Master plans and planning commissions in the 1920s: the Australian experience

Through the 1920s in the United States, the number of cities which had appointed planning commissions or secured comprehensive master plans increased significantly. This was the era of the ʹcity functionalʹ, with planning ideology focused on goals of order, efficiency, and growth through methodologies based on scientific data analysis. Australian cities in the 1920s were amenable to this approach. Though small in population terms, they confronted similar problems of sprawl, uncoordinated infrastructure provision and traffic congestion. Leading planning advocates turned away from small area planning schemes based on British precedents towards an American-style master planning approach. In the wake of the ill-fated Sydney Regional Plan Convention (1922-6), came two notable Town Planning Commissions in Melbourne and Perth. While obviously inspired by American models, the form and functioning of these organizations reflected the influence of distinctive governmental, financial and cultural conditions.