Daniel Reed, former Planning Director of Daytona Beach, is now the primary planner of Sadr City, 12 miles north of Baghdad.
"What would prompt a man to swap his family, safety and Daytona Beach, Fla., for the perils of Iraq?
Ask Daniel Reed.
'I really thought I could make a difference,' said Reed, 47, who served as Bay City planner from 1995-2000 and later served as planning director for Daytona Beach.
But his life took an unexpected turn in 2007, when a pamphlet from the U.S. State Department crossed his desk. Reed applied for the position of urban planner, and his 21 years of experience landed him a spot at Camp Taji, Iraq, 12 miles north of Baghdad.
Reed, who began his new job in November, now works as the primary planner for Sadr City, a Baghdad enclave marked by chaos and violence.
'The infrastructure is, for the most part, not working,' Reed said in an e-mail to The Times. 'For instance, regularly scheduled trash pick-up is nonexistent. It is my belief that it is not going as well as the 'official government' commentary would like you to think it is.'
Reed's role as Bay City planner meant associating with zoning, planning and architectural boards. While he says there are some common factors between that joband his position in Iraq - both involve managing sewers, water and roads - the context of his work ''is on a vastly different scale,' he said."
FULL STORY: Former Bay City planner helping rebuild city in Iraq

What the US Intercity Rail System Could Look Like
An FRA study shows how new Amtrak lines could connect tens of millions more Americans to rail travel.

Good Planning Under Bad Leadership
Planners must sometimes work under bad leadership. Here are suggestions for responsive planning in challenging political environments.

Amtrak Cascades Line Breaks Ridership Record
The route linking Portland, Seattle, and Vancouver, BC served nearly one million riders in 2024.

Half of Altadena’s Black Homes Lost or Damaged in Eaton Fire
The community has higher Black homeownership rates than most of Los Angeles, but now faces an uncertain future as residents struggle to rebuild.

Making Autonomous Vehicles Safer for Blind Pedestrians
A team of researchers is developing a dataset to fill a critical gap in self-driving cars’ learning models.

Federal EV Charging Program Suspended
The National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program planned to fund the construction of hundreds of EV charging stations across the country.
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.
City of Brookings
City of White Salmon
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
M-NCPPC Prince George's County Planning Department
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service