The Greek model of urbanization

For exactly one century Greece, in turbulent times and with a fragile economy, has aspired to articulate a land policy able to control urbanization and tilt the scales in favor of society, away from merely passively accommodating free market decisions. However, the analysis of available data shows that so far this quest has not been successful. Urbanization largely proceeded unimpeded. In the past thirty years urban land increased by 70% while urban density has reduced almost by half. Surprisingly the trends are persistent even to the severe economic crisis of the past decade. The form of sprawl in Greece is characterized by strip development along the coastline, sometimes at substantial depths, and by low density expanses in low laying areas, that are mixed in land use, but in a suboptimal and conflicting fashion. The main drivers of uncontrolled urbanization is on the one hand a strong growth coalition (owners, developers, interest groups) and on the other a chronically inefficient planning system. The results clearly show that unless land policy abandons the laissez-faire attitude, that favors the growth coalition, and shifts to endorsing the concept of urban containment, the protagonists of growth will continue to avoid bearing the cost of development externalities , which so far is successfully passed to the broader society in a vicious circle of land speculation.