Planning for Food

Community Food Access Assessment and Planning For Food
Monday, November 7th at Noon
Spokane County Public Works Building, 2nd Floor Conference Room (2B)
1026 West Broadway Avenue, Spokane
AICP 1 CM pending

Learn how we, as planners, can improve food systems by including language within our comprehensive plans and zoning ordinances. Speakers Anthony Summers and Natalie Tauzin will have copies of the sample land use element that they have prepared and will present ideas and examples from communities enhancing their food systems.

Join us for lunch and enlightenment on Monday the 7th. We will have an assortment of sandwiches and drinks, so join us for a healthy lunch and hear about how we can improve the health of our communities.

RSVP to Susan Winchell at swinchell@spokanecounty.org or 509/477-4237.

Upcoming Events

We will be holding an ASP meeting on Thursday at 11:45. We intend to discuss activities associated with the Chili Cook-off, the Professional Advisory Council (PAC) meeting on Friday, and reflections on the planning conference in Portland. If you have issues you want to discuss with the PAC, please come and discuss them at the ASP meeting.

The PAC meeting is from 1:00 to 3:00 on Friday and is open to all students. This is an opportunity for students to provide feedback on the program and opinions on ways to improve the program.

Also, we will be carving pumpkins following the PAC meeting on Friday. Please bring your own pumpkin and carving utensils. Costumes are encouraged by the ASP for the Chili Cook-off.

Limited edition planning pint glasses will be available for sale at the Chili Cook-off (so don't forget to bring cash). Proceeds will support the ASP and help fund trips to the APA conference in Los Angeles.

Thanks,
William Simpson
ASP Vice President

Central City Mobility Open House

Please plan on attending the third Central City Mobility Open House on October 25 from 5-7 PM at the Bookie Building on the Riverpoint Campus. Come find out more about current projects and provide your thoughts and ideas. Displays include the University District Sprague Corridor, North Monroe Revitalization, Division St Gateways, Inland Pacific Hub, Pedestrian Planning & Complete Streets and many others!

The City is also looking for volunteers to help with the event. According to EWU Urban and Regional Planning Program alumna Jackie Caro, only one person has confirmed that they would volunteer, and they need more. Contact her at jcaro@spokanecity.org.

Neighborhoods 101

The City of Spokane's Neighborhood Services office is conducting a free Leadership Workshop on Saturday, October 22 from 9:00-11:00a.m. at the East Central Community Center 500 S Stone. According to the email, "Neighborhoods 101 is designed for new and seasoned neighborhood leaders who want to know how to effectively represent their neighborhood in the government decision making process. At this workshop you will learn the answers to the following questions: What are neighborhood councils and the Community Assembly and what do they do? What are the steps you can take to impact government decision making? How does the legislative process work and where do neighborhoods come in?"

This is a good opportunity for planning students to see how the system is set up in Spokane and to start thinking about how processes are integrated into planning.

The City asks that you RSVP to Sandy Scott at 625-6734 or sscott@spokanecity.org.

Understanding Our Water Resources

Water is vital to the needs of growing communities and as we learn more about our water supply, the Spokane Valley Rathdrum Prairie Aquifer, we can more successfully plan for this growth. In Spokane County, watershed planning has been underway for years and recently, a model was developed to forecast water demand based upon population, housing units, and employment projections. The model is currently being used to analyze alternative scenarios under consideration in the Urban Growth Area Update for Spokane County and its cities.

Presenting the outcome of this first assessment of land use on water demands will be Rob Lindsay, Spokane County Water Resources Manager, and Mike Hermanson, Spokane County Water Resources Specialist. Steve Davenport, AICP, Spokane County Senior Planner, will describe the integration of the model into the on-going growth management planning. They will also discuss the integration of water supply and land use planning in rural settings.

Join your fellow planners for an eye-opening look at what the future holds for water resources in our region and how we as planners can be on the forefront of ensuring this valuable resource is sustained.

Friday, July 22, 2011
9:30 am – Noon
Spokane County Public Works Building
Lower Level Hearing Room
1026 West Broadway Avenue, Spokane
For more information, contact Steve Davenport at 477-7221 or sdavenport@spokanecounty.org

Planners' Alpine Club - New June Hike

Hi Planners – I am passing on the information below regarding a hiking opportunity organized by the Planner's Alpine Club.

Hike 2: Tronsen Ridge (near Blewett Pass). When: Saturday June 25 Meeting time/place: TBD Hike Stats: 8 miles round trip, up to 1,200 feet elevation gain, moderate difficulty Highlights: Ridge hike with views & wild flowers If you're interested in joining us, email me at bengford@makersarch.com

Brown Bag Scheduled

The Inland Empire Section, Washington Chapter of the American Planning Association invites you to join us for a student presentation by Anthony Summers

Topic: Make It Happen Now! Creative, short-term implementation plans.

Friday, June 17th , 2011, 12:00 P.M. – 1:00 P.M., Spokane City Hall Council Briefing Center, 808 West Spokane Falls Boulevard

Each year, the Inland Empire Section helps send students to the
American Planning Association National Conference. In return, they
present some of their studies at a brown bag lunch for the rest of us.
Come hear about what they've studied and what's on their minds as they
get ready to say adios to school for the summer!

Studio Presentation on Bike Facilities

All planning faculty and students are cordially invited to attend Senior Capstone/Studio presentation Tuesday in Rm 117 at 2 PM.

Studio Presentation: Learning from Implementation: Assessing Bike Facilities on 37th

Over the past two years, the City implemented both sharrows (Regal to Perry) and a bike lane (Perry to Grand) along 37th. Having these two distinct bike facility types on the same corridor provides an opportunity to assess differences, if any, in bicyclist and motorist behavior. Local university students have undertaken that assessment.

In 2009 GU engineering seniors, followed by EWU senior planning students in 2010–11, have assessed both sharrow and lane segments. On June 7th, 2PM in Room 117 of Riverpoint Phase I Bldg, the EWU student team will provide a 30-minute presentation on findings, implications, and recommendations. Coffee and lite refreshments will be provided. Hope you can attend.

Bill Kelley, Professor
Urban and Regional Planning

Boston Brownbags Thursday 26th at Noon

Brownbag presentations by Jackie, Donna, and Shennelle will be held next Thursday, 26th, in room 226 from 12:00 to 1:00. 
 
Topics will be bicycle infrastructure and urban agriculture.

ASP Planning Studio Cleanup

Today the ASP conducted a clean up of the Riverpoint Planning Studio beginning at 11 AM. Attendees were Karl Almgren, Jeremy Kulm, Brian Sayrs, and William Simpson.

The room has been rearranged. Several pieces of broken or obsolete equipment have been moved out, and the tables have been rearranged to better utilize wall space. The room is now considerably more spacious than before. Most of the old posters have been removed, and several newer ones have taken their place, and arranged more topically.

There is more work to be done. There is an orange file cabinet which must be cleaned out, and the map boxes and flats should be cleaned out. There are many old projects (including several iterations of the Isabella Springs project) in the flats. Additionally, there is an effort underway to acquire a couch and low-maintenance plants to improve the environment and add new functionality to the room. The need for stools for the drafting and light tables is more apparent now, so this could be a new initiative for the ASP.

We hope that the changes to the room make it more useful and supportive of all students' efforts as the spring quarter comes to a close. Please show your appreciation to Karl, Jeremy, and William for the work they performed for our benefit.

Electric Vehicle Presentation Event

Cascadia Inland Branch - LUG - Electric Vehicle Presentation
Thursday, May 12, 2011 from 5:30 PM - 7:00 PM (PT)
The Lincoln Center
1316 N Lincoln Street
Spokane, WA 99201

Please go to the following site for more info and to register for the event.  The event is free but RSVP is mandatory, as seating is limited.  It would be great if you could pass information on to your friends, co-workers and companies you interact with that you feel may be interested.

Renewable Local Energy Webinar

The Inland Empire Section, Washington Chapter, of the American Planning Association invites you to join them for an APA Webinar entitled "Renewable Local Energy" on Wednesday, May 11, 2011, 1:00 P.M. – 2:30 P.M. in Conference Room 2B of Spokane City Hall at 808 West Spokane Falls Boulevard.

Transit Events

The Inland Empire Rail Transit Association is a non-profit public education organization. Its meetings come on the evenings of the third Monday of each month. Their next meeting is on April 18, 2011, at 6 PM, Knox Presbyterian, 806 W Knox, Spokane (Google map). [As this is another organization's meeting, it's being posted for those of you who are interested, but it will not repeat after this first event.]

From the secretary of the Inland Empire Rail Transit Association, Don Cain:

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A transportation event is scheduled for ... Wednesday March 30, 3p in the Council Chambers. The General Manager of the Utah Transit Authority, John Inglish, will speak regarding High Performance Transit projects, and the current status of the Salt Lake City light rail project.