URBS 661—Long-Range &
Strategic Planning
“Modern liberalism suffers unresolved contradictions. It exalts individualism and freedom and,
on its radical wing, condemns social orders as oppressive. On the other hand, it expects
government to provide materially for all, a feat manageable only by an expansion of authority
and a swollen bureaucracy. In other words, liberalism defines government as tyrant father but
demands it behave as nurturant mother.”
Camille Paglia, Sexual Personae (1990, p. 2ff.)
Term:
Fall, 2013
Instructor: Tony Filipovitch, 106 Morris Hall, 507-389-5035, 507-388-2264 (home)
Office Hours:
My office hours are posted here. I am available in my office at those times
(or other times by appointment). I also check my e-mail daily (usually several times during the
day), and have an answering machine on both my home and office phone. There is no reason
to flounder around, unsure of what “he wants” or confused about what you are doing; and
even if everything is going fine with the coursework, there is more to learning than completing
the assignments. I encourage you to visit me, in person or at a distance by phone or e-mail,
many times during the course.
Text:
Berle, Godschalk & Kaiser. 2006. Urban Land Use Planning, 5th. Ed.. Urbana, IL: University of
Illinois Press.
Recommended:
Kent, TJ, Jr. 1990. The Urban General Plan. Chicago, IL: The Planners Press.
Hoch, CJ and others. 2000. The Practice of Local Government Planning, 3rd Ed. Washington,
DC: ICMA.
Course Calendar
Due
date
8/28
Topic
Reading
Introduction
9/4
Context
Local Government &
Planning Environment
Minnesota practice
Historical Roots of Comp
Planning
Berke, Chs. 1-3; Building
the Plan
9/11
9/18
Planning Support
Systems
9/25
Population & Economy
10/2
Environmental & Land
Use Systems
Transportation &
Infrastructure Systems
10/9
10/16
State of Community
Report
10/23
Making Land Use Plans
Plan-Making Process
10/30
Areawide Policy Plan
11/6
Land Use Design Plan
MN Statutes Sect. 462
(Planning & Zoning); MN
Statutes Sect. 473.858-860
(Metropolitan Land
Planning Act); Handbook
on Comprehensive
Planning and Land Use;
Berke, Ch. 4; Klosterman,
“Large-scale urban
models,” (1994); Isserman,
“Projection, forecast, and
plan” (1984); SKILL:
Mankato Urban Design
Guidelines Visual
Preference Survey
Berke, Ch. 5; SKILL:
Population Forecasting
Berke, Ch. 6-7; SKILL:
Thinking in Time
Berke, Ch. 8;
“Transportation land-use
link,” (1994); Krizek,
“Operationalizing
neighborhood
accessibility,” (2003).
SKILL: Transportation
Estimation
Berke, Ch. 9
Berke, Ch. 10; Getting &
Using Power;
Implementing the Plan;
Sticking It to the Suburbs
Berke, Ch.11
Berke, Ch. 12-13; Nelson,
Planner’s Estimating Guide
(2004); SKILL: Land Use
Assignment
Community Profile
Case Study: “Preparing
the Townships”
Case Study: “Politics of
Urban Growth Areas”
Comprehensive Plan
Assessment
11/13
Small-Area Plans
11/20
Development
Management & The
Planning Guide
12/4
12/11
Forecasting
Berke, Ch. 14
Berke, Ch. 15; Watzlawick, Drafting the Guide
“Gentle art of reframing,”
(1974); SKILL: Reframing &
Negotiating; Schlereth,
“Burnham’s Plan &
Moody’s Manual” JAPA
(1981)
Capital Improvement Plan Griffin, “New
opportunities,” (1990);
Bowsher, “Governmental
financial management at
crossroads” (1985). SKILL:
Capital Improvements
Planning;
Final exam date—“Planning Guide” & course evaluation due
Course Objectives:
This course is a survey of the comprehensive land use planning process for urban areas. For
80% of Americans, the city is where we live, work, and play. Whether you pursue a publicsector career in urban affairs (in management or in planning), a private sector career in
development or corporate public affairs, or a career in the non-profit sector, you will need to
understand the comprehensive planning process.
Two assumptions underlie this approach to the class:
 that there are competing, equally valid approaches to the planning process, and
 that the planning process is a specific form of the policy-making process (and therefore it
is interesting to urban managers as well as urban planners and private-sector
practitioners).
However you go at it, comprehensive planning essentially asks 3 questions:
 Where and what are we now?
 Where and what do we want to be?
 How do we get there?
By the end of the course, students should be able to:
1. Understand the difference between community visioning, goal-setting, and
comprehensive planning, including the significance, uses and timing of each.
2. Design a process for engaging the community in a comprehensive planning process
3. Know the structure, format, and methods used in producing a comprehensive plan
4. Develop skills in facilitating, reporting, and marketing a community’s
strategic/comprehensive plan
Instructional Methodology and Teaching Strategies:
A variety of techniques will be employed throughout the course. While there will be reading
and lectures and tests, this course is heavily weighted to case study and seminar-style
discussion. My teaching style is based on an "adult-centered" model which assumes that you
are active participants, each responsible for your own learning, and I am a facilitator and
resource who helps you advance your project. My goal for myself as a teacher is to "take you
someplace you would never before have gone alone." You might begin that journey by looking
at “Five Easy Pieces” I have assembled for your consideration.
Instructional Management System & Communication Protocols:
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The course will use D2L as the instructional management system. Discussion lists,
assignments, grade rosters, and other course management issues will be handled
through that site.
The software for this course will be PC-based Microsoft Office and Internet Explorer, or
compatibles. I prefer to receive e-mail and course submissions to my e-mail address
(not to D2L), and I can only open Microsoft Word or text files (if you are using, say,
WordPerfect, make sure to send any files to me in .txt or .rtf format).
I will communicate with you using your official MSU e-mail address; if this is not your
preferred e-mail provider, make sure you have set your MSU e-mail account to forward
to your preferred address (instructions are available from the help desk at
help@mnsu.edu or 507-389-6654).
I generally will reply to e-mails within 48 hours (give me an additional 24 hours over the
weekends), unless I have notified the class through D2L that I expect to be away from
my computer (e.g., when I am attending a national conference). If you do not hear from
me within that time, please resend your question or comment as it may have been lost.
Assignments:
Classwork:
This is primarily a case-study and discussion class, although I may bring in an occasional guest or
indulge in the occasional lecture. You are expected to do the reading assigned from the texts
and be prepared to discuss them in class on the assigned date. There will also be in-class
projects which will contribute to your grade. Attendance at all class meetings is presumed.
Written Assignments:
There will be a number of writing assignments:

Case Study reports: There will be two case study reports. One will be based on a
strategic planning process, one on a comprehensive planning process. You will work on
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these problems in small groups and present a common report for all the members of
your group.
Skills/Techniques: There are 7 skills/techniques sections in the course; you must
demonstrate that you can use that skill by submitting a memo of your findings to me for
three of them.
Comprehensive Plan Assessment: You will assess both the content and the process that
a city used to produce a comprehensive plan (one that has been updated within the last
five years), evaluate it against best practices, and make recommendations for
improvement.
Planning Guide: The final project will be to develop a “planning guide” (styled after
Moody’s Manual or the Mpls. Guide) for the comprehensive plan that you have
previously reviewed. This guide is to be written for the general public, and should show
attention to issues of marketing and creating community support/buy-in.
Course Expectations:
Attendance & Class Participation:
Students play an important role in educating and challenging each other. This can only happen if
there is consistent attendance. I expect you to attend. I may take the class roll. Unexcused
absence (prior notification is required—even if I am not available, my voice mail and e-mail
always are) can result in loss of points toward one’s grade. You are paying for this class—make
sure to get your “money’s worth.” Most importantly, this is an excellent foundation of
knowledge for future activities, and it is a chance for you to learn, teach, and grow with others.
Grading:
Community Profile
2 Case Studies (@ 10 pts.)
3 Skills memos (@ 10 pts.)
Comp Planning assessment
Planning Guide
10
20
30
20
20
The final grade may be based on a curve, but students can expect at least an A if they achieve 90,
a B with 80, etc.
Other Matters:
Extra Credit: In general, I do not encourage extra credit in this class. I would rather that you put
the extra effort into your regular assignments.
All assignments are due on the assigned date. Partial credit may be given for assignments that
are less than one week late, unless other arrangements have been made in advance.
Written reports are expected to be free of grammatical, spelling, and content errors. They
should be submitted in typewritten, standard formats (APA, MLA, URSI Style Sheets). You must
familiarize yourself with the University’s Academic Honesty Policy. I encourage you to draw on
the ideas of others—but you must also identify when you do so (you gain “brownie points” for
citing the work of others!). Plagiarism is a serious breach of academic behavior and will result
in an F for the course.
I will help you in whatever manner humanly possible. However, once the semester is over,
there is not a great deal I can do. If there is something that you don’t understand, are having
problems with, or need help on, please get in touch with me as early as possible.
Every attempt will be made to accommodate qualified students with disabilities. If you area
student with a documented disability, please contact us as early in the semester as possible to
discuss the necessary accommodations, and/or contact the Disability Services Office at 507389-2825 (V) or 1-800-627-3529 (MRS/TTY).