Planning Commissioners Journal

Follow Us on Twitter

From Planning Comm'rs Journal Editor Wayne Senville:

You've undoubtedly heard about Twitter, but have you tried it? We're increasingly using Twitter to post short planning-related news, updates, and interesting -- and sometimes entertaining -- links. Just look to the left and you'll see our most recent Twitter updates listed, or visit our home page on Twitter (see the screenshot below).

 

Yes, as with many new things, there's a bit of a learning curve -- and some of the terminology sounds strange at first -- but I've found Twitter perhaps the most useful of the new "social networking" services for planners and planning commissioners to use. In fact, a growing number of planning departments are using Twitter to easily post short announcements or links to more detailed information available on their web sites.

Twitter is definitely worth trying out -- even if you eventually decide it's not for you.

I came across a good short (4 minute) introduction to the basics of Twitter. If you haven't used Twitter, take a look at this video.

After you sign up, be sure to "follow us" on Twitter. Just click the "follow me on Twitter" link on the left below our most recent tweets, or use this link. You can also search for "PlanningJournal" on Twitter and you'll find us.

After we hear from you, we'll Tweet you information on where you can find many planning-related Tweets -- all in one place!

p.s., Betsey Krumholz, our General Manager has a preference for Facebook, which we're also making use of. Next week, she'll fill you in on some Facebook basics.

Be a Partner With Your Schools

Tip 11 of 25
from Elaine Cogan

view all Tips posted to date

In too many communities, planning stops at the school door. At the same time that boards of education are dealing with the challenges of overcrowded schools in one area and others that are under-utilized, planners are choosing housing policies that affect the demographics of these same schools. This behavior is encouraged when their governing bodies and sources of revenue are separate.

While such divisions of responsibility may have made sense in the past, this is less defensible in today’s era of growing needs, finite resources, and a demanding citizenry. Enlightened planning commissioners should take the responsibility of bridging that divide without dividing the community.

Has your planning board ever met formally or informally with the school board? Do your planners work with school staff on issues that concern you both? Do you have early notice of plans for new schools or playgrounds? Do you inform them of prospective zoning changes that  affect the schools? If school officials need a zoning or comprehensive plan change, do they involve you in the pre-proposal stage? What community needs could be satisfied by joint planning?

Consider transportation. What can you do to help make schools easier to access by foot or bike? Will the next new school be built in an area that is accessible for children walking or bicycling? Can school parking lots be used by neighborhood businesses when schools are closed?

Consider sharing. Few communities have enough libraries, parks, and places for community meetings and cultural events. Schools have many of these, often closed to the general public.  Joint planning and/or co-ownership can benefit all.

Your planning board is the ideal body to initiate dialogue with school officials. Show them your plans in process and invite their comments. Ask them about their short and long-range facility and property needs. Talk about common issues and concerns and how they can be solved in a cooperative, cost-effective fashion. After laying the groundwork, agree on a project on which you can act jointly and direct your staffs to do everything possible to make it a success.

The most effective planning boards continually demonstrate their understanding that the community is served best if its individual components work as an interdependent whole rather than a series of unrelated parts. By becoming partners with the schools you will demonstrate your commitment to serving the community, not enhancing your individual fiefdoms. All will benefit.

For more on the relationship between schools and planning, see the articles in our Fall 2004 special focus issue.

Note from Planning Commissioners Journal Editor Wayne Senville: we're pleased to be posting over the next half-year, on a weekly basis every Wednesday, PCJ columnist Elaine Cogan's 25 tips for planning commissioners from her excellent Now That You're on Board Publication.

We hope this will provide a convenient opportunity for planning commissioners and other "citizen planners" to benefit from Cogan's years' of experience in working with communities. The complete attractively-designed, spiral-bound, Now That You're on Board publication is also available for purchase and delivery by mail.

The Kindle, Students, Backpacks, & Walking

-- The new Amazon Kindle DX, has a 9.7 inch screen, and weighs just over one pound.
-- Amazon is working with several textbook publishers to have their books converted for use on the Kindle.
-- The average 11th grade student in California carries some 20 pounds of textbooks in his or her backpack. (For 1st graders, it's 8 pounds!). Backpack weight exceeds the "recommended maximum at nearly all grade levels from 1-12, presenting a health hazard for students."
--  Excessive backpack weight can prevent students from being able to walk or bike to school, setting a pattern for future auto-dependency.

Could this mean that the Amazon Kindle (and other similar devices) will promote walking, and walkable communities, by eliminating one significant reason why so many K-12 students are currently driven to school?

"Yes," says Fred Lane, who has written extensively on computers and technology (among other issues). Lane has some additional "expertise" as he's Chair of the Burlington, Vermont, School Board and father of a 10th grader who, Lane told me, "typically lugs around 20 pounds of textbooks." As Lane notes, that makes his son much more dependent on getting a ride to school than walking or biking, and also, "puts a big strain on his back." 

While enabling students to walk more may not have been one of the primary motivations for Amazon, it's a fascinating potential "fringe benefit."

Lane feels that competition will likely drive prices of devices like the Kindle down. "Within five years most college students will be getting their textbooks on electronic readers ... because the cost savings will be so huge." In terms of K-12 use, Lane also see electronic devices replacing textbooks, though over a somewhat longer time frame.

One major advantage Lane points to is the ease of quickly updating material electronically, without needing to print out new editions of the textbook. Given the value in students to having up-to-date material in their textbooks, this is a important benefit.

[note: student photo from Flickr, reposted under Creative Commons License]

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Some additional details. First, from a posting, Amazon Kindle: Lightweight, Digital…Textbooks? (May 13, 2009) on The Bottom Line web site:

"In 2005, a Government Accountability Office report estimated that textbooks cost the average university student about $900 per year. These textbooks are often bulky and quite heavy; a literal burden on students' backs. Amazon.com has released a new version of Kindle, an electronic paper display which seeks to replace the traditional textbook for students.

Three textbook publishers that collectively publish 60% of the country's textbooks recently agreed to publish Kindle versions of their books. At least six universities will be running Kindle pilot programs ... Kindle DX weighs just over one pound, and is about a third of an inch thick; compared to even one textbook the weight and space savings are enormous, let alone several classes worth."

Here's a Table from the California backpack study I mentioned earlier,Textbook Weight in California: Analysis and Recommendations (April 14, 2004; link is to pdf file).

Interestingly, heavy backpacks cause injuries for a variety of reasons:

"The study found that the most common means of injury were tripping over the backpack (28%), followed by wearing 13%), and getting hit by the backpack (13%). ... it is clear that the actual weight of backpacks, given the presence of other materials carried by an average student, far exceeds the recommendations of health professionals. ... ... One issue is the general trend of removing lockers where students can store books in between classes. Lockers have been removed in many schools due to the proliferation of both weapons and drugs in schools."

What's the Kindle DX look like, and how does it work? Here's a 5 minute video overview: