City
planners help design cities and make such determinations as the height
of buildings, the width of streets, the number of street signs, and
the design and location of street “furniture” (everything from bus
stops and lampposts to newsstands and wastebaskets).
TUESDAY, October 18 – “Careers in City Planning” (Career Conversations series)
Presenter: Greg Johnson, urban planner/designer with the Metropolitan Nashville Planning Department
TARGET AUDIENCE: Students in grades 7 - 12
TIME: Two sessions: one at 9:00 AM CENTRAL TIME and one at 10:00 AM CENTRAL TIME
OBJECTIVES
Students will
- Discuss what makes the most livable communities
- Make basic urban plans for fulfilling the goals identified in a class discussion about communities.
- Discover what things should be included when planning a new town or city
- Confer about the need or strong zoning authority
INTRODUCTION
Deciding
how a city is set up involves creativity, and a career in city
planning demands the knowledge of basic engineering principles, the
ability to compromise, political diplomacy, and financial acumen.
Strong
analytic skills and sheer force of will are required to be a
successful urban city planner. Every building or structure must be
designed with an understanding of its relationship to other elements of
the city, such as coordinating the construction of water and power
facilities, while still allowing people access to light, heat, and
fresh water, or designing housing complexes that will be close to
public transportation. Aesthetic design, another feature that the
planner must consider, can be the subject of hot debate.
PRE ACTIVITIES
Students will make decisions about buildings, businesses, services, and housing areas to include in the development of a new town.
After discussing essential elements of a self-sustaining community,
the students will prepare a map and give oral presentations on
different aspects of the new town.
Survey the students to determine which sorts of buildings (commercial, residential, industrial, and municipal) they want to include in their new town. Organize this information into a chart listing type of building and how many.
Discuss with the class why certain buildings are necessary—a school, perhaps, and a fire station, a gas station, a grocery store, a residential building (such as an apartment complex), an office building, and so on.
Introduce the concept of growth. Should some buildings go up before others? Which should be built in the first year? These should offer employment for a few people who move to the town as well as for others who commute. What services should support these people?
Other questions for the discussion:
Survey the students to determine which sorts of buildings (commercial, residential, industrial, and municipal) they want to include in their new town. Organize this information into a chart listing type of building and how many.
Discuss with the class why certain buildings are necessary—a school, perhaps, and a fire station, a gas station, a grocery store, a residential building (such as an apartment complex), an office building, and so on.
Introduce the concept of growth. Should some buildings go up before others? Which should be built in the first year? These should offer employment for a few people who move to the town as well as for others who commute. What services should support these people?
Other questions for the discussion:
- What is the climate like?
- What is the natural landscape like?
- What is the projected population of this city today, and how rapidly is it growing?
- What natural or human-made disasters is this city particularly susceptible to (e.g., earthquakes, hurricanes, nuclear accidents)?
- What are some of the significant environmental problems facing this city?
- What events have had a significant impact on the city's history (e.g., a major earthquake or fire, an economic recession or depression, an influx of refugees)?
- In planning for this city's future, what specific information about the city's geography and history would you find particularly important and helpful to know about?
- What factors would help determine the buildings needed and how many of each (e.g., population of the town, distance from next town, or physical obstacles such as rocky soil, a large river, or a lake)?
- Where will people be employed? In what industries?
- Are there some sorts of buildings we could really do without?
- Do we need more than one grocery store?
- Are there some options that we could combine (e.g., gas station and video store)?
- Will any critical factors change with time (e.g., population, income level, and/or land availability and value)?
