Spatial planning is a form of public management of a distinctive public good. It covers a range of activities and decisions affecting our environment.

The paper is an attempt at reviewing the classical theory of externalities and club goods in the new context of flow economy and network relations, as well as the role of human capital connected with high quality surroundings (urban environment), which is a catalysing factor, and allows the formation of new resources and new competitive advantages for cities and busiensses.

State Urban Policy – concept, Institutional scope and structure in integrative management of the development. The management of space, as a common good, closely linked with economic and social development in Poland – meets a number of barriers. One of the major barriers is flawed and inefficient system of spatial planning and the lack of explicit national urban policy. The causes of this situation are manifold and complex. There is a week understanding that spatial planning has regulatory function and that is a main measure of intervention in inefficient – by its nature – market mechanism of real estate development and location of new construction objects. The existing in Poland since 2015 formal document under the title “National City Policy” is in fact the part of cohesion policy. It formulates only very soft policy recommendations concerning spatial development which are identified in different cities and their functional areas, whereas financial measures go separately through sectoral programs. In the article author consider the future place of national urban policy in integrative system of development policy which combine economic, social and build environmental dimensions. Than he analyzes the relationship between national spatial policy and the urban polices at the national and local level. Finally he presents some general conclusions and recommendations. According to the author, because of complexity of the issues and challenges, the detailed formulation of state urban policies and its implementation must lie within the competence of a strong governmental institution (responsible for research, monitoring and evaluation, elaboration of visions and scenarios in a broad global context). The primary partner in the state urban policy, co-responsible for its success, should be adequately, provincial and local governments. Through the cooperation of state and territorial authorities, is the most strongly manifested multilevel model of “public governance”. The special role belongs to the local authorities due to their assigned competence in creation of local by law in respect of land use and building allocation. Efficient urban policy must have two dimensions; horizontal and territorial. Horizontal domain should belong to the state (national planning, passing the law, systemic intervention, etc.). Territorial dimension should belong first of all to local urban policies but formulated and implemented within the framework and measures defined by national spatial policy and operational state urban policies.

Zarządzanie przestrzenią to forma publicznego zarządzania szczególnym dobrem wspólnym. Obejmuje ono krąg działań i decyzji istotnych dla naszego środowiska życia.