Pivotal years

1940 1945 1950 1955 1960

NATURAL GAS FIELD AT SLOCHTEREN (PROVINCE OF GRONINGEN)
1965 1970 1975 1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015
5 MILLIONTH DWELLING 16 MILLION INHABITANTS 7 MILLIONTH DWELLING
POST-WAR RECONSTRUCTION 1953 MAJOR FLOOD DISASTER DEMOCRATIZATION CLUB OF ROME1 INTERNET
3 MILLIONTH DWELLING CUTBACKS IN GOVERNMENT SPENDING
RACE RIOTS IN THE AFRIKAANDER QUARTER (ROTTERDAM) EUROPE WITHOUT INTERNAL BORDERS
9/11 BANKING CRISIS
WELFARE STATE OIL CRISIS 14 MILIION INHABITANTS PRIVATIZATION OF THE NATIONAL POSTAL SAVINGS BANK MURDER OF PROMINENT POPULIST
11 MILIION INHABITANTS YOUTH PROTEST MOVEMENT POLITICIAN PIM FORTUYN

Cabinet ministers [Secretary-General Ringers Vos In ’t Veld Witte Van Aartsen Bogaers Witte Schut Udink Gruijters Beelaerts van Blokland Van Dam Nypels Winsemius Nijpels Alders De Boer Pronk Kamp Dekker Winsemius Cramer Huizinga Schultz
and their party Frederiks] Without Labour Labour party Catholic party Protestant party Catholic party Cath. Protestant party Conserv. protest. party Liberal democratic party Christian democratic party Labour Lib. Liberal party Liberal party Labour party Labour party Labour party Lib. Liberal party Liberal Labour party Evang. Liberal party
party party party dem. party party party
affiliation affiliation

Policy
documents
and reports

• Mainports
Planning Europe • Europort = Extension of Port of Rotterdam • Urban regions with economic top sectors
• Continental corridors
concepts
• Industrialization • The west and the rest of the Netherlands
Regions • Regions developing on the basis of their own strengths • Urban networks
• Decentralization policy • Randstad Holland2

The West of the Netherlands • Northern and southern wings of the Randstad • Randstad urban network with wings • Northern and southern wings of the Randstad

• ABC location policy3

Urban regions • City region • New towns • Urban nodes • Location criteria according to the VINEX4
• Overspill nuclei New towns
• Wadden Sea • Development strategies • National landscapes
Green space • Buffer zones • National ecological network
• Randstad green structure for rural areas • Green space in and around the urban areas

Tools • Basic decree • Provisional regulation • Spatial Planning Act • Spatial planning key decision • Reconstruction Act for Midden Delfland • Partial review of Spatial Planning Act • Framing act on changes in administrative cooperation • Spatial Planning Act • General rules on • Environmental Act
- laws spatial planning
• Crisis and decree
Recovery Act

Tools • Buffer zones • Supplement to the Fourth national policy document on • Investment projects promoting spatial quality • Multi-annual programme for infrastructure, space and transport
- funding • Urban reconstruction Urban renewal single budget spatial planning – VINEX implementation covenants • Reconstruction of business parks
• Public-private partnership key development projects • Budget for projects in the Fifth national policy document on spatial planning
• Pilot projects
RNP Wederopbouw RPD VRO DGRuimte VROM Ruimtelijk Planbureau DGRuimte&Water I en M PBL
Organization
VC RPC RARO CDL ICES VROMraad CIenM RLI

RNP Government Agency for the National Plan STOKSTRAAT QUARTER, MIDDEN-DELFLAND
Icons Wederopbouw Ministry of Reconstruction and Public MAASTRICHT – example of buffer zone to keep LEIDSCHE RIJN
Housing - pathfinder in renewal of inner cities open landscape between cities - new urban district of Utrecht
VC Permanent Committee RANDSTAD HOLLAND + GREEN HEART largest VINEX development
VRO Ministry of Spatial Planning and Public Housing DAPPER QUARTER, AMSTERDAM
- typical example of the distinction between town
RPD National Spatial Planning Agency and country, initially only a general demarcation and
- start of urban renewal WADDEN SEA
RPC National Spatial Planning Committee - maintenance of balance
in later decades more and more strictly defined
RARO Advisory Council for Spatial Planning in the largest nature area in
DG Ruimte Directorate-General of Spatial Planning the Netherlands
VROM Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning and the
Environment
Ruimtelijk Planbureau Bureau for Spatial Analysis HOUTEN NEW TOWN
CDL Committee for Sustainable Development - highly praised example of a new

ICES Interministerial Committee for Investments in town 19TH CENTURY DEFENCE LINE
1) 36 experts who met annually from 1968, initially in - cultural-historical importance
Economic Development
VROM Raad Advisory Council for Housing, Spatial Rome, to discuss the environment and published a
Planning and the Environment ground-breaking report in 1972 ‘Limits to Growth’
DG Ruimte en Water Directorate-General for Spatial 2) ‘Rim City Holland’- agglomeration of the large GLOBAL GATEWAY
Planning and Water Management urban regions in the west of the country - successful concept to
I en M Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environment 3) Location policy for economic activity and services strengthen the economy
PBL Netherlands Environmental Assesment Agency according to categorization into A, B and C RANDSTADRAIL - rapid public
‘CUBES MAP’
CI en M Committee for Infrastructure and locations transport in Rotterdam-The Hague
- symbol of long term EAST LIMBURG MINING AREA metropolitan region
Environmental Policy 4) VINEX = Supplement to the Fourth national policy planning PALACE QUARTER
- example of regional economic
RLI Advisory Council for the Environment document on spatial planning DEN BOSCH - successful innovation in regional transport
reconstruction
public-private collaboration in renewal

WATERFRONT REDEVELOPMENT in immediate vicinity of railway station

PROJECT MAASTRICHT
- example of the first generation
of key projects

Spatial Planning Calendar - 75 years of national spatial policy in The Netherlands

 restrict urban development in the so-called ‘green of coordination, that is coordination of spatial for Sustainable Development). Since 2010 the
100 staff plus a number of allied organizations Netherlands Institute for Spatial Research. The
Calendar (see section 6), and a national policy document, Spatial Planning Act had been completely revised
heart’ of the west. The Third Policy Document aspects of “sectoral” policies between ministries Commissie Infrastructuur en Milieu (CI en M)
was in fact a long series of policy documents, and between central government, the provinces (Committee for Infrastructure and Environmental
endorsed by parliament, had set out policies in by the year 2008. By that time, the rapid recovery the result of modern process planning that and the municipalities. So ‘own’ funding was Policy) is the last non-political stage of spatial
The Netherlands is a ‘self-made country’ and writing and, characteristically, on maps (in 1966). from the 2002 dot.com bubble had turned into started in 1973 with ‘Oriënteringsnota ruimtelijke never an important tool but having influence policy making. For some twenty years a parallel
spatial planning has had a significant role in A small amount of funding was reserved by the the nightmare of the current credit and financial ordening’ or the First part of the Third National over the budgets of other ministries was. Efforts universe had existed in the form of a special
creating it. All three levels of government - state for specific planning interests such as buffer crises. Policy Document on Spatial Planning. It helped in the years after 2000 to wrestle a ‘spatial’ budget committee for national investments in economic
municipal, provincial and national - have played zones, new towns and city centre redevelopment. The last year of change on the calendar is 2010 to put the policies of the Second document into from the treasury succeeded twice but have now development (infrastructure, but also environ-
their part. Municipal planning and development Cultural unrest in the 1960’s led to a legislative when the housing and office markets ground to practice, although with changes. An important ceased indefinitely. ment, nature and urbanization), headed by the

Spatial Planning Calendar

has always been the basis of spatial development basis for public participation in national planning a halt. A new minority cabinet turned towards result was the ‘Structuurschets voor de landelijke Other tools are more important. The Planning Secretary-General of the Ministry of Economic
in the Netherlands. In the 1930’s the provinces (1972, National Spatial Planning Key decision or radical decentralization and deregulation. The en stedelijke gebieden’ [National Structure Plan Act is one. It stipulates procedures, not content, Affairs (ICES) (Interministerial Committee for
followed as supra-local coordinators. Since 1941 PKB). The rapid expansion of the welfare state in government budget was downsized (e.g. an for the Rural and Urban Areas] (1986)that set out for spatial plans that can be drawn up by central Investments in Economic Development). In
we have had a separate institution for national those years led to a myriad of national policies end was put to all urbanization subsidies)and the policies for urbanization, recreation, nature government, provinces and municipalities. Muni- practice this committee had a decisive voice in
spatial policy. A Spatial Planning Act has been in for new infrastructure such as airports and energy the remit of national spatial planning interests conservation and landscape development, that is cipalities are the basis of this soft-hierarchical spatial investments and consequently in spatial
force since 1965 and substantive national policy networks, and for ‘new’ spatial interests such was reduced in the National Policy Strategy for to say, the whole gamut of spatial themes except system. They are obliged to produce legally policies.
strategies since 1966. Alongside national spatial as recreation and nature conservation. This was Infrastructure and Spatial Planning. A radical transport infrastructure (they had their own binding local land use plans for the whole of their To give shape to the voice of the people, in 1965
planning, robust but interrelated systems of done through an ever-more elaborate system makeover of the whole legislative system for the

75 years of
national policy documents). territorial area. Substantive central government an advisory body was set up (“Raad van Advies
transport planning, environmental planning of public planning procedures that were the physical domain (planning, nature, infrastruc- The Fourth document was not ratified by parlia- policies ‘work through’ in other plans by means voor de Ruimtelijke Ordening” [Advisory Council
etc. have also been developed. National spatial basis for long drawn-out societal and political ture, water etc.) is in preparation. The Ministry of ment because the government had resigned, so it of coordination and negotiation. Negotiation for Spatial Planning] RARO ), later broadened
planning as such is not strongly contested. The conflicts. Planning became in the public percep- Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment is not depicted in the calendar. The Supplement may take the form of package deals; a good into the VROMRaad [Advisory Council for
role of the state versus lower tiers of government, tion a process of following the right procedures was split up and the Spatial Planning Agency of the Fourth document (1993), which parliament example are the ‘VINEX covenants’ from the Housing, Spatial Planning and the Environment]
the role of spatial planning in relation to the instead of producing spatial quality. In the period swallowed up in a new Directorate-General for ratified accepted after extended discussions, 1990’s that made the integrated development and since 2012 part of the much more compre-
ministries with higher budgets , and substantive between the two oil crises (1973 and 1979) spatial Spatial Planning and Water Management in the contains all the policies of the stranded Fourth of new urban areas possible with limited state hensive “Raad voor Leefomgeving en Infrastruc-
themes such as housing, nature and infra- dynamics slowed down considerably and public new Ministry of Infrastructure and the Environ- document plus additional policies for the subsidies. tuur” [Advisory Council for the Environment]
structure are all, however, subject to ongoing spending cuts were severe, except on housing and ment. Spatial planning is no longer visible in the environment and for urbanization. By the same Legal tools have a limited role, since 2012 limited (RLI) . At the same time the (RPB) was combined

national
discussion. urban renewal. name of the ministry. token the ‘Actualisering Vinex’[Update of the Sup- to 13 ‘national interests’ that have been specified with the Environmental Assesment Agency (PBL) .
Around the year 1990 the economic downturn plement to the Fourth National Policy Document in the newest National Policy Strategy, plus a The point of this organizational history is to
This calendar highlights the history of national had passed; the demand for spatial development 2 Ministers on Spatial Planning] (1998) is also included. legal underpinning in a General Administrative illustrate that national spatial planning for some
spatial planning over the 75 years between 1940 grew again, and the national budget increased Ministers responsible for national spatial After that a turbulent period ensued. The Order. However, if provinces or municipalities do 60 years had its own workshop with dedicated
and 2015. Other publications give comprehensive again. Parts of central government revenue planning have come from all national political draft of the next document (2002) also did not not cooperate sufficiently, central government organizations around it, and that since around
accounts of planning in the Netherlands and from natural gas production were dedicated to denominations except the communists and achieve parliamentary approval because that can push through its own projects (e.g. roads, the year 2000 spatial policy has become a modest
should be consulted to go into more detail. investments in infrastructure and soil decon- some very small parties. As all governments in government also resigned prematurely. It was electricity networks) by making directly binding part of an emerging comprehensive policy field
tamination, a new field of interest for national the Netherlands are coalitions we are used to transformed into the ‘Nota Ruimte’[National state land use plans and by issuing building that can be titled ‘environmental policy’.
The structure of this calendar is as follows: politics. The foreseeable growth of the European distinguishing first the colour of the cabinet that

spatial policy
Planning Strategy, without number but in fact the permits on the basis of those plans.
First row: Pivotal years in spatial planning market into a ‘single market’ by the year 1992 was produces policies, and then the colour of the Fifth] (2006) and supplemented by the Randstad 7 Icons
Second row: The ministers of spatial planning met with great enthusiasm and was used as a new minister. In the calendar we distinguish: blue 2040 Policy Strategy (2008). The policies of the 6 Organization The aim of spatial policy is to influence physical
and their political affiliations perspective by planners. This was consolidated in for Liberal-Christian cabinets, red for Socialist- National Planning Strategy and its supplements To produce spatial policies you need a ‘work- reality. That may take a long time, but it is the
Third row: Major national policy documents the Fourth National Policy Document on Spatial Christian cabinets, and purple for Socialist-Libe- have been considerably pared down in the latest shop’, that is the nucleus of a central organization proof of the pudding. Physical reality takes shape
Fourth row: Spatial policy concepts Planning (1988) in a ambitious programme of ral cabinets. Over the years ministers have been document “Structuurvisie Infrastructuur en for spatial planning. First came the Agency for because of thousands of actors, tools and ideas.
Fifth row: Tools (legal and financial) growing ‘mainports (global gateways)’(The Port 9x Socialists, 7x Christian Democrats, 6x Liberals, Ruimte” [National Policy Strategy on Infrastruc- the National Plan RNP (1941), in 1965 renamed In the calendar we have selected fourteen ‘icons’
Sixth row: The organizations of national planning of Rotterdam and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport), 2x Liberal Democrats, 1x Christian Orthodox and ture and Spatial Planning] of 2012. This document the National Spatial Planning Agency RPD . of spatial development in the Netherlands where
Seventh row: The icons of planning. the creation of new hinterland connections 1x without party affiliation. Some ministers were contains all of the (almost unchanged) national Both organizations produced policies but also national polices have had a decisive influence.

in The
or continental corridors (road and rail) to experts in the field when they started. Two were transport policies together with much reduced carried out high quality spatial policy research. The icons represent a broad range of situations
1 Pivotal years Belgium and Germany, and the development twice Minister of Spatial Planning, so most of spatial policies; that combination is a remarkable In the year 2002 this policy research function that have been chosen by an expert committee on
National spatial policy grew slowly from modest of selected cities into ‘urban nodes’ of national them only served for one cabinet period. One innovation. was deemed by the government to be conflicting the basis of public (internet) votes. Visit them and
beginnings in 1941. Some eras are characterized and international importance. The Supplement occupant held the post for a record 7 years (Witte, with the policy function, so a number of staff you feel the flavor of national spatial policy in a
by the formulation of new policies and others by to this Fourth Policy Document (VINEX, 1993) a Christian Democrat). 4 Policy concepts was transferred to the new Netherlands Institute self-made country.
policies being implemented. We identify a few contained considerable investments to improve Spatial planning can be recognized by its use of for Spatial Research (RPB) . The other part of the
pivotal years around which the course of develop- environmental quality and a huge programme 3 Six major national policy documents ‘spatial concepts’ that express in a nutshell, in agency was in turn integrated into a regular policy
ments changed rather quickly, for example 1940, of urbanization for the whole of the Netherlands This series of policy documents concentrates words or images, what spatial developments are department (Directoraat-Generaal Ruimte, DGR ),
1970, 1990, 2000 and 2010. for the period 1995-2005, in 1998 extended to the on the major documents that have spatial intended for. Some concepts have been employed in 2010 recombined into the Directorate-General Further reading
In 1940 the National Frederiks Commission year 2010. The Supplement acquired the epithet policy ‘content’ in the form of spatial concepts,

Netherlands
for a very long time, some were only short-lived. for Spatial Planning and Water Management Hans van der Cammen and Len de Klerk, with
proposed, a few days before the Second World ‘VINEX’ leading to a series of ‘VINEX locations’, programmes and general directives. These are On numerous occasions the label of the concept (DGRW) . Gerhard Dekker and Peter Paul Witsen, 2012, The
War broke out, to the government that a National that have alternately been scorned and praised. the documents that have been approved by remained unchanged but the content was altered. The ‘workshop’ was always part of a ministry. That Self-made land. Culture and evolution of urban and
Plan should be drawn up together with a separate As the ‘VINEX policy’ was being implemented parliament. There are scores of other reports ‘Urban region’ is a case in point. It was the central started as Ministry of Reconstruction regional planning in The Netherlands, Houten:
Planning Act. Under German occupation what around the year 2000 new policies were in and studies that have been of influence, but to notion for the organization of space in urbanized (Wederopbouw) , then renamed into Housing Spectrum.
remained of the Dutch civil service founded preparation that would have resulted in a give a good overview here the major ones with a regions, but it could mean a well-defined admi- and Spatial Planning (VRO) , to be completed
in 1941 an Agency for the National Plan under Fifth National Policy Document on Spatial significant political status are illustrated. nistrative entity, a fluid geographical area defined with the Environment (VROM) . Since 2010 the A. Faludi and A. van der Valk, 1994, Rule and
the direction of Mr. Frederiks. At the same time Planning, but the years of liberal-socialist The first two come from the formative years. “Het
Published by: by commuter relations, or a morphologically ministry has been called Infrastructure and the order. Dutch planning doctrine in the twentieth century,
regulations were put in place for provincial coalition governments (from 1994 onwards) were westen … en overig Nederland” [The West and the defined built-up area. Environment (I en M) . Dordrecht: Kluwer.
planning agencies, for regional plans and for numbered and a significant change of direction rest of The Netherlands] (1956) and “Ontwikkeling The concepts presented here are subdivided Policy-making by the government is prepared
Ministry of Infrastructure and the containment of development in areas of took place. A period of political instability began van het Westen des Lands” [The future develop- according to spatial scale: the Netherlands in by committees that coordinate decision-making Jelte Boeijenga and Jeroen Mensink, 2008, Vinex
the Environment outstanding natural beauty. From 1941 onwards and traditional mainstream parties could no ment of the West of the country](1958) led to the North-Western Europe, the West and the Rest, before it reaches ministerial levels. Important Atlas, Rotterdam: 010 (Dutch/English, lavishly
work continued to create modern planning legis- longer count on the support of their voters. first formal parliamentary request for national concepts for Randstad Holland [the West], for committees in the field of spatial planning at documented).
lation, to develop the organization of planning Decentralization and stimulation of development spatial policy. Both documents contained the out-
Postbus 20901 | 2500 EX Den Haag urban regions and concepts for the green spaces. director-general level have a long pedigree: since
at the national level, to produce policies, and to instead of containing (urban) development were line of the policies that later were formalized in 1941 the Vaste Commissie (VC) , (Permanent Com- The complete list of icons numbers 35. See
+31 (0)70 456 0000 generate public and political interest. the new catchwords written into the ‘National the First, and most of all, in the Second National 5 Tools mittee) after 1965 called the Rijksplanologische www.canonro.nl and Ministry of Infrastructure
http://www.government.nl/ministries/ienm Around the year 1970 a full-blown National Spatial Planning Strategy’ of 2006. Around that Policy Documents on Spatial Planning (1966). The National spatial policy has never been in the Commissie (RPC) , (National Spatial Planning and the Environment, 2012, 35 icons of Dutch
Planning Agency came into existence: from 1965 time, the Planning Agency had been reorganized: Second document produced the concept of ‘clus- position of being a big spender. Spatial policy was Committee) and its successor the Commissie spatial planning/35 iconen van ruimtelijke ordening in
a Spatial Planning Act had been in force, the the research function was taken away and tered suburbanization’ that was made operatio- always thought to be first and foremost a matter voor Duurzame Leefomgeving (CDL) .(Committee Nederland.
July 2013 agency had grown into an institution of around incorporated into a newly created independent nal in the decision to develop new towns and to

Spatial Planning Calendar - 75 years of national spatial policy in The Netherlands