In the world of urban development, big projects seem to offer potential for effective planning, by allowing those involved to weigh multiple factors and provide integrated solutions over a broad area. But these projects, at least in the 1990s, are rarely the site of uncontested visions of the future. Governments are internally divided, nonprofessionals expect a voice in development, private sector actors have differing concerns, and financial and professional stakes are high. This pluralism is hardly new, but combined with large- scale contemporary environmental, economic and social changes, it creates a complicated context for development.
Examining the debate between activists and professional planners over the vision of the future of a large growth corridor in Sydney, Australia, this case study maps the history of development from the late sixties to the mid-nineties, during which time serious environmental and financial problems arose. The book outlines five major visions of the future develo