Are compact cities a desirable planning goal?

This paper considers some key issues that help to evaluate whether or not the promotion of compact cities is a worthwhile planning goal. These are: the pressures on prime agricultural land; residential density preferences; energy resource savings; the potential for expanding transit use and promoting TODs (transit-oriented developments); the costs and benefits of suburbanization; the efficiency gains from compactness; the impact of telecommunications on the density of development; the prospects for downtowns; the influence of rent-seeking on the promotion of downtown projects; the social equity of compactness; and the effects of competition among cities. Our evaluation of these issues does not support the case for promoting compact cities.