Welcome, all of our new Building Place Notebook readers!

Click here to sign up for your email alerts

We’re pleased to be your online resource for jargon-free information on community planning, zoning, and local economic development topics!

If there is a topic you would like us to cover in the Building Place Notebook, leave a comment here or send us an email and we’ll get right on it! In the meantime, here are some tracks that may interest you: (more…)

Rodney C. Nanney, AICP, principal planner for Building Place, is an innovative provider of solutions to community planning, zoning, and local economic development challenges.  As a writer, public speaker, and community planning consultant, Mr. Nanney consistently strives to translate the tangled legalisms and technical jargon of zoning and land development into everyday language.

Mr. Nanney currently has several openings available to speak on these and related topics before your local business or community group.  Possible topics include:
(more…)

Michigan Wetlands Meeting

Friday, March 12, 2010 at 9:00 a.m.

Hosted by the Michigan Wetlands Association, Agriculture and Natural Resources Week

Kellogg Center, Michigan State University

Are You Interested in Wetland Science, Policy and Stewardship?

(more…)

2010 Michigan Townships Association Educational Conference Session

Thank you to everyone who attended our recent session on regulating small wind turbines at the recent Michigan Townships Association conference in Grand Rapids. Click here to view our PowerPoint presentation, and to download the handout materials. Click here to contact Mr. Nanney directly with any additional questions.

Paul Zucker, FAICP of Zucker Systems, Inc. just sent out an excellent “Management Doctor” message (excerpt below):

Dear Management Doctor,

I attended your 2-day seminar for Planning Directors a couple of years ago and found it to be quite informative.  Some of the staff I now directly or indirectly supervise are not planners but are trained building inspectors or maintenance staff.  I imagine that many Community Development Directors find themselves now having supervisory responsibilities over … engineers, inspectors, operations/maintenance, information technologies or administrative support to name a few.

Their respective skill-sets can be widely varying and can pose interesting supervisory challenges, particularly if the Director is not an expert in “their field.”  I believe there would be a significant amount of interest in future sessions on specifically supervising or directing non-planner municipal staffs.

- “Non-Planner Challenged”

—————————————————————

About Zucker Systems, Inc.

“Zucker Systems takes its lead from the Japanese word ‘kaizen‘ (‘a constant search for a better way’). We continually search for a more effective and efficient way to do things. These better ways produce greater service to our clients, as well as helping to create better communities. … We see ourselves as agents of change.

“To our knowledge, Zucker Systems is the only consulting firm in the United States that specializes in the analysis of planning, building and community development functions and related departments. Organization, management and process consultation is primarily completed for city and county government and non-profit clients.”

—————————————————————

Dear Non-Planner Challenged,

(more…)

The following was adapted from a notice prepared by Kurt Schindler at MSU-Extension; reprinted with permission from the author:

2010 U.S. Census:  Snowbird residents leaving for sunshine states need to be counted in Michigan!

Note:  For our readers outside of the Great Lakes State, “snowbirds” are Michigan residents who “migrate” from the state to live part of the year in warmer climates like Florida, the Caribbean, and similar places (Costa Rica and Belize are up and coming places for some wealthier snowbirds).

Michigan has more snowbirds than many other states, with an average of 2.1 percent of Michigan’s residents identified as part-year residents.  Most of Michigan’s part-year residents have their permanent homes in Michigan and spend the smaller part of the year in another state, which means they need to be counted in Michigan.

Michigan residents who spend a smaller portion of the year at a residence in another state should be sure to fill out the Census form for Michigan, and in your community.  Local governments should take steps now to help people understand the importance of telling the Census they are a resident of Michigan — rather than the state where they spend winter.

Why is this important?

(more…)

Author’s Note:  With students back at colleges and universities across the U.S., this seemed like a good time to repeat our free advice for new planning students:

In his book What Your Planning Professor Forgot to Tell You, Paul Zucker, FAICP offers practical advice for new professional planners. Reading it inspired me to reflect on the experiences that have helped me to be successful in this field, both before and after receiving my degree.

I’d like to offer some “words of wisdom” to new urban and regional planning students, which are based upon my experience and the collective wisdom of the many professional planners and others I’ve come into contact with since I started down this career path:

(more…)