The Master Plan

Land use strategies

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What is the masterplan?

The Masterplan, this term generally identifies those strategies of direction through which one or more subjects (public or private) outline the programming actions aimed at obtaining an expected result. In urban planning, in general, the Masterplan is a sort of "Action Plan": the objectives to be achieved are outlined, the skills, responsibilities and tools that the individual actors in the decision-making process must carry out are defined.

The Master Plan, in general, outlines sectoral guidelines (e.g. “Logistics Master Plan”, “Port Master Plan”, “Tourism Master Plan”, etc.) and therefore represents a tool for “political” commitments towards shared strategies. Unlike urban planning tools for territorial programming, such as the Territorial Direction Plan (Regional), the Territorial Coordination Plan (Provincial), the Structural Plan and the Urban Planning Regulation (Municipal), the Master Plan is a voluntary tool, not subject to any adoption/approval procedure; this does not detract from the fact that – being a guidance document – it is generally subject to public presentations aimed at actively involving the interested community.

Masterplan taken from Cristiano Noce's degree thesis — Taken from Cristiano Noce's thesis

Development Phases

The formation of the Masterplan is divided into three parts:

the analytical-interpretative phase
the design phase
the management phase

The first, which refers to a preliminarily identified area, consists of an analysis of the relevant issues present in the context considered and aimed at highlighting the state of the places, the critical issues and potential of the territory, the existing economic activities, the social context and the historical-cultural and environmental characteristics.

In the second phase, the strategic development axes are defined, i.e. the strategies, projects and actions aimed at enhancing the economic system and the cultural, social, environmental and landscape heritage for the area considered.

The third phase consists of “animation”, implementation and management of actions aimed at the realization of the Masterplan. It includes a complex process of integration with the tools of urban planning and with the financial programs approved in a program agreement or with other forms of financial instruments: a process that includes phases of monitoring and feedback. It presupposes the adoption of a common methodology that allows all the actors of the project to jointly arrive at defining the desired structure according to expressed and shared guidelines. Considering that the Master Plan is a voluntary tool, its effectiveness is determined by a process of participatory democracy, supported by adequate communication tools that use a simple and direct language capable of addressing a large and heterogeneous number of subjects.

Implementation

For each action it contains and specifies the elements that identify the object of the action, the leader who is responsible for the implementation, the associated partners, the entity and the financial sources, the implementation times. Since it is a voluntary procedure, it is necessary to start forms of partnership between institutional bodies, private actors, associations and local communities (structured relationships between stakeholders and shareholders) who commit, each for their own skills, to respect and implement the action program. Continuous monitoring of the implementation phases allows to intervene, in a timely and effective way, introducing the changes that may be necessary during a complex process in order to ensure the consistency of the results with the pre-established objectives.

The Master Plan is therefore an important tool to ensure that the development of an area occurs in a coherent manner, avoiding problems such as disorganized expansion, traffic congestion, lack of green spaces and other urban problems. Furthermore, it can be used to ensure that future developments are in line with the goals and values of the local community.

The specifics of the Masterplan can vary greatly from one location to another, but in general, it is a key tool for urban and regional planning.

An example of a Masterplan

Foster + Partners

Foster + Partners’ Ellinikon Masterplan aims to create a new vision for the future of Mediterranean coastal development in Greece. It takes a restorative approach to managing and designing existing natural and built assets to revitalise the Athenian coastline. It establishes a new paradigm for integrated and sustainable living, transforming the site of a former airport into a vibrant neighbourhood. The plan envisages multiple neighbourhoods bringing together residential, commercial, working, recreational, entertainment and cultural activities around Europe’s largest coastal park.