Agenda - Planning Commission - 04/07/2011

Home

New Brown Bag Committee Chair A new Brown Bag Program Committee Chair has been ap- pointed. Matthew Parent, Anoka County Transportation Planner, has taken over organiz- ing these events for the coming year. Matt would welcome any suggestions you may have for future Brown Bag Lunches; he can be reached at: matthew.parent a(�co.anoka.mn.us or via phone at 763.862.4291. Matt began working with Anoka County as an intern two years ago and is now working with the County full time in the Highway De- partment. He earned his planning degree from UW River Falls, with a focus in GIS, which has served him well at the County. We wish to thank Joe Hogeboom, Mark Grimes, Lisa Wittman and the entire Planning Department at Golden Valley for the years they have promoted and planned these highly suc- cessful programs. Many hours were spent put- ting together 12 tol5 programs each year, at- tended by dozens of our Metro Area mem- bers. We appreciate all of their efforts. They will continue to put together other events for the benefit of our chapter. planning minnesota March, 2011 Planners on the Move... Kimberly Johnson recently joined the City of Waseca as Planning Director. Johnson will be managing the Planning and Community De- velopment Department which administers all Planning and Zoning, Economic Development, Historic Preservation and Housing programs for the City. Johnson is excited about the new op- portunities and challenges this position offers, and is pleased to be working with historic pres- ervation, again. Prior to her position in Waseca, Johnson held the position of City Planner in Faribault for approximately 10 years. Upcoming Issues of planning minnesota to Highlight Work of Consultants Focus on Contributions of Planning Consultants This year, the Newsletter Editors want to bring a focus to a special part of our planning community. We want to highlight the many and varying contributions of consultants to the world of planning For those of us who need to study a specialty, have a specific project, need to extend our staff, but cannot do so per- manently, consultants can be just the right an- swer. Planning Consultants are available every- where in the state. Some are part of small firms, others are part of very large firms, many are members of our Minnesota Chapter of APA and many have received their AICP certi- fication. These consultants provide expertise in a variety of topics: environmental, transporta- tion, long -range planning, zoning, comprehen- sive plans, neighborhood plans, downtown plans, ordinance writing, grant writing and many, many other topics. They are experts in small town, rural community, developed city, township, county and state -wide planning top- ics. We would like to highlight the work and contributions of consultants over a series of 3 of 4 editions of the newsletter. If you are a consultant, or have worked with a consultant who you think should be highlighted, let us know. CONSULTANTS: Please send an email to newsletter(d mnapa.com to request a form that asks each consulting firm to respond to spe- cific questions and provides guidelines on pho- tos and exhibits to include when we highlight your firm. 9