It’s been said before, but it’s worth repeating – the reconstruction of New Orleans is both a planner’s dream – and a planner’s nightmare. Even before the flood waters subsided, planners and architects from around the globe descended on the Crescent City to give their take on the road to recovery. Close to two years later, a host of plans lay in the wake of the constant ebb and flow of professionals in and out of the city. Local residents are exasperated with the proposed plans and the progress of the recovery. Meanwhile, the rest of the country has seemingly lost interest.
It's been said before, but it's worth repeating – the reconstruction of New Orleans is both a planner's dream – and a planner's nightmare. Even before the flood waters subsided, planners and architects from around the globe descended on the Crescent City to give their take on the road to recovery. Close to two years later, a host of plans lay in the wake of the constant ebb and flow of professionals in and out of the city. Local residents are exasperated with the proposed plans and the progress of the recovery. Meanwhile, the rest of the country has seemingly lost interest.
This week, another group of planners have arrived in New Orleans – and I along with them. But rather than trying to bring their own expertise to bare on the current plans – attendees of the annual conference of the Planner's Network are largely focused on examining what the role of planners should be in New Orleans – and other cities where huge economic, environmental and social challenges remain.
The conference, which is being help in partnership with the Association for Community Design's annual conference in Baton Rouge, is part of a growing movement of planners and social advocates to redefine what planning actually means, and how it really serves the public interest of residents in a city. Pre-Katrina, New Orleans was already an excellent case study for planners looking to study the problems of urban underinvestment and social and economic inequality. Now with the storm's devastation having brought much of these problems (and more) to the surface, there's no other city dealing with so many issues at once. And it's impact on the field of urban planning is likely to last for decades.
For now, I'm still listening and learning about what has transpired over the last 20 months – but it's certainly interesting to see how planners are helping, hurting and/or irrelevant (depending on your perspective) to the city's recovery.
More to come.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

Ohio Forces Data Centers to Prepay for Power
Utilities are calling on states to hold data center operators responsible for new energy demands to prevent leaving consumers on the hook for their bills.

MARTA CEO Steps Down Amid Citizenship Concerns
MARTA’s board announced Thursday that its chief, who is from Canada, is resigning due to questions about his immigration status.

Silicon Valley ‘Bike Superhighway’ Awarded $14M State Grant
A Caltrans grant brings the 10-mile Central Bikeway project connecting Santa Clara and East San Jose closer to fruition.
Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Caltrans
City of Fort Worth
Mpact (founded as Rail~Volution)
City of Camden Redevelopment Agency
City of Astoria
City of Portland
City of Laramie
