Chris Stines is Planetizen's former Editor and the founder of Urban Insight, a leading digital agency. Chris has 25 years of experience in technology consulting and urban planning and has served as a consultant to public sector state, county, and local agencies, Fortune 500 private firms, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations.
Unprecedented Number Of Drilling Permits Issued By Feds
Last year, the Bureau of Land Management issued some 4,000 oil and natural-gas drilling permits; this federal fiscal year it's on track to issue a record 6,000.
Impact Fees Or Snake Oil?
A consultant is recommending local Florida cities increase impact fees by 219 percent to deal with budget deficits.
Incentivizing Brownfields
A proposed California bill would make it easier for developers to build on urban brownfield sites.
The Trend Toward Mixed-use Community Schools
To share construction and maintenance costs and reduce school crowding, many planners are working with school administrators to create mixed-use community schools.
Impact Fees For Teachers?
Some fast growing counties are "transition fees" to the school portion of impact fees to help pay for teachers.