Independent auditing from consulting group McKinsey found Oregon's Department of Transportation wastes too much money in cost overruns, especially on small projects that also tend to finish late.

Oregon commissioned a study from the consulting group, McKinsey, which finds that while many of the Oregon Department of Transportation's (ODOT) construction projects were above the standards of other departments around the nation, the state is also wasting money. "Certain, mostly small projects managed by the transportation agency run late and over-budget, costing taxpayers millions of dollars," Gordon R. Friedman reports for the Oregonian.
The report finds that part of the problem comes from the department’s relationships with the consultants they used, "Insufficient project management, inaccurate cost predictions and being too ready to agree with consultants leaves some projects up to 90 percent over-budget, auditors found," Friedman writes. Ironically, part of the problem with the project management comes not from a lack of oversight, but from different departments with different objectives creating goals that didn't always complement each other. On the positive side, the report also found, "ODOT is a national standout when it comes to actual road quality, auditors said, and spends less per-mile to build roads than comparable states. But the agency then wastes money when it paves and repaves roads," Friedman reports.
FULL STORY: Audit finds ODOT excels at road building but fails to strategize, wastes money

Trump Administration Could Effectively End Housing Voucher Program
Federal officials are eyeing major cuts to the Section 8 program that helps millions of low-income households pay rent.

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

The 120 Year Old Tiny Home Villages That Sheltered San Francisco’s Earthquake Refugees
More than a century ago, San Francisco mobilized to house thousands of residents displaced by the 1906 earthquake. Could their strategy offer a model for the present?

HSR Reaches Key Settlement in Northern California City
The state’s high-speed rail authority reached an agreement with Millbrae, a key city on the train’s proposed route to San Francisco.

Washington State Legislature Passes Parking Reform Bill
A bill that would limit parking requirements for new developments is headed to the governor’s desk.

Missouri Law Would Ban Protections for Housing Voucher Users
A state law seeks to overturn source-of-income discrimination bans passed by several Missouri cities.
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.
Ada County Highway District
Clanton & Associates, Inc.
Jessamine County Fiscal Court
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service