Colonial Zoning, Community Equity, and the Planner: A Guide for Communities to Address Resident Exclusion Resulting from an Institutionalized Relationship with Land
Date
2024-06-20
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Abstract
Our relationship with land is shaped by the historical and ongoing processes of colonization and dispossession, which have established patterns of exclusion and inequality. Zoning regulations reflect and reinforce these patterns by privileging certain land uses and development patterns over others, often to benefit the dominant culture and to the detriment of those experiencing marginalization. The research examines the colonial foundations of zoning in Canada and takes inspiration from precedent equity in zoning work completed by the City of Edmonton, the American Planning Association, and the City of Ottawa. The study approaches the problem through design science research to explore the question of how planners, the writers and administrators of zoning, can recognize and act upon a colonial relationship with land that marginalizes some residents. The practice-based research generates and tests a prototype intervention for planners to access information about unjust land use rules as a precursor to public participation that centres the perspectives of those experiencing marginalization. The prototype evolves through application to three zoning bylaws – the District of Oak Bay, the Town of Sidney, and Salt Spring Island. The final prototype Zoning Equity Study Guide offers a mechanism to open the door guarding the institution of zoning and invites a relational path forward to deconstruct inequitable local laws that exclude.
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Keywords
Zoning, Equity, Planning, Decolonization, Diversity, Inclusion
Citation
East, J. (2024). Colonial zoning, community equity, and the planner: a guide for communities to address resident exclusion resulting from an Institutionalized relationship with land (Doctoral thesis, University of Calgary, Calgary, Canada). Retrieved from https://prism.ucalgary.ca.