Access and Influence in Planning. An Assessment of Public and Interest-Group Participation in Plan-Making in Lombardy

Does public participation matter in planning? Although the paradigm of participation has strengthened, its practical implementation is not always successful. Critical literature stresses that public engagement is often ineffective since planning choices are mainly influenced by the most affluent groups. While most studies focus on collaborative or innovative cases of participation in urban design and transformation, this paper focuses on local comprehensive planning and the statutory involvement of the public and interest groups. To assess their influence, their access to the planning process is analysed with data from a survey of elected officers and staff in the municipalities of the largest region in Italy. It is inferred that the access for non-governmental actors predicts the latter’s impact on policy decisions. Participation from citizens and stakeholders through the formal and legally regulated mechanisms does not seem to be empty rhetoric: their contributions appear to be taken into consideration. In most cases, they manage to make an impact on decision-makers by collaborating with them, while confrontation is seldom experienced. Residents and economic associations are the most influential players, while political parties are the least prominent ones. This implies that particular interests and expectations, manifested by many residents and stakeholders, may hinder policymakers striving to plan for the wider community’s benefit.