While the
Philadelphia City Planning Commission (PCPC) remains hard at work on
the
Philadelphia 2035 plan--a strategic, long-term document focused on
creating a stronger future for Philadelphia's transit and
development--another group of planners have gotten in on the act. What
these planners lack in knowledge, they more than make up for in
experience living in Philadelphia and observing the functionality of
city design and services.
These concerned community members are part of a pilot program called the
Citizen's Planning Institute (CPI), an educational program working to empower
citizens to make their voices heard in the planning process. Funded by
the
William Penn Foundation, CPI offers basic lessons in everything from
land use to zoning issues, placing extra emphasis on under-represented
communities around Philadelphia, in the hopes of creating more dynamic,
city-wide development.
"We targeted specifically neighborhoods not as experienced with the
process to be more active and effective with a focus on a "planning 101
approach," says CPI Director Donna Carney. "So they could see that they
have the power to change their neighborhoods through this process."
The pilot program attracted 100 applicants, of which 30 were chosen to
represent their neighborhoods. The resulting panel contained over 850
years of Philadelphia residency and helped shape a planned expansion to
the program in 2011. The current students "graduate" when the courses
conclude on Dec. 6 but plans are already in the works to add
elective topics such as urban design, historic preservation, marketing
and finance.
"As we expand on the program going forward, a whole variety of outreach
activities could be handled by the Citizen's Planning Institute in the
future," says PCPC Director of Planning and Policy Alan Urek. "We would
look to it to help inform some of the recommendations on the
comprehensive plan."
Source: Donna Carney, Citizen's Planning Institute
Writer: John Steele