fostering
Private-sector actors often include representatives of for-profit or- an urban transformation in accordance with planning intentions. For
ganizations such as retail companies, real estate developers and in- instance, in the case of Lyon, the strategic (re)development of the
vestors. Again, in the case of Copenhagen Ørestad, the first private Confluence district has been strongly linked to the political figures of
investor to locate in the area was a large Norwegian stakeholder owning the latest Lyon mayors. The predecessor of Mayor Gérard Collomb,
a chain of shopping malls. An exemption from the government was Raymond Barre, had already envisioned the redevelopment of this area;
necessary, however, to concede the shopping mall's owner a larger a commitment that was maintained by his successor. Our fieldwork has
surface than is legally allowed in Denmark. Another example is the also shown that urban policies in Lyon are very much supported by a
transformation of Porta Nuova-Garibaldi-Repubblica in Milan. In the strong cross-party political consensus where decisions taken by the
1953 local land-use plan of Milan, the area was already identified as a previous city council are generally maintained. A similar illustration is
CBD. However, the project never took off and the area became run- again Milan Porta Nuova-Garibaldi-Repubblica, where the left-wing
down and shunned, despite its central location. Over time, other at- Milan city council elected in 2012 maintained the commitment of the
tempts were made to relaunch the area, but these were unsuccessful. previous right-wing council to realize this strategic project. Leadership
The turning point was when, in the mid-2000s, international and na- also plays a role in the setting up and identifying of funding mechan-
tional stakeholders, (i.e., banks, foreign private investors and funders) isms. In the case of Lyon Part-Dieu, the proactive role of Mayor Collomb
took an interest in the area and proposed to the Milan city council a in securing investment in Lyon's CBD was central.
new type of project: building a new CBD with skyscrapers; a complete The proposed analytical framework also highlights the fact that
novelty for the Milanese. The redevelopment of the area took off when unexpected events, such as political instability or natural disasters, can
the 2006 strategic spatial plan of Milan was issued, even though it is have a considerable impact on cooperation and negotiation processes.
linked to it in only a limited way. However, thanks to the prominent For instance, after the German reunification process started in the early
role of private actors, the latest 2016 strategic spatial plan reconfirms 1990s, the US military released their local airfield in the Stuttgart urban
the strategic character of this new centrality in the overall compre- region. A cooperation process began among the five villages forming
hensive spatial strategy for the Milan urban region. Ostfildern municipality where the airfield was located, which resulted
These cases show the relevance of negotiation and cooperation for in the development of Scharnhauser Park (Jessen, 2005). This is a
the implementation of the strategic plan. It is during negotiations that mixed-use area at the gates of Stuttgart, characterized by a high land-
the spatial intentions (see Fig. 2) are linked with funding and that de- scape quality – thanks to an advanced competition-winning landscape
tails regarding the land-use mix and the scope of strategic urban pro- planning project – and served by public transport. Again, in the case of
jects are determined. Furthermore, as it often takes years to implement Stuttgart, the establishment of the Stuttgart regional authority (Verband
a development strategy or a strategic urban project, cooperation is es- Region) in 1994 was a reaction to the economic crisis of the early 1990s
sential for maintaining commitment over time. For instance, the re- and the German reunification process. Both events were perceived as
location and expansion of the Milan trade fair involved skilful nego- highly destabilizing by the Land level of Baden-Württemberg and the
tiations among the newly established, publicly owned but privately Stuttgart city council. To help coordinate efforts to secure the economic

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competitiveness of the region, the Stuttgart regional authority had been we found it easy to generalize across urban regions situated in different
given competencies on transport infrastructures – as a key area of planning cultures (EC, 1997; ESPON, 2007). The 21 urban regions seem
planning intentions – which were included as development strategies in to converge in terms of components, interactions and planning themes,
the regional strategic and land-use plans. whereas they vary mainly in terms of the importance accorded to the
components and the strength of the interactions.
6. Discussion and Conclusions The generalization of the SPlaMI framework is the result of the work
of an interdisciplinary research team who devoted attention to all the
The empirically based SPlaMI framework facilitates future reflec- case studies, in contrast to many research projects where specific case
tions on the workings of strategic spatial planning. It is a flexible tool studies are examined by individual researchers. This procedure gives us
and can serve as a starting point for much-needed comparative re- confidence in the proposed, empirically-based analytical framework.
search. For example, a researcher that designs a study on the role of Other research teams in highly interdisciplinary research fields might
actors in negotiating the content of strategic spatial plans in practice benefit from following this procedure.
can use this analytical framework to situate her/his research within the Acuto et al. (2018) recently called for a global urban science that
planning process. Furthermore, recent studies suggest that strategic reaches across academia, meets pressing sustainability challenges and
spatial plan-making processes are framed and shaped by place-based enables more effective science-policy interfaces. Reflections on the
governance configurations; thus knowing these components helps to workings of strategic spatial planning as presented here, paired with an
understand how private actors' interests influence the definition of evaluation of existing planning processes, are expected to lead to a
development strategies (Oliveira & Hersperger, 2019). A researcher better understanding of how plan-making and plan-implementation
developing a cross-case comparison on these issues can support the influence urban transformation in the pursuit of a more sustainable
systematic identification of potentially crucial interactions with the environment for cities and urban regions.
framework. In addition, planning researchers could use this analytical
framework in their quest to explaining how strategic spatial plans are Acknowledgements
implemented. The framework could aid in scrutinizing who is involved
in negotiations (i.e. experts, citizens, private interest groups) and what We would like to thank all the interview partners and the workshop
is negotiated (e.g. economic activities, housing needs, transportation participants for generously sharing their insights with us and the re-
etc.) as well as which external, contingent factors might affect the plan- viewers for their helpful comments.
making and implementation phases. This is in line with Oliveira and
Hersperger (2018), who reason that to understand strategic planning Funding
practices, it is important to know who benefits and who loses during
negotiations, and how plan implementation decisions are actually This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation
made. Further studies should also focus on the framework's general- (ERC TBS Consolidator Grant number BSCGIO 157789).
ization potential by testing it in non-European contexts.
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