In the interests of the common good

When in need of the higher moral ground, or a superiority judgement, you just can't beat invoking 'The Common Good'.  The 'Common Good' is without doubt a good thing.  But are we as planners uniquely privilged to act in its interest, let alone credibly understand what the Common Good is?  Do our cities and towns abound with evidence of 'Common Good' planning?

The Common Good is a profoundly philosophical challenge and dilemma.  To have a proper understanding of the common good, its probably best to start with Plato and work your way up through Marx and Lefebvre.  Issues of equality are matters of government policy not philosophy or law.  There is a profound difference between invoking a policy (i.e. give us 10% of your houses because we don't build any) to claiming you act in the common good.  Those in Council's have a  very limited mandate (local Councillors) or no mandate (officers and administrators) to act in the public good, other than the fact that the government pays them (they are therefore more responsible to government (and their pay cheque) than the common good).  No less, the consultant is responsible to their client and (potential) next pay cheque.

David Harvey in his brilliant and provocative book 'Rebel Cities' addresses the concept of an Urban Commons in some detail.

"... Much of the corruption that attaches to urban politics relates to how public investments are allocated to produce something that looks like a common but which promotes gains in private asset values for privileged property owners.  The distinction betweeen urban public goods and urban commons is both fluid and dangerously porous.  How often are developmental projects subsidized by the state in the name of the common interest when the true beneficiaries are a few landholders, financiers, and developers?"

The point is that no decision is completely a-political.  Planning is highly political.  Developers arn't always the bad guys just as planners arn't always the good guy.  There is no reason a Common Good can't be economic just much as environmental or cultural.

The Common Good is a catch-phrase just like Sustainable Development that is utilised to give an impression of superiority.  By saying you act in the Common Good doesn't mean you do, and chances are you don't!