Decoding Code: Planning Enabling Legislation and the 1975 ALI Model Land Development Code

In 1975, the American Law Institute (ALI) published A Model Land Development Code, a 500-page book designed to reform the foundational laws governing municipal planning in the US. Arising from the urban and environmental crises of the 1960s, the code reflected a broader movement to address land use problems. The goal was to create a new legal framework for land use. Despite its aim to reshape planning practice by redesigning the rules governing bureaucratic institutions, the code is now largely forgotten. This paper explores the code’s origins, its critique of existing laws, and its process of creation and distribution.