Undergraduate Course Catalog, Department of Urban Planning

PLAN 100 - Introduction to Urban Planning and Development.

An introduction to urban planning and development. Open to all students.

PLAN 202 - Site Planning and Design Studio.

Site analysis and design principles for small-scale projects, including building complexes, subdivisions, and neighborhood development. Present and defend designs for specific site locations. Prerequisite: CAP first year core program.

PLAN 203 - Regional Analysis and Design Studio.

Land analysis and planning at regional scale. Training to inventory social and physical elements on a regional scale, analyze the suitability of land and the vulnerability of the environment for development, and locate urban functions. Introduces computer-assisted models for land-suitability analysis. Prerequisite: PLAN 202.

PLAN 220 - History and Theory of Planning 1.

Growth and evolution of cities. Evolution theories and practice of urban planning, emphasizing the United States before 1940.

PLAN 221 - History and Theory of Planning 2.

Evolution of theories and practice of urban planning, emphasizing the United States since 1940. Interaction of public and private initiatives directed toward urban and environmental problems.

PLAN 240 - Planning and Private Development.

The process of private-sector land development, including market analysis and site selection, physical design, financing, legal constraints, and assembly of the development package.

PLAN 261 - Communication and Presentation Techniques.

Development of graphic and visualization skills for planners. Use of a variety of communication techniques and media for public presentation. Open only to planning majors and minors.

PLAN 302 - Urban and Neighborhood Analysis Studio.

Collection, analysis and communication of information for urban- and neighborhood-scale planning, including use and interpretation of published data sources, field surveys and inventories, and interviews. Prerequisite: PLAN 203.

PLAN 303 - Economic Development Studio.

Collection, analysis, and communication of information for community- and county-scale economic development planning, including use and interpretation of published data sources, field surveys and inventories, and interviews, as well as development of community assessment and recommendations. Prerequisite: PLAN 203.

PLAN 320 - Quantitative Methods for Urban Planning.

Calculation, application, and interpretation of statistics and quantitative models used in urban planning. Topics include association, variation, probability, sampling, regression, and models for population forecasting.

PLAN 350 - Computer Applications in Planning.

Microcomputer applications using spreadsheets, databases, and modeling and mapping packages suitable for planning and development office use. Brief overview of Intergraph graphic and mapping applications.

PLAN 365 - Economic Development Planning.

Strategies and tools for stimulation of local economic growth including government incentives, financing alternatives, and examples of public- private partnership in strategic planning.

PLAN 369 - Planning Paid Internship.

Supervised paid work experience for at least 200 hours in an approved planning or development organization. Participation in four seminars is required and is in addition to the 200 hours of work experience. Students to prepare portfolios for review. Prerequisite: completion of the program's third year or permission of the department chairperson.

PLAN 370 - Planning Internship.

Supervised unpaid work experience for at least 200 hours in an approved planning or development organization. Participation in four seminars is required and is in addition to the 200 hours of work experience. Students to prepare portfolios for review. Prerequisite: completion of the program's third year or permission of the department chairperson.

PLAN 401 - Field Studio.

Analysis and application of planning skills in a real-world setting, involving an actual community or outside client. Emphasizes smaller town or rural planning issues. Prerequisite: PLAN 302.

PLAN 402 - Field Studio.

Analysis and application of planning skills in a real-world setting, involving an actual community or outside client. Emphasizes urban planning issues. Prerequisite: PLAN 302.

PLAN 404 - Urban Design.

An exploration of the physical form of the public realm and how it has been shaped by social, economic, political, and cultural forces. Special attention will be paid to issues of identity, sense of place, placemaking, and sense of belonging.

PLAN 412 - Introduction to Geographic Information Systems for Urban Planning.

Designed to introduce principles of GIS and GIS applications in an urban environment. Topics include GIS components, modeling methodology, and management of environments. Implications for urban and environmental policy development.

PLAN 413 - Advanced Concepts in Geographic Information Systems for Urban Planning.

Advanced topics in modeling and analysis of urban and regional environments. Techniques for database organization, database development, and analytical processes (algorithm development). Prerequisite: PLAN 412.

PLAN 421 - Urban Land-use Planning.

Principles of urban land-use planning for newly developing areas and for changing older communities. Attention to environmental, efficiency, and aesthetic concerns in urban growth. Preparation of the comprehensive urban land-use plan.

PLAN 428 - Urban Impact Analysis.

Techniques for estimating the environmental, socioeconomic, fiscal, and energy effects of proposed plans and development projects.

PLAN 430 - Housing and Community Development.

Analysis of public programs and market conditions affecting housing and community development. Housing supply and demand, finance, the role of government subsidies.

PLAN 431 - Urban Transportation Planning.

Transportation planning methods and policy, including analysis of travel demand, links between land use and transportation, choice of transportation modes, and design of balanced transportation systems.

PLAN 433 - Environmental Planning.

Introduction to the fundamental issues and technologies associated with planning for sensitive use of environmental resources. Topics include waste management, air and water quality planning, ecological systems, and methods of environmental analysis and implementation.

PLAN 435 - Energy Planning.

Energy resource issues in urban planning. Strategies for incorporating energy efficiency in housing, land use, transportation, social services, and community development. Analysis of energy policy, emphasizing innovative public and private sector initiatives at the community level.

PLAN 436 - Theory of Urban Spatial Planning.

Seminar in theories of location and development of principal urban activities including transportation, housing, industry, commercial centers, and public facilities. Implications for urban-planning policies.

PLAN 439 - Community Facilities Planning.

Design principles and economic conditions in planning for urban physical facilities, including recreation facilities, streets, sidewalks, drainage, water supply systems, sewerage, waste treatment, and others.

PLAN 440 - Building Performance.

A scientific approach to understanding how energy and moisture move in buildings, and how buildings fail with respect to health and safety, durability, comfort, and affordability. While the focus is on housing, the fundamentals are applicable to all buildings.

PLAN 441 - Sustainable Housing.

Methods for bringing sustainable design and construction practices into the housing industry, with an emphasis on increasing durability, comfort, and energy efficiency while reducing costs. Use of computer software for economic analysis of design improvements, ensuring code compliance, and determining HERS and energy star ratings. Prerequisite: permission of the department chairperson. Prerequisite recommended: PLAN 440.

PLAN 450 - Neighborhood Planning.

Planning strategies for revitalization of older residential neighborhoods and neighborhood commercial areas. Includes community organization and the role of public and private neighborhood organizations.

PLAN 451 - Issues of Planning Practice.

Capstone seminar to explore application of theory to planning practice and management. Issues of planning ethics, citizen participation, styles and strategies for effective implementation of planning. Prerequisite: PLAN 369 or 370; PLAN 401 or 402.

PLAN 452 - Urban Planning Law.

Legal tools for plan implementation, including zoning, subdivision regulations, planned unit-development regulations, and other techniques for guiding urban development while balancing community interests and private property rights.

PLAN 453 - Center City Revitalization.

Strategies for revitalization of core urban areas, including case studies of successful cities. Examples include employment-based, recreation and convention-based, and residentially based revitalization.

PLAN 455 - Women and Urban Environments.

Examines the linkages between women and urban environments by focusing on the role played by the urban environment in facilitating/hindering women's access to economic, social, and political opportunities. Domestic and international examples are used to illustrate concepts.

PLAN 459 - International Planning.

An exploration of the nature of the urban and regional planning process in other countries. Topics include development policies, planning strategies, institutional structures, implementation strategies, and accomplishments. Attention also paid to the applicability of these experiences to American cities.

PLAN 460 - Alternative and Sustainable Community Planning.

Seminar course examining nontraditional approaches to community planning and design. Focuses on concepts associated with the design of sustainable communities. Historical precedent, case study, and utopian alternatives are synthesized to project alternative futures for present community planning and design issues.

PLAN 465 - Community Development and the Faith Based Initiative.

A participatory lecture course that looks at the origins of community development in urban neighborhoods throughout the United States. Examines the influences of the civil rights movement, housing policies, and community activists who shaped this movement. Additionally, looks at the role of religious institutions in urban communities and current issues surrounding faith based community development.

PLAN 477 - History of Urban Form.

An examination of the historical transformation of the urban form and its elements. Focuses on the physical organization of the city in relation to social, economic, political, and cultural forces that have shaped it. Special attention will also be paid to non-Western urban forms and histories.

PLAN 481 - Public Participation:Issues,Methods,Techniques for Knowing the Public Intr.

Issues and qualitative methods/techniques useful to the planner's paramount responsibility: understanding/integrating local knowledge and values into the public decision-making process. Issues and theories of public participation. Methods and skill techniques of being informed by the public, of informing the public, and of advancing planner/constituency collaboration.

PLAN 484 - Visual Modeling.

Graphic design representation and presentation techniques. Introduction to "data mining" and computer-based applications in remote sensing, mapping, perspective drawing, and database graphics. Visual urban simulation using advanced digital applications, such as GIS. Introduction to terrain engines, VRML, and other rendering environments for the display of urban design alternatives.

PLAN 490 - Independent Study in Planning.

Independent study in urban planning and development topics, undertaken on an individual basis with guidance of a faculty member. Prerequisite: permission of the department chairperson. A total of 9 hours of credit may be earned.

PLAN 490A - Independent Study in Planning.

Independent study in urban planning and development topics, undertaken on an individual basis with guidance of a faculty member. Prerequisite: permission of the department chairperson. A total of 9 hours of credit may be earned.

PLAN 498 - Special Projects in Urban Planning and Development.

Special projects in urban planning and development undertaken by groups of students under faculty direction. A total of 9 hours of credit may be earned.

PLAN 498A - Special Projects in Urban Planning and Development.

Special projects in urban planning and development undertaken by groups of students under faculty direction. A total of 9 hours of credit may be earned.