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Planning: general 🌇 Random Planning Thoughts (and Photos) Deserving No Thread Of Their Own

Planit said:
Have a couple people here trying to outlaw thrift shops in a certain area because they bring they wrong people.
Vintage clothing shops are good though because they are 'chic'.



I responded something in line of - so you don't want Chevy store, but a BMW sales lot is okay.
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I once had a commissioner who wanted to ban package stores, but thought high end bottle shops were great.
 
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mendelman said:
How is that even possible? (rhetorical)

That could never happen in my County (or any county I've ever worked in). They won't accept a plat without express approval/sign off in the document from the local municipality.
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Oh, yeah, it's a Maine thing, one that I still, after almost 20 years of living here, have not gotten used to - you can record on a napkin, practically
 
Well, this is a new one for me. A property owner appealed an NOV. There was a quorum issue at the last meeting so it got tabled and we are awaiting the next date. I just learned that the applicant passed away over the weekend.
 
luckless pedestrian said:
Oh, yeah, it's a Maine thing, one that I still, after almost 20 years of living here, have not gotten used to - you can record on a napkin, practically
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It happens in my county. Here, when there is a division of real estate in a divorce proceeding, we can find the deed recorded in an order book, which is not where we would tend to look first (or even second, third, or fourth). Why, we've even had plats unsigned by the PC/unattested that the county accepted for recording. They've gotten a little bit better, but I still don't allow unsigned plats to sit around my office. Ever.
 
Planit said:
Have a couple people here trying to outlaw thrift shops in a certain area because they bring they wrong people.
Vintage clothing shops are good though because they are 'chic'.



I responded something in line of - so you don't want Chevy store, but a BMW sales lot is okay.
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Have you ever seen an uppity community lose their mind over a proposed Dollar General etc. for no reason other than it offends their sense of who they are? I have. And i've seen residents in the store afterwards pretend not to recognize each other. :rofl::rofl:
 
michaelskis said:
Well, this is a new one for me. A property owner appealed an NOV. There was a quorum issue at the last meeting so it got tabled and we are awaiting the next date. I just learned that the applicant passed away over the weekend.
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I had an NOV that never really resolved (flophouse, basically) until the owner died. It was a sad situation all around.
 
michaelskis said:
Well, this is a new one for me. A property owner appealed an NOV. There was a quorum issue at the last meeting so it got tabled and we are awaiting the next date. I just learned that the applicant passed away over the weekend.
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Appeal 'dismissed with condolences'?

;) :daydream:
 
Gedunker said:
Nuh uh. The violation presumably wasn't abated because the dude is dead. Violation still exists, the estate can now deal with it.
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Agreed. That's why I said 'appeal' not 'notice of violation'.

:cool: :scotch:
 
As a Planner, do you find it challenging at times to participate in local events, gatherings, and celebrations - e.g. Chamber, Rotary, etc. - because of the cringe created by booster mentalities? Like, there is a groupthink when mingling and networking where everyone is drinking the positivity koolaid and no one really can discuss the reality of local challenges? I know no one wants to be a downer at such events, but why does the power of positive thinking have to permeate every interaction?
 
Wannaplan? said:
As a Planner, do you find it challenging at times to participate in local events, gatherings, and celebrations - e.g. Chamber, Rotary, etc. - because of the cringe created by booster mentalities? Like, there is a groupthink when mingling and networking where everyone is drinking the positivity koolaid and no one really can discuss the reality of local challenges? I know no one wants to be a downer at such events, but why does the power of positive thinking have to permeate every interaction?
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Rachel Dratch Snl GIF by Saturday Night Live
 
Wannaplan? said:
As a Planner, do you find it challenging at times to participate in local events, gatherings, and celebrations - e.g. Chamber, Rotary, etc. - because of the cringe created by booster mentalities? Like, there is a groupthink when mingling and networking where everyone is drinking the positivity koolaid and no one really can discuss the reality of local challenges? I know no one wants to be a downer at such events, but why does the power of positive thinking have to permeate every interaction?
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The larger groups like Rotary & Chamber not as much - its more of the smaller citizen groups that are more of a bother.

There's one here that likes to propose things that "like I saw in _____" that aren't realistic here. They also think econ dev is easy, like just go ask ______ business to relocate.
 
Wannaplan? said:
As a Planner, do you find it challenging at times to participate in local events, gatherings, and celebrations - e.g. Chamber, Rotary, etc. - because of the cringe created by booster mentalities? Like, there is a groupthink when mingling and networking where everyone is drinking the positivity koolaid and no one really can discuss the reality of local challenges? I know no one wants to be a downer at such events, but why does the power of positive thinking have to permeate every interaction?
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I find it challenging when it's a bunch of older white guys with lots of privilege and that boosterism seems to come from a lack of understanding of the challenges/real work that needs to be done.
 
Wannaplan? said:
As a Planner, do you find it challenging at times to participate in local events, gatherings, and celebrations - e.g. Chamber, Rotary, etc. - because of the cringe created by booster mentalities? Like, there is a groupthink when mingling and networking where everyone is drinking the positivity koolaid and no one really can discuss the reality of local challenges? I know no one wants to be a downer at such events, but why does the power of positive thinking have to permeate every interaction?
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Especially when your City/metro/region is full of this:

tom's rhinoplasty GIF by South Park
 
There is no end to developer whining. I have a code proposal that will double review speed, remove uncertainty and quash most spurious appeals, that will remove dwellings/acre as a density metric entirely, offset impact fees 10x more than they are now for new development, and all they can do is whine.
 
Faust_Motel said:
Have you ever seen an uppity community lose their mind over a proposed Dollar General etc. for no reason other than it offends their sense of who they are? I have. And i've seen residents in the store afterwards pretend not to recognize each other. :rofl::rofl:
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One of my favorite bad use stories comes from before I was a planner. A new adult boutique was opening in a decent area. You know, to sell "novelties". The thing to remember is adult stores in my city don't live off truckers like they do in say Missouri. It's like any store, they thrive from local business. So the place gets all it's permits and the sign goes in the ground, coming soon, adult boutique. The residents all go crazy. They call the city who just shrugs it off. No one showed up at the hearing. They start a giant protest and the paper covers it. They start taking pictures of people coming out of the store and posting it on a website. Naturally my friend went in and bought a 4' double ended "novelty" and held it up proudly. So the protest dies down and this chain adult store ends up being the busiest store in town. Remember what I said, all local business. People aren't driving across town to go here or stopping in from the freeway traffic. Stay classy!
 
DVD said:
Stay classy!
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Went into a novelty store in Toronto with my wife soon after we were married. Major road, very busy with pedestrians. Went in to the store with my wife and asked the sales lady some questions about a metal butt plug. It had some heft and mass and I asked her why. Her reply was along the lines that people can really feel it and that feature was its raison d'être. We weren't interested in buying it, just curious. We thanked her for her time and assistance and left for lunch. No big deal, just another day in the metropolis.
 
Month 1: A business committee recommendation was made (I was in attendance to answer questions on process).
Month 2: Business Committee asked if their recommendation was complete. I said 'No, management has not directed me to proceed.'
Month 3: Business Committee asked if their recommendation was complete. I said 'No, management has not directed me to proceed.'
Month 4: Business Committee asked if their recommendation was complete. I said 'No, management has not directed me to proceed.'
Month 5: Business Committee asked if their recommendation was complete. I said 'No, management has not directed me to proceed.'
Month 6: Business Committee asked if their recommendation was complete. I said 'No, management has not directed me to proceed and you need to ask them.'
Month 7: Did not attend today's meeting and waiting on report from another staff member in attendance.
 
The state of residential development in our area makes me really sad. I got into a conversation with a residential developer who wants to do a mixed product neighborhood and their first attempt at a site plan and architectural conditions was lacking. I provided a extensive list of things that they need to do and they fussed and pushed back. Finally I asked if they are designing a neighborhood for cars or for people. Because if it is for cars, this is a great design, but will need to go into the adjacent county.

The part that really bothers me is most of the items were reasonably minor, like putting a sidewalk from the front steps to the sidewalk, extending the eaves on the sides to create an overhang, pedestrian connections between the disconnected cul-de-sac sections.
 
Doohickie said:
This house for sale shares a fence our first house which was on the next street over.
aa64681dba2376fc1e75f3c204cca822l-m2593285985od-w1024_h768_x2.jpg

aa64681dba2376fc1e75f3c204cca822l-m224824951od-w1024_h768_x2.jpg

Meh. It's okay. Decent starter house. Nothing special.
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I just hate though that the garage is so dominant - it's all you see - the windows are cool but they aren't celebrated - the front door is dark and dreary - but welcome to my big ass garage!

The garage needs to be pushed back to the side and back from the front face - this house could be so cute and cottagy
 
luckless pedestrian said:
I just hate though that the garage is so dominant - it's all you see - the windows are cool but they aren't celebrated - the front door is dark and dreary - but welcome to my big ass garage!

The garage needs to be pushed back to the side and back from the front face - this house could be so cute and cottagy
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Tell me you're a planner without telling me you're a planner.
 
Faust_Motel said:
Have you ever seen an uppity community lose their mind over a proposed Dollar General etc. for no reason other than it offends their sense of who they are? I have. And i've seen residents in the store afterwards pretend not to recognize each other. :rofl::rofl:
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Protestants don't recognize the authority of the Pope, Catholics don't recognize the ordination of female clergy, and Baptists don't recognize each other in the check out line at the liquor store.
 
luckless pedestrian said:
I just hate though that the garage is so dominant - it's all you see - the windows are cool but they aren't celebrated - the front door is dark and dreary - but welcome to my big ass garage!

The garage needs to be pushed back to the side and back from the front face - this house could be so cute and cottagy
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This is the one behind it, aka our first house
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It was a bit smaller than the other one, basically just one living area, one dining area. The MBR is the two windows in the front. There were two BRs in the back, and the public rooms were behind the garage. You walked into the DR behind the garage, with a galley kitchen off to the right; behind that was a pretty good sized living room that opened to the backyard. I'm not sure but I think the guy who bought it from me in 1991 still owns it.
 
luckless pedestrian said:
I just hate though that the garage is so dominant - it's all you see - the windows are cool but they aren't celebrated - the front door is dark and dreary - but welcome to my big ass garage!

The garage needs to be pushed back to the side and back from the front face - this house could be so cute and cottagy
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I am adding "windows must be celebrated" to our design guidelines.
 
Doohickie said:
Dang. All this time I thought I was posting in RTDNTOTO, not the planner version of it. Sorry folks.
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It's OK. I just used my superpowers to move the deck chairs around a bit.
 
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Anyone have a sample of a regional street master plan RFP? Basically looking to map out street classification for a large undeveloped area. There might need to be some land density estimation involved since our general plan seems to be in flux. Long story. Trying to solve what streets go where and who is paying for them.
 
I just had a phone call from someone who wants to open a dollar store and called to complain about the development standards. They didn't like that they can't have all the parking up front, wanted a 30-foot pole sign, didn't want to do any parking lot landscaping, and didn't want to meet our building design regulations.

He said that because we have all these affordable homes being built, that the Town is required to provide someplace for them to shop.
 
michaelskis said:
I just had a phone call from someone who wants to open a dollar store and called to complain about the development standards. They didn't like that they can't have all the parking up front, wanted a 30-foot pole sign, didn't want to do any parking lot landscaping, and didn't want to meet our building design regulations.

He said that because we have all these affordable homes being built, that the Town is required to provide someplace for them to shop.
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Do people in affordable homes need to park in front of the building? Is their eyesight worse so they need a bigger sign?

Days like that I wish I had a bouncer at the front door.
 
Found this through the usual "landing on on Wikipedia, and descending into the rabbit hole of related articles" search gone off on a tangent. It describes a phenomenon that seems very familiar, despite being on the other end of the country -- the "Seattle process".

Seattle process - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

The term has no strict definition but refers to the pervasively slow process of dialogue, deliberation, participation, and municipal introspection before making any decision and the time it takes to enact any policy. An early definition came from a 1983 editorial in the Seattle Weekly, "the usual Seattle process of seeking consensus through exhaustion."
 
Dan said:
Found this through the usual "landing on on Wikipedia, and descending into the rabbit hole of related articles" search gone off on a tangent. It describes a phenomenon that seems very familiar, despite being on the other end of the country -- the "Seattle process".

Seattle process - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org en.wikipedia.org

The term has no strict definition but refers to the pervasively slow process of dialogue, deliberation, participation, and municipal introspection before making any decision and the time it takes to enact any policy. An early definition came from a 1983 editorial in the Seattle Weekly, "the usual Seattle process of seeking consensus through exhaustion."
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Inclusiveness takes center stage. The less strongly one feels about a proposal the more likely they are to grow bored with the process. At the end only those with the strongest convictions are left standing. Those will really be the only voices the decisionmakers hear. It's not quick, but in the final outcome no one can complain it never should have been adopted because no one took the time to hear their input.
 
TIL you can get the equivalent of an administrative waiver from Buffalo's sign regulations if you're building a "multi million dollar project" and the benefits "out way" the code.

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violation_01.jpg


thats_another_violation.jpg


violation_02.jpg
 
If you live in a climate where it snows, always be sure to consider snow storage when placing sidewalks.
 
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