Final Exam Short Answers Flashcards
Provide three reasons why a gap between theory and practice exists in planning
- Theory can be too abstract; people fear and avoid it
- Practice rarely follows a clean model
- Academic theorists and practitioners have different interest groups with different education, language, market, and motivations
- The gap is situationally sensitive to historical shifts and different contexts
Name three general drivers of national planning culture
Geographical: natural, climate contexts
Political economy: centralized, democratic, socialist
Social culture: language, ethnicities, classes
Suggest three ways in which postmodernity and relativism are impacting planning practice
The rejection of the universalist city & one size fits all approaches
Scientific rationality no longer persuades like it used to
In response to the continued march of modernism well-established within the built environment & our lack of trust in urban development: place-making
Name three distinct planning theory models that might be good for addressing “wicked problems”
Advocacy model, collaboration model, and incremental model
Describe three distinct roles or practices that planners might carry out in urban “design”
- Community Advocacy: Neighborhood Planning and Design/ Participation
- Restorative Urbanism: Reclaiming Traditional Form
- The Art of Place-making: Regionalism, Iconic/Event Projects/Branding
Other than the movement of vehicular traffic, name three other alternative roles that streets play
Streets can provide a place of protest: co-option of space for public demonstration and collective action
Streets can be a place for shopping and be converted into marketplaces
Streets can transform into a place for festivals like religious holidays or parades
With respect to street configuration, name three ways in which streets can be made safer for all
Create Medians: Medians create a pinch pot for traffic in the center of the roadway and can reduce pedestrian crossing distance
Provide Barricades :for both pedestrian crossings and bike lanes
Roundabouts: reduce traffic speeds at intersections by reducing motorists to move with caution through conflict points
Describe three reasons for why colocation practices and policies should be adopted in the USA.
Colocation promotes community as it brings many people from differing backgrounds together in the same spaces.
Colocation can cut down on costs for transportation, storage, and more; for example, if multiple similar companies all use the same storage facility they end up saving more and can all use a larger space for less.
Colocation has environmentally friendly effects as it uses less overall resources and produces less waste then if these organizations all worked separately
Provide any three rationales for why place-making is ascendant in planning practice
In response to the dissatisfaction with the generic, placeless, globalized, transferable urbanism and technology
In response to the overly regulated municipal governance that often squelches local tradition and creative craft of making cities
In response to the continued march of modernism well-established within the built environment and our lack of trust in urban development
As an economic development strategy to increase both economic performance and attract visitors
In accord with city branding efforts and civic boosterism, which continued from the 19th century
To build a sense of local ownership, sense of pride, and reinforce local identity
To bring vitality back to cities
Suggest any three design practices for providing human comfort in the public realm
Mandate retail and cultural uses at the edge of public spaces to encourage synergy.
Avoid blankness, emptiness, infrequent use, and exclusion
Encourage places with retail for eating and drinking
Describe three ways in which neighborhoods differ from communities
Neighborhood:
Small area of territory; residential use dominates
Typically chosen
Class-based bc of how we built housing
Community
Socially based group; share interest
Does Not need to be place-based
involuntary/voluntary and inside/outside
Often recognized/chosen and unrecognized/deselected
Name three different ways of thinking about the term ‘housing’
Housing as a form of wealth; savings, and investment; provides upward and downward mobility
As a basic need along with food, water, etc. defined by the International Labor Organization (1970s)
Typology; multiple different types of homes/housing
Provide three characteristics of contemporary U.S. housing policy
Not a universal human right;
Demand side policy rather than supply
The private sector is positioned best to deliver housing supply,
Supplemented by non-profit housing developers
Housing directly linked to wealth creation and larger development objectives
Suggest three ways of addressing social justice concerns within a particular planning subfield
- The formal sector is developed by the process of PSBO or Planning, Servicing, Building, and Occupation where as the Informal sector is developed through OBSP Occupation, Building, Servicing, and lastly Planning
- The formal sector is regulated by the country or state government recognized organizations and has a legal framework.
- While the informal sector isn’t recognized by the country or state and often relies on a framework made up of locals who live in the area; because of this they often aren’t provided government aid or amenities leading to typically poor living conditions.
Provide three criticisms for either business attraction or tourism in economic development
Criticisms of Business Attraction
Philosophically – It is corporate welfare
Cities think of business attraction as a zero-sum game
Unanticipated negative externalities
Doesn’t pay for itself in the long run
Businesses often leave prior to agreed time horizons
Criticisms of Tourism
Can be globally homogenizing/wiping out local sense of place
Trickle-down service economy
can be perceived as modern-day imperialism
Increased consumption of local resources/land use change
