Devletin merkezi düzenleyici/kaynak yaratıcı ve dağıtıcı rolünün azaltılması ve yönlendiricilik kapasitesinin yükseltilmesi taleplerinin yoğunlaşmasına paralel, yerel yönetimlere ilişkin reform tartışmaları uzun süredir kamu yönetimi tartışmalarının gündemini oluşturmaktadır. Fiziki mekan ve mekanın etkin/yaşanabilir planlanmasının ve planlama yetkilerinin mevcut durumdaki sorunlu yapısı, yerel yönetim reform tartışmalarında önemli yer tutmakta ve yerelin yönetim kademelerinin yeniden düzenlenmesi sürecinde değerlendirilmesi gereken konulardan birisini oluşturmaktadır. Bu bağlamda, ülkemizde yerel yönetimlerin kırsal alandaki son kademesi olan 'köy yönetimi' ve 'mekan planlanması', yerel yönetim reform tartışmalarıyla da ilişkilendirilerek irdelenecektir. Bu hedefe yönelik olarak, bu makalenin özünü köy yönetiminin mekan boyutuyla incelenmesi oluşturmaktadır.

Municipalities, provincial local administrations and villages are the three categories of local administration operating in Turkey. In parallel to the increasing demand for shrinking the role of state and central authority in decision making and resource allocation, reform debates over local governments have also been the main agenda of public administration for a long time. The existing unrefined structure through grasping the effective and inhabitable spatial environment has also taken its place in reform discussions. And also, it requests to be assessed in reorganization of local administration hierarchy. In this perspective, 'village administration' as the last category of the local bodies of power in Turkey; and 'spatial planning' as its inseparable part will be examined in relation to debates over local administration reform. Village administration is the settlements with at least 150 people and the Village Act of 1924 assigns obligatory and optional duties for the villagers. Obligatory duties include the protection of health, strengthening of social relations, maintenance of order and security, waste removal, public works and cultural affairs. Village administration consists of the village assembly, village headman and members of the council of elders. The village headman is the representative of the central government at local level and supervises the planning and operation of village projects and services. The article tries to enlighten, by taking into consideration of the spatial development regulations from the view point of village structures and administrative bodies. Through the analysis of existing problem solving capacity of village administrations in the existing planning environment, a strategic framework will be provided for reform studies (the various expression of administrative and physical relationships in spatial terms, promotion of efficiency in the interface between land uses and physical environment; attempts to protect the physical environment from the impact of side effects of building activities as we know that the built environment is difficult to alter).