The need for social acceptance : Creating a legitimate planning process of a Moomin theme park

The research in this paper examined the legitimacy of land-use planning when there are polarizing views of how a specific project should develop. The focused was on the case study of Skutberget in the municipality of Karlstad, Sweden, were two separate planning processes are ongoing. The current development plans regards a Moomin inspired theme park where the company Moomin OY is the developer, as well as an improvement and development of the existing recreational park were the municipality is the responsible part. In a Swedish context, municipalities have a strong authority when it comes to land-use planning, a right often labelled as a “planning monopoly”. This research fills a gap in the scientific academic literature when it comes to assessing democratic processes on a local level, with a special regard to spatial planning. Legitimacy in a representative democracy is a multifaceted concept, which requires both aspects of political representation and social acceptance for a decision to be deemed legitimate. With the case study, political representation regarding both a desire and aversion of developing Skutberget exist. This difference in opinion regarding the development of Skutberget is reflected in public attitude as well, were the theme park of Moomin OY is the biggest dispute. People reflecting different perceptions have taken it upon themselves to engage with media outlets to vocalise their opinions and news articles of the development of Skutberget is a recurring feature in local newspapers. Full social acceptance and consent are, therefore, lacking for the process of developing Skutberget. But as the opinions differ in Karlstad, it is a matter of interpretation of what consist of social acceptance and how to value it in the planning and decision-making process