The assignment is to attend a planning commission meeting and write up your observations on the meeting. Write a report that includes the points listed below, approximately 3-5 pages in length (double spaced).
Please cover each of the following issues in your report of your observations:
1. Agenda. What is/are the main topic(s) for discussion/decision-making? Who set the agenda? How long has this topic been discussed? (You may be able to discern this through the discussion.)
2. Planning Commission members: What is the composition of the planning commission? (Men, women, minorities, etc.) Who talked in the meeting? Who didn’t talk? What perspectives on planning were presented? Who does planning work for (e.g., all residents, landowners, the business community, the student body)? Is it an activist commission (e.g., interested in equity issues)? Is the business community prominent? (This sort of information may take a bit of digging.)
3. Audience: What was participation like in the meeting? Who was there? What opinions were offered? Were the full range of opinions given or were certain sectors of society missing?
4. Physical Venue: What did you think of the physical set-up/the room in which the meeting took place? Think of this through the eyes of different types/groups of people.
5. Role of the Planner: Was it evident to you who the professional planners were? (That is, the people working for the city?) What sort of role did the planner play in the meeting?
6. Assessment: What do you think of this sort of public approach to planning? Strengths / Weaknesses. Do you think such planning processes are the best method of public planning? Can you think of other ways to involve the citizenry that might be better? (e.g., technology-based methods, ballot-box, etc.).
