Master planning: a powerful tool to add value to commercial real estate developments

The article by Nitin Desai, RA and Philip Wilkinson, AIA discusses master planning as the quintessential tool to enable developers to make informed decisions about site selection, financial viability and program planning, including use, scale and timing. While master plans are essential for large-scale projects and complex mixed-use developments, they can also help developers make decisions about smaller commercial development projects.

The master plan is a valuable tool for evaluating alternative sites as well as for selecting the most appropriate use to ensure the best development potential and return on investment. Master plans can also help the development team embrace sustainable design early in the development process to increase a project’s financial viability while decreasing short- and long-term costs.