American Planning Association

Mobility Networks in the Americas: Local Politics and Cultural Paradigms

As cities in Latin America take the lead in developing innovative, cost-effective transportation networks, such as Bus Rapid Transit, outcomes have shown how local politics and culture shape each system differently.

Building on previous work in Colombia and New York City, Andrea Marpillero-Colomina, from Columbia University, and Thomas Bassett, from the American Planning Association, discussed recent field research in Santiago, Chile, where the government has recently implemented a new bus system. Like others in the region, this system has been confronted by substantial planning challenges.

Redfield to Redevelopment in Libertyville, Illinois

The newly minted term redfield refers to financially distressed development projects (i.e., properties in the red). As a result of the Great Recession, few communities are immune to the negative effects of redfields. The relatively affluent community of Libertyville, Illinois, felt the sting when plans for high-end townhomes and the adaptive reuse of a decommissioned elementary school near the village's vibrant downtown went bust in 2008. Then in 2010 Libertyville-based developer John McLinden negotiated purchase of the bank-owned site and secured approval from the Village for the new urbanist SchoolStreet development.

At build out, SchoolStreet will feature 26 single-family homes designed to blend with the historic turn-of-the-century homes in the neighborhood in addition to urban lofts in the preserved school. Apart from the project's prime location near downtown and a commuter rail station, another key to the project's success has been an architect-guided design process that allows buyers to customize their homes without adding to final costs.

John Spoden, AICP, from the Village of Libertyville and John McLinden from StreetScape Development discussed the details of the SchoolStreet project and explained how this project supports the village's long-term vision for growth and change.

Travel Behavior, Transport Policy, and Sustainable Transport in Germany and the USA

Reliance on the automobile for most trips contributes to costly trends like pollution, oil dependence, congestion, and obesity. Germany and the U.S. have among the highest motorization rates in the world. Yet Germans make a four times higher share of trips by foot, bike, and public transport and drive for a 25 percent lower share of trips.

This presentation investigated daily travel behavior in the two countries and then examined the transport and land-use policies in Germany over the last 40 years that have encouraged more walking, bicycling, and public transport use.

Using a case study of policy changes in the German city of Freiburg, Ralph Buehler identified policies that are transferable to car-oriented countries around the world.

Planning for and with Ecosystem Services

Because all communities benefit from resources and processes supplied by natural ecosystems, ecology can be an important lens for viewing planning and site design. While many planners support and philosophically align with LEED, SITES, and the growing ecological design culture, they may feel ill-equipped to apply scientific findings to planning projects.

Jacob Blue from Applied Ecological Services explored how science can inform planning decisions from the planner's and scientist's perspectives and provided planners with basic, practical tools for incorporating ecological decisions into their work.

Greensburg, Kansas, Mayor Bob Dixson, and Stephen Hardy, senior planner with BNIM Architects in Kansas City, who prepared Greensburg’s Sustainable Comprehensive Plan following the May 2007 tornado that devastated the community, talk with Jim Schwab about the city’s four-year-old efforts to rebuild the community on green principles.

The accompanying photo gallery consists of dozens of images captured by Jim Schwab during a June 2010 meeting in which Greensburg officials and citizens hosted representatives of several communities struck by tornadoes in the spring of 2010, so that they could learn how Greensburg developed its green recovery vision.

Prioritizing Green Infrastructure Investments

FCommunity decision makers are increasingly looking at installing green infrastructure to address stormwater issues. To be able to retrofit private property with such natural stormwater solutions, there needs to be a mechanism that can gain private sector involvement and investment.

One approach is to use an auction system, where landowners learn about the economic value of stormwater best management practices (BMPs) and then participate in an auction to bid on what BMPs they are willing to pay for.

Megan Lewis, AICP, of Cardno JFNew, and Sabina Shaikh of RCF Economic and Financial Consulting, described a project conducted for the City of Valparaiso, Indiana, to help that community prioritize stormwater BMP installation in a specific neighborhood.

2011 AICP Symposium

Cities are always transitioning, requiring planners to reinvent techniques for new economic development. This year's AICP Symposium will provide examples of initiatives from around the country that are creating opportunities for effective and equitable development.

Speakers

Carolina Barco

Robert N. Brown

Jay Williams

Jason Jordan, moderator

2011 Lecture

Planning, Policy, and Poetics:

The 2011 L'Enfant Lecture was delivered by Marilyn Taylor, who became dean of The School of Design at the University of Pennsylvania in October 2008 after practicing as an architect and urban designer at Skidmore Owings & Merrill.

Taylor spoke on "Planning, Policy, and Poetics: Reviving Investment in Transportation and Infrastructure in America." Can we, as designers and planners, help rekindle a sense of stewardship for the future and rebuild the public will needed to stimulate investment? What does this mean for planners and, perhaps more importantly, for planning education?