City planning encompasses the policies and processes that influence the development of towns, cities, and regions. Planning has occurred throughout the history of early cities, but it was not until the early twentieth century that city planning emerged as a distinct discipline. Like the early urban sociologists, early planners sought to address the physical and social problems that had arisen in the rapidly growing industrial cities. By the mid-1950s, city planning had become a discipline that focused primarily on land use planning. Today planners often take a more holistic approach, combining land use, transportation, and financial dimensions. Most city governments house a planning board or agency. Still, the emphasis of planning is primarily the physical structure of the city, and the task of balancing social concerns and economic realities often falls on city and regional governments.