WINTER 2015
The Joe Report is my quarterly bulletin to share news,
observations, practice tips, rants and raves about the
state of the art of planning in our state.
Thanks for reading. Your feedback is welcome!
Happy New Year! I’m Joe. Here’s my Report.
Oregon’s Big Look
what does it mean for Washington?
This past November, I attended a presentation about the “Oregon Big Look,” which was Oregon’s
evaluation of their growth management law. Three members of the commission who conducted the Big
Look offered their takes. After 25 years of our own Growth Management Act, I was particularly
interested in their conclusions that:
 Oregon law needs to do a better job of recognizing regional differences, rather than take a “one size
fits all” approach. Downstate, Eastern Oregon and the Coast have different circumstances than
Portland.
 Their law needs to give greater regard to private property rights.
 While Oregon’s land use law is a national pioneer and achieved much success, too many planners
suffer from professional hubris, resisting any changes to the law.
What does the Big Look mean for us in Washington? Should we be doing one of our own? I note that
the Big Look was issued in the aftermath of the passage of Oregon’s extreme property rights Measure 37.
In 2006, Washington voters rejected Initiative 933 (a property rights twin of Measure 37), but it is both
wise and fair for planners to guard against regulatory over-reach. Take advantage of training
opportunities to stay current on case law – as Justice Brennan famously said: “If a policeman must know
the Constitution, then why not a planner?”
To better recognize regional diversity, Oregon could borrow a page or two from Washington’s GMA.
Only our largest, fastest growing counties, and their cities, are required to “fully plan” under GMA; each
county and its cities are free to collaborate on locally appropriate countywide policies; and Washington’s
Growth Hearings Board process utilizes appeal panels drawn from the three regions of the state.
Finally, I think most planners in Washington agree that our law is largely successful, but not perfect. The
APA Washington legislative committee actively tracks potential amendments to planning laws and has
even successfully sponsored several improvements to the GMA. Continued engagement and advocacy
for good planning are the best ways to serve our state, our communities and our profession.
Climbing the Mountain Called Growth
Management
The January issue of Planning magazine includes an article with this title, in which I take a look back at
the origins of the GMA, our successes and ongoing challenges. This was written for an audience of
planners who will be attending the National APA conference in Seattle this April. However, I think it will
be a useful read for anyone who cares about growth issues and planning practice in our state.
I have written another article on the same subject for the Municipal Research and Services Center. That
article is titled: “GMA at 25: Looking Back, Looking Forward.” It was written specifically for an
audience of city, county and state elected officials - to convey the value of planning and the range of
choice the GMA provides to them as decision-makers. The article was featured in the MRSC Planning
e-newsletter and is now online at the Planning Advisor page at www.mrsc.org.
Not your grandfather’s short course
Since the 1970s, the venerable “Short Course in Local Planning” has provided training to Washington’s
planning commissioners, elected officials and interested citizens. Launching soon on the Washington
State Department of Commerce website will be a new and improved vehicle to reach even more people –
the Short Course in online segments – a joint effort of Commerce, the Planning Association of
Washington, the Washington Chapter of the American Planning Association, and the Association of
Washington Cities. A new and improved version of the live short course is also available in 2015 – to
schedule one, I suggest you contact anne.fritzel@commerce.wa.gov.
Practice tip: placemaking
“To thine own self be true” – Polonius. In city planning and civic design, this means being place-specific
and authentic. The British spelling of town (towne) and center (centre) is place-specific and authentic in
England and Canada. But in the U.S., it is false at best, pretentious at worst. So, my advice is to resist
the temptation to rename your central business district “Ye Olde Towne Centre.”
Historic preservation is a great placemaking choice. That often means structures or interpretive panels if
no artifacts survive. If that is the case, murals are an excellent way to echo an authentic past. This
mural on State Highway 104 in the City of Shoreline, shows at left a trolley car of the Interurban Electric
Railway motoring up the east side of Echo Lake. In the right foreground is a bicyclist traveling the
paved trail that today follows the old right of way. Believe it or not, that cyclist is painted on the mural!
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Comments, questions, or suggestions about anything in this bulletin are welcome at
joe@tovarplanning.com. Information about my current projects, client references, and news
updates are on my business website at www.tovarplanning.com Thanks!