Take a few minutes to generate a list of possible search terms before you start your research. You'll probably find that there will be a family of terms that deal specifically with the non-legal aspects of your topic, and terms that relate to the legal and planning aspects of your topic.
As you review and evaluate your search results, you will learn which terms and combinations of terms are most effective in particular contexts/databases. You will be able to expand this list of search terms as your understanding of the subject area and the language used to describe it grows.
In order to effectively search for local laws, it will be useful to search the Internet for collections of relevant local laws / model laws which have been brought together by others. Here are some search terms that are often used when describing these collections:
Westlaw and Lexis give you the option of doing Natural Language or Plain Language searches or Advanced searches using Terms and Connectors. Using Natural Language or Plain Language searches allows the database provider's search algorithms to control the search. Advanced searches give you more control by allowing you to search particular fields, to search specific phrases, to require specific terms, etc.
Use Google Advanced Search to:
Use Google Scholar to find:
Use Google Books as a way to search full text of some but not all books. (There is a random quality to what is available in Google Books, so treat it is a jumping off point for your research, not as a comprehensive search for available books.)