8 
One strategy—the new community development stratery—holds 
out great promise for effective land utilization and for meeting the 
pressing needs of those presently trapped in decaying cities. After 
weighing the economic, social, political, and physical/technological 
considerations embodied in this approach to urban development, we 
are prepared to advocate this approach instead of many others that 
have been suggested. Two detailed studies of the potential role of 
State governments in planning and developing new communities 
as part of unified State land use planning efforts have been completed. 
The first paper, “Guidelines, for State Involvement in the Develop- 
ment of New Communities in Massachusetts: Toward a State Urban 
Growth Policy,” was written by Mr. Lawrence E. Susskind, a recent 
oraduate of the MIT Department of Urban Studies and Planning. 
His paper is concerned with the role of State government in the plan- 
ning and development of new communities. Using Massachusetts as a 
case study, Mr. Susskind explores a variety of techniques for selecting 
sites for new community development and explores the potential 
economic impact of developing new communities as growth centers in 
metropolitan urban regions. The second, “Public Involvement in New 
Community Development: Justifications, Problems, and a Proposal”’ 
was carried out by Mr. R. Stephen Browning. Mr. Browning is a 
lawyer and a recent graduate of the Department of City and Regional 
Planning at Harvard University. His paper examines the significant 
legal and political issues which underlie many of the present obstacles 
to public development of new communities. In addition, he offers a 
proposed model statute which seeks to reformulate and reconcile many 
of these issues into a new political structure for the development of 
new communities at the State government level. There is some overlap 
between the two studies, but the political strategies recommended by 
the two authors differ markedly. 
These two papers should serve as an introduction to the political, 
economic, legal, and social problems of new community development. 
The annotated bibliography that appears as the end of both papers 
should help to identify other studies and readings that would be of 
interest. 
