Leapfrogging suburbs make life difficult for public schools.
A new report by the Michigan Land Use Institute finds that school construction is hastening sprawl across much of Michigan. The problem is that development trends in Michigans suburbs, intensified by families seeking brand new schools, produce a boom-and-bust cycle in school enrollments. The cycle makes planning for future enrollment difficult for school boards and investing in new buildings very risky. Unlike past eras, when steadier school enrollments guaranteed that school buildings were longstanding centers of community life, school enrollments in Okemos and other Michigan communities crest and then decline in less than a generation.
Thanks to Keith Schneider
FULL STORY: Boom and Bust
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A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.
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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.
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