| 1. Planning Directories, Organizations, & Bulletin Boards:
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There's no denying that the Planetizen web site offers the most up-to-date, best organized, compilation of news related to the field of planning. In fact, we like Planetizen so much we run their news feed on our home page. Planetizen is also the best source of planning-related announcements and press releases. Another excellent feature is the weekly op-ed column (further noted on our Distinctive Voices page). It's easy to understand why Planetizen is one of the most visited planning sites.
Cyburbia is one of the two principal directories of planning-related Web sites and resources (the other site is About Planning, noted below). One of the best features of the Cyburbia directory is its inclusion of a large number of local zoning ordinances and comprehensive plans. Cyburbia also offers the most comprehensive, and actively used, set of planning bulletin boards -- where anyone can post a question about a planning, zoning, or related issue. The odds are you'll get a reply from one or more of the planners who regularly visit Cyburbia. You can also do keyword searches to find topics discussed in past years. You do need to register to post questions on the bulletin boards (but it's free). One other quite interesting feature of Cyburbia is its photo gallery, with many images of buildings and streetscapes.
Developed by planner Richard Carson, the About Planning Directory provides brief descriptions of a large number of planning-related sites. In the interests of full disclosure, About Planning ranked the PlannersWeb one of its top ten web sites.
The American Planning Association web site has improved in content and organization over the past two years. One valuable feature is the ability to locate articles and books published by the APA dealing with subject matter you're interested in. Another useful feature of the site for citizen planners is access to APA's adopted policy guides (setting out the organization's position on about twenty issues, such as manufactured housing, billboard controls, takings, and subsdidized housing). You can also find links to the APA state chapter web sites; many state chapters provide full-featured web sites of value to citizen planners in those states.
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Take a break from your Web research
-- try our online jigsaw puzzles
Subscribe to the Planning Comm'rs Journal, called "the most valuable publication for the citizen commissioner" * and "the 'must have' publication for planning commissioners and elected officials" ** * William E. Moore, Jr., Director, Virginia Citizens Planning Association **Connie Cooper, FAICP, Past National President of the American Planning Ass'n |
