Updated 05/07
Planner's Pocket Reference
Contents
- Introduction
- Why Plan/What's it All About?
- Selected Online Reference Shelves
- Speaking in Tongues - Online Glossaries and Acronyms
- The Players
- Training/Tutorials
- Technical Tools
- Land Use Toolbox
- Planning Law Reference Shelf
- Model Codes and Plans
- Online Manuals/Handbooks
- Recommended Resource Books
- Planning Chronology
Introduction
Planning professionals address an array of community needs, including land use, transportation, parks and recreation, environmental resources, housing, commercial and industrial development, economic development, and infrastructure. As a result, planners must have at least a working understanding and ability to analyze a variety of subjects. They will encounter terminology and technical information from a variety of disciplines. Even planners that are highly specialized, such as transportation planners, must understand the interaction between transportation and land use, environment, economic, social, fiscal, legal, and other considerations. In some communities, especially small towns with small budgets, the person responsible for planning is not trained as a planner. Even a planner who is an exceptionally "quick study" will probably not have tools and knowledge to handle the variety of changing issues that planners encounter. Survival as a planner requires the ability to become quickly conversant on new issues and tools. That requires quick access to relevant reference materials and resources.
In an era of tight budgets, few planning offices can afford in-house libraries of all desirable reference materials. Time for on-the-job training is limited. Fortunately, there are a growing number of useful resources available on the Internet. This Web page locates and presents selected reference materials useful to professional and lay planners. It is intended to provide quick access to glossaries and government acronyms, online tutorials, legal reference material, useful technical tools and calculators (for area conversion, cost estimation and similar tasks) handbooks and models.
If you have information to share, or are aware of other sites we should link to, please contact Sue Enger, Planning Consultant, or call (206) 625-1300.
Why Plan/What's it All About? - Ammunition for Answering a Frequently Asked Question
- Mindtools Bookstores - Why Should You Plan/The Planning Cycle (a concise explanation)
- What is Planning? What Do Planners Do? American Planning Association
- Introduction (Basic Principles of City Planning), Frederick Law Olmsted, Jr.
- What Planners Do/Planning Defined, Canadian Institute of Planners -
- Comprehensive Plan (What is it?) Excerpted from Planning ABCs: An Overview of 26 Planning Topics, Lawrence Gerckens, Planning Commissioners Journal (scroll down to "Comprehensive Plan)
Selected Online Reference Shelves
- USA.gov Reference Center (links to information on U.S. laws, bills in Congress, regulations, statistical information, contacts, maps, governmental publications and other government databases)
- USA.gov Resources for Local Government (local government directories, links to useful local government statistics, organizations)
- University of Maryland Library Online Reference Resources for Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Urban Planning (an exceptionally useful collection)
- National Transportation Library Reference Sources, U.S. Department of Transportation
- Washington State Government Information and Services (Access Washington)
- Basic Research Resources for City and Regional Planning - University of California Berkeley Library (one of the most comprehensive listings of resource materials for planners)
- Cyburbia Resource Directory for urban planning (another comprehensive collection of planner resources including many code and policy examples)
Speaking in Tongues - Online Glossaries and Acronyms
- Planning Acronyms and Abbreviations, American Planning Association
- Universal Glossary of Land Use Terms and Phrases - Pace University School of Law
- Land Use Lingo: A Glossary of Planning and Zoning Terms - Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
- City Design Glossary - City of Seattle
- U.S. Census Bureau Decennial Management Division Glossary
- U.S. Census Bureau Abbreviations/Acronyms
- U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey (CPS) (definitions and explanations)
- Abbreviations and Acronyms of the U.S. Government
- Puget Sound Regional Council Acronyms and Abbreviations
- Terms of the Environment, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (includes acronyms)
- Ultimate Environment Glossary, EnviroEducation.com
- Northwest Salmon Recovery Acronyms
- Glossary from Governor's Salmon Recovery Office, State of Washington
- State Environmental Policy Act (SEPA), Washington Department of Natural Resources
- State Environmental Policy Act - What is SEPA?, Washington State Department of Ecology
- Stormwater Manager's Resource Center Glossary
- FloodSmart.Gov Glossary – FEMA lood Insurance Definitions - http://www.floodsmart.gov/floodsmart/pages/glossary.jsp;jsessionid=6AA2589CBDCFAF0909FD060FB4F8D734
- Water Resources of Washington State Glossary
- GIS Terms, Ft. Collins, CO
- Bureau of Transportation Statistics Dictionary, U.S. Department of Transportation
- Transportation Acronym Guide, Bureau of Transportation Statistics, U.S. Department of Transportation
- Housing Glossaries
- Construction Terms - National Contractors Referral and License Bureau
- Glossary of Economic Terms – Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco
- A Glossary of Political Economic Terms – Dr. Paul M. Johnson, Auburn University Depart. Of Political Science
- Campbell R. Harvey's Hypertextual Finance Glossary
- Dictionary of Financial Terms - Morgan Stanley
- Find Law Search the Dictionary (definitions of legal terms)
- Everybody's Nolo Legal Glossary (plain English but may also be less precise legal definition)
- Glossary of Legal Terms, Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings
- Glossaries of Lighting Terms
The Players
- "A Quick Tour of the Planning Universe," Planner's Web - (The players in the planning process)
Training/Tutorials
- Smart Growth Speaker Series (listen on your computer with real player), Smart Growth Online
- Land Use Training Program for Local Officials, New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal - (although tailored for New York officials, provides a good general understanding of land use controls such as zoning, subdivision, variance, conditional (special) use
- GIS Online Tutorial Pages, Ft. Collins, CO
- Curriculum and Training Modules, Massachusetts Citizen Planner Training Collaborative
- Biodiversity and Conservation, Peter J. Bryant, University of California at Irvine
Technical Tools
- Area Conversion Calculator (Did you forget how many square feet in an acre? Check here for various area equivalents)
- Online Conversion (convert just about anything to anything else - acres to square feet, metric conversion tables, temperature, energy, time zones around the world)
- BEG's GIS Tools Online, Bureau of Economic Geology, University of Texas (map scale calculator, length and area conversions)
- Buildout Analysis, University of Vermont Center for Rural Studies (Free downloadable software and user manual - requires registration)
- Technical Maps/Arial Views
- Planning Illustrated (graphics, maps, understanding density)
- Estimated Remodeling and Repair Costs (Freddie Mac)
- RS Means – Quick Cost Calculator
- Zillow.com - (rough estimate of real estate value for specific properties that you enter)
Land Use Toolbox
- Flexible Zoning Tools for Balancing Development and Conservation, Pace Law School
- Land Use Planning Tools, Smart Community Network – Specific tools and software designed to facilitate smart growth planning
- "Land Use Tools and Techniques: A Handbook for Local Communities," Southeast Michigan Council of Governments, March 2003 (catalog of implementation tools, illustrated with case examples to address different land use objectives)
- Quality Growth Toolkit, Georgia Department of Community Affairs
- California Land Use Planning Network
- Tool Kit for Integrating Land Use and Transportation Decision-Making, Federal Highway Administration
- Community and Economic Development Toolbox
- Tomkins County Planning Vital Communities Toolbox
- Envision Utah - Quality Growth Strategy Implementation Toolbox
Planning Law Reference Shelf
- "Legal and Practical Objectives of Planning," Planning Short Course, CTED/PAW - Summary of planning-related statutes in Washington
- Revised Code of Washington/Washington Administrative Code
- The State of Washington Growth Management Act and Related Laws, CTED
- Washington Municipal and County Codes
- Legal Tools and Resources for Washington State - Washington State Supreme and Appellate Court Decisions, Growth Management Hearings Boards
- Web Links - Environmental and Land Use Law Section, Washington State Bar Association
- Federal Laws and Regulations, U.S Environmental Protection Agency (includes federal codes, federal register, major environmental laws)
- Environmental Law Net (comprehensive legal reference site including federal laws by subject, state and tribal law, federal and other agency documents, brownsfield redevelopment)
- Thomas (from the Library of Congress -- searchable, on-line legislation and issues before the current session of Congress)
- Challenges to Local Land Use Regulation, Pace Law School, NY (papers addressing vested rights, regulatory takings, religious freedom)
- Land Use Law Materials, Cornell Law School (includes federal codes, regulations, and judicial decisions on land use, environment, energy and natural resources)
- Community Tools - (addressing housing tools, intergovernmental cooperation, GIS resources and other resources)
Model Codes and Plans
- Smart Communities Network Land Use Codes, U.S Department of Energy, and Green Development Codes
- Model Plans and Ordinances collected by Daniel Mandelker, Washington University School of Law
- Land Development Regulations Codes, Smart Growth Online (links to other great collections of codes including Maryland, Oregon, Montana and Envision Utah)
- Model Codes to Protect Local Resources, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Model Ordinances for Aquatic Resource Protection, Stormwater Manager's Resource Center
- Ordinances and Specifications for Sustainable Development, City of Austin, TX
- Plan Implementation Tools, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
- New Jersey's Rehabilitation Subcode - award winning code for the building rehabilitation without imposing excessive costs
- Models and Guidelines (for infill developmentadequate public facilities, big box development and much more) Maryland Department of Planning - http://www.mdp.state.md.us/order_publications.htm
- "Model Code: Alternatives to Conventional Zoning," Georgia Department of Community Affairs (includes land use guidance system based on the Hardin County model)
- University of Massachusetts Example Bylaws Collection
- From Policy to Reality: Model Ordinances for Sustainable Development, Minnesota Planning and The Environmental Quality Board, St. Paul, MN, September 2000
- Model Projects, Local Government Commission
- New Hampshire Office of Energy and Planning Reference Library (sample development regulations by subject area)
Online Manuals/Handbooks
- New Hampshire Office of State Planning Online Handbooks and Technical Bulletins
- University of Maryland Selected Handbooks for Architecture, Landscape Architecture, and Urban Planning (guides on a variety of topics including tree selection, traditional neighborhood design, crime prevention design, green communities)
- Achieving Environmentally Sensitive Design Through Flexible and Innovative Regulations, The Maryland Office of Planning
- Growth Management Services – Publications List by Topics, CTED, 2007 (includes handbooks on critical areas regulation, urban growth areas, parks and recreation planning, economic development and other topics. Also includes fact sheets and About Growth newsletter articles - http://cted.wa.gov/site/420/default.aspx
Recommended Resource Books
- The Essential Planning Library, American Planning Association
- PLANetizen Book List