Bored Panda got in touch with Richard Layman, a urban/commercial district revitalization and transportation advocate and consultant in Washington, DC to learn more about city planning and the data needed to make good decisions. First and foremost, we wanted to hear some common misconceptions he has encountered as part of this role.

“People often don't understand the difference between capital and operating funding. The solution to homelessness is actually simple. Build more housing and provide support services as needed. What the problem is is coming up with the money. E.g. Salt Lake County needs at least 2 billion to build what is required and 150 million per year for services, for 5,000 people. But the population is not static, demand will only grow. Plus that people don't want housing for severely needy people to be located nearby.”

He also had some suggestions for urban development advocates. “When advocating, don't use examples from Europe or Portland/far away states. The elected have a hard time with that. Use best practice examples closer to home. Relatedly, while every place is unique, few are so exceptional that they can't be compared to and learn from other places.”

“I argue that the point of planning and zoning is to improve quality of life. When it doesn't do that routinely it's an indicator that the processes are flawed. And, developers are the leads, not planners. Plans shape what can be done, but only with vision. And elected officials listen to developers a lot more than planners.”

“The land use bar has a lot of power. Plans are usually based on past conditions so they build for yesterday when today and tomorrow have different demands. Most zoning is use based, and "matter of right" meaning as long as it meets minimum requirements it has to be approved. Lots of crap is approved and built. And not coordinated with other nearby build out opportunities. Losing the opportunity for multiplicative benefits.”

City planners spend a lot of time looking at maps, but we wanted to hear, in his words, what are the things they aim to accomplish. “Stephen Semes writes about the importance of "the architecture of the ensemble." Our planning and zoning processes aren't designed to produce or maintain "nice” places.”

“This is true for both residential and commercial areas. Developers only have to care about their lot. Not connecting to and strengthening the broader district,” he shared. If you want to see more of his work, you can explore Richard’s blog where he writes about his thoughts and experiences.