Optimal intertemporal supply of a public facility under uncertainty

This paper is concerned with the optimal scheduling of open space over a finite planning period. The analysis presented considers explicitly and systematically the stochastic nature of demand for open space and the penalties associated with ‘leads’ and ‘lags’ in its supply over time. — The Technique of probabilistic discrete dynamic programming is used to develop a mathematical model that permits the determination and evaluation of various open space policies. The conceptual approach adopted and illustrated herein is applicable to a broad general class of economic planning problems, namely, the optimal intertemporal provision of a public service that requires as an essential input a ‘limited’ resource whose supply characteristics are controlable, but determined by its previous use.