The &#x27;modern town planning&#x27; you talk about is so called Euclidan zoning (named so from the town of Euclid in US where it was supposedly first introduced - as a way to segregate rich from poor in an indirect way). Not all areas&#x2F;countries use such laws. Some time ago this link hit the front page of HN: <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;urbankchoze.blogspot.com&#x2F;2014&#x2F;04&#x2F;japanese-zoning.html" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;urbankchoze.blogspot.com&#x2F;2014&#x2F;04&#x2F;japanese-zoning.html</a> - it is really an interesting read (other articels on the site as well)