Public Approvals for Private Development Projects

The improvement of real property has social as well as physical and economic implications, and is therefore subject to increasingly rigorous public review. This course will address the legal and policy framework for the discretionary approval of large-scale private development projects by public agencies. We will use Boston case study projects to examine how the public approval process attempts to balance private rights and public interests, shaping the built world in the process. Course readings will include project submission documents and other primary materials.