To be able to plan for the expansion of a town, one needs a vision of the future appear-ance of the town. It is the current issues (social situation, supply and demand, political control etc.) which decide what the ideal for town planning is. This is turn is the steering factor of the physical structure of the town. Therefore, the town's structure is decided by these ideals.In this report, I will present planning ideals that have historically been, and which criticisms that have been directed towards them. With reference to these issues, I will present those guidelines and ideals we have today for planning of our towns.

The municipal forests of Sala cover an area of 6 000 hectares, starting in the vicinity of the city and reaching north. At the same time as residents make abundant use of the areas closest to the community for outdoor activities and recreational purposes, the forest is of great economic value and also worth protecting for environmental reasons. These conditions make forestry in periurban woods more complex than conventional forestry, why a good understanding of the needs and demands on the forest and silviculture program is required. The purpose of this study is to depict the usage of the forests owned by the municipality of Sala, to set forth the common view of the silviculture program implemented by the municipality and to chart the expectations the community has on the forests and forestry of the future in the municipality of Sala. The survey part of this paper consists of the interviews of thirteen individuals representing nine interest groups. As expected the views of these individuals varied widely but some results were expressed by more or less all of them.