Philip Harrison

On the Edge of Reason: Planning and Urban Futures in Africa

The shift in planning theory from technical-instrumental to relational conceptions of rationality is helpful in relating to urban environments in Africa that are characterised by the intersection of multiple rationalities and also by spatially extensive and shifting networks of economic and social transaction. However, the relevance of contemporary planning theory is limited by its origins within the intellectual traditions and experiences of the West. If we are to engage effectively with the multiple rationalities that are shaping the cities of the world-cities that are increasingly centred in the global South-then we must bring Western intellectual tradition into a critical relationship with the epistemologies, rationalities and value-based traditions of the non-Occidental world. This paper argues that post-colonial literature and theory may provide some of the intellectual resources needed to sustain such an engagement, as post-colonial thought directs attention to the hybrid intellectual formations and practices that emerge in the on-going interaction between colonised and coloniser. By using Johannesburg as the prism through which to look at cities and at planning, this paper provides some thoughts on how to construct an other way of thinking that is situated both within and outside dominant representations.

Transforming South Africa's cities: Prospects for the economic development of urban townships

This article identifies and evaluates the range of strategies being used to generate economic activity close to and within townships, focusing on the three metropolitan areas of Gauteng, the Durban Functional Region and metropolitan Cape Town. After placing townships in the context of the larger city and the overall strategy of local economic development, the article examines the various types of strategies that have been proposed to stimulate and support economic activity: the currently dominant spatial strategies, the provision of services infrastructure, the development of economic infrastructure, small business support services, and public works.

Security and Space: Managing the Contradictions of Access Restriction in Johannesburg:

Local officials attempt to resolve deep contradictions in most urban settings. The gating of sections of cities provides a notable example, setting fear of crime against rights of movement and access. Johannesburg, South Africa, reveals just such challenges. In this paper the authors review the recent history of policy formulation by city officials on ‘security access restriction’ in Johannesburg. They note the diverse and shifting views and behaviour of various actors and the difficulties faced by policymakers. They highlight how policy has emerged in a profoundly controversial and contested terrain, showing how Johannesburg, at least, has attempted to manage the conflicts. However, the policy environment remains unstable, and existing policy may be only a partial and temporary resolution to a deep contradiction.

A SLICE OF MODERNITY: PLANNING FOR THE COUNTRY AND THE CITY IN BRITAIN AND NATAL, 1900–1950

ABSTRACT While critics of modernist planning generally focus on the history of urban planning, this paper points out that a modernizing planning discourse was also extended to the countryside. This is especially clear in the British case, where rural and urban planning were explicitly combined in the town and country planning movement. Although the roots of town and country planning lie in the nineteenth century, the movement really came into its own in the early 1940s when post-war reconstructionist fervour was at its height. In the South African province of Natal, new institutions for regulating urban and rural environments also emerged during this period. The paper considers the extent to which developments in Natal were influenced by planning discourse emanating from the old metropole, Britain. Similarities and key differences between the institutions of control that emerged in the two contexts, are identified and explained.

Romance and Tragedy in (post) modern planning : A pragmatist's perspective

This paper draws on the literary themes of Romance and Tragedy in reflecting on the nature and role of planning in the contemporary world. It explores these themes through a neo-pragmatist lens that is concerned with both romantic creativity and goal-directed, purposive action. These literary themes direct attention to a number of key dilemmas that have exercised the minds of planners in recent times including, for example: the relationship between individual creativity and social action; the connections between reason and emotion; the dark side of modern planning; and, problems of justice and moral culpability. The paper calls for a tragic vision that would involve the deliberate exercise of the will to plan despite a recognition that utopian dreams will never be realized in any absolute sense, and that planning will always have negative unanticipated consequences. The paper refers specifically to the South African context where the national project of Reconstruction and Development provided planners with a rare opportunity to participate in a romantic endeavour of social transformation, but where some of the earlier hopes are now fading.

THE ROLE OF PLANNERS AND PLANNING IN SHAPING URBAN SPACE

ABSTRACT The role of planning and planners in shaping urban space has been sharply contested in recent years. It has been argued, for example, that contemporary cities are shaped by forces that can no longer be controlled or influenced by planners. There are, however, also indications that planning has resurfaced fairly vigorously in parts of the world. This paper explores the historical and contemporary role of planning and planners in South Africa by using the KwaZulu-Natal town of Port Shepstone as a case study. It shows that there are diverse and complex relationships between planning and urban form, and that simplistic conclusions regarding the role of planners should be avoided. While planners are not the driving force determining urban development, they still play a significant role in shaping urban space.