Agenda - Planning Commission - 06/02/1998

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APA Lends cz Hc~nd hxPA's Planncrs Book Service carries ninny valuable esot,roes for thc citizen planner, including The Job of the Pla.ning Commissio.er and Plan.ing Made Eas): Many states have used Phm.h~g Made Easy as a template for designing a state-specific trainiug doct, ment. The accompanying manual, Traini.g Made Easy, provides practical information for novice trainers. APA's Pla,ming Co,n,nlssio,~ers Sen'ice introduced au at, dio conference training series in 1996, The programs, which cover topics like neighborhood planning and property rights, are designed specifically for appointed and elected officials, but planning staff frequendy attend as well. The basic participation fee ($70 as of May 1998) includes a course book, and an additional fee ($30 as of May 1998) will get participants an audio tape of the program. Carol Swayne, chairperso,~ of APA's Planning Officials Advisory Committee, says the audio confereuce series has been a wonderful success. She credits the format, which often allows commissioners to receive training without leaving their local planning office, for this success... State APA chapters, such ~ Georgia's, are reaching out to commisslou members. ~X~hen chapter president Bill Ross realized the chapter was not meeting commission member needs, he f;acilitated the creation of the Community Planning Institute (CPI). CPI conducts an aunual Friday-Saturday workshop at a central location in the state. Attendance at the workshops is limited to 150 people, and the room is always at capacity, says Ross. The workshops last from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and b'ad a 1997 cost of S1 I0 per person. Participants receive a ,~otebook of information recapping the topics discussed. I~oss says CPI ma)' develop advanced workshops in the fltture but will concentrate on the needs of new officials for the time being. The Oregon chapter of APA has filled its state's need for training since budget cuts forced the University of Oregou to eliminate its Bureau of Governmental Research and Sen'ices, taking with it its Planning Commission Training Programs. To fill the void, the Oregon chapter selected a three-person Planners Training Team (PTT). In 1991, PTT conducted two ~vorkshops. Subsequent demand was so great that 14 sessions were conducted in 1997. PTT's format usually involves a seven-hour Saturday ~vorkshop. "Basics" and "Beyond Basics" courses are offered at a cost of $95 a person (in 1997), which includes training materials. Customized programs on special topics are Mso offered at a commuuity's request. Team member and chapter president John Andersen feels that a training program must accommodate students' needs, so evaluations are handed out at each session and the responses are nsed to improve the classes. Massachusetts Chapter of the APA, the Massachusetts Association of Regional Planning Agencies, the Massachusetts Association of Planning Directors, and the Massachusetts Federation of Planning and Appeals Boards-- and two state agencies--the Department of Housing and Community Development (formerly the State Executive Office of Communities and Development) and the 'University of Massachusetts Extension Services. These six groups entered a formal memorandum of association in 1996. Robert Mitchell, a founder of CPTC, looks at the union of such varied organizations and says, "the planets must have been aligned correctly." He says the balkanized political environment in Massachusetts usually serves to work against this type of cooperation. CPTC's first-year class roster exceeded 600 people. Class enrollment currently ranges from 10 to 40 people. Semiannual woskshops are held at 11 sites across the state and cost participants $20 last year. CPTC conducts basic courses on planning and zoning fundamentals and advanced courses on topics like special permits and the regulation of adult uses. In another successful collaboration, the Pennsylvania state APA chapter and the Pennsylvania State University Cooperative Extension Service partnered to create the Pennsylvania Municipal Planning Education Institution (PMPEI). PMPEI's workshops are limited to 30 people in order to keep participant interaction high. A group of about 20 trainers conducts workshops three times each year at nine locations throughout Martin Roupe is a research associate with the American Planning Association. the state. At a 1998 per-person cost of $55, PMPEI offers three separate courses covering the fundamentals of planning, zoning, and subdivision regulations. Most courses last for three weeks, with classes meeting once each week for three hours. Special topics are taught by PMPEI at a commission's request. Stan Lembeck, chairperson of the Board of Directors, attributes PMPEI's success to a few key decisions. First, two trainers conduct each workshop. Cotraining was initiated at the program's inception to ease the burden placed on trainers while they became acquainted with new positions. The institute changed its original intention to phase out the cotraining aspect of the program because the teamwork proved conducive to learning and the instructors could substitute for each other if one was unable to make it to a class. PMPEI also had to determine how to pay the instructors. A set amount was decided for each workshop and additional expenses are provided for meals and travel. Lembeck says PMPEI's unique policy on paying the trainers has resulted in consistent and high-quality training: "Obviously it costs more for us to conduct a workshop than it does in many other places, but the consistent results justify the price." Trainers must go through 20 hours of training over two weekends to obtain the certification necessary to teach. The Virginia Certified Planning Commissioners Program (VCPCP), another collaborative effort between a university extension service and a state APA chapter, focuses on certifying its participants. "It is a great partnership," says Michael Chandler about the alliance between Virginia Tech University and Virginia APA. Chandler is associate professor and extension community planning specialist at the university and Virginia APA president.