- Managing Growth in the Sunshine States: Urbanization and Planning in Queensland and Florida   click here to open paper content235 kb
by    Dedekorkut-Howes, Aysin & Mayere-Donehue, Severine | a.dedekorkut@griffith.edu.au   click here to send an email to the auther(s) of this paper
Short Outline
This paper compares the urbanization and planning in the two sunshine
states of Florida and Queensland highlighting the similarities and
differences, evaluates how effective the growth management programs have
been, and examines the recent changes and the challenges they bring to the
respective states.
Abstract
Notwithstanding the distance separating them and differences in terms of
the planning regimes, central-local government relations, and patterns of
urban/local politics, the states of Queensland, Australia and Florida, USA,
have distinct similarities in terms of physical characteristics such as
geography and climate as well as population growth trends, development
history and structure. Both states are late bloomers and both are
experiencing higher than average growth rates within their respective
countries as a result of being desirable tourism and retirement
destinations, both of them have very fragile environments and potentially
growing vulnerability to climate change. Similarly, both tried to cope with
the development pressures they face through the adoption and implementation
of growth management programs.

For two and a half decades after its introduction in 1985 development in
Florida was governed by the Growth Management Act (GMA) whereas in
Queensland state developed regional plans provided the framework for
managing the rapid growth in the noughties. While Florida´s GMA established
a state oversight of local planning and required consistency between plans,
Queensland regional plans required any local plans, policies and codes that
relate to the region to reflect and align with the regional plan. The last
couple of years brought a parallel change to both of these frameworks. In
Florida state oversight of local development has been revoked whereas a
change in government in Queensland removed all growth management elements
from the regional plans.

This paper compares the urbanization and planning in the two sunshine
states of Florida and Queensland highlighting the similarities and
differences, evaluates how effective the growth management programs have
been, and examines the recent changes and the challenges they bring to the
respective states.

Connerly, C., T. Chapin, and H. Higgins (eds.) 2007. Growth Management in
Florida: Planning for Paradise. London: Ashgate Press.

Margerum, Richard D. 2002. Evaluating Collaborative Planning: Implications
from an Empirical Analysis of Growth Management. Journal of the American
Planning Association. 68(2): 179-93. Spring.
Keywords
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