Exclusive Content: Planning & Shaping Cities

State of Place: Let’s Make this Last For…Longer than 3 Months

Posted on February 21, 2018

State of Place tapped ten experts on how cities can build their bench by keeping interns after the weather turns cold. Right now, your city is experiencing an influx of students who are evaluating the internships and amenities that your city has to offer. According to Google Trends, there's always a sharp increase in searches...

Planning & Shaping Cities: Resolutions

Posted on February 7, 2018

Editor's note: this post is late because of me, not the wonderful AJ Fawver. Even though it's February, AJ's wisdom is still useful and relevant as we begin the new year. Read all of AJ's posts from the "Planning & Shaping Cities" blog here. New Year’s resolutions are often approached with skepticism. We’ve all notice...

State of Place: There’s No Place Like….the Mall?

Posted on December 18, 2017

With ONE WEEK left before Christmas, State of Place thought they’d reprise last year’s epic trip to one of Houston’s largest malls and take the pulse of America’s seemingly dying pastime. This year, State of Place Technical Product Manager Alli Torban got in on the “fun.” Read about her recent visit to one of the DC...

Making the Most of a Professional Conference

Posted on November 26, 2017

AJ Fawver, the Planning Director in Amarillo, Texas shares her perspectives on land use, planning, and community development in this series. Learn more about AJ from her GovLove interview. On the heels of another successful American Planning Association (APA) Texas chapter conference, I feel compelled to write about things to keep in mind when attending a conference geared...

Planning Ahead for a Growing Senior Population

Posted on November 5, 2017

AJ Fawver, the Planning Director in Amarillo, Texas shares her perspectives on land use, planning, and community development in this series. Learn more about AJ from her GovLove interview. When we are going about the important work of planning and shaping cities, it is important to not oversimplify the group of people we serve. After all,...

Planning & Shaping Cities: Customer Service

Posted on October 6, 2017

This is the monthly blog by AJ Fawver, the Planning Director in Amarillo, Texas. She’ll share her perspectives on land use, planning, and community development in this series. Learn more about AJ from her GovLove interview! We hear the words “customer service”, and often think of waiting in line at the bank, calling a hotline for information, shopping...

The 4-1-1 on Governing Body Presentations

Posted on August 18, 2017

This is a new monthly blog by AJ Fawver, the Planning Director in Amarillo, Texas. She'll share her perspectives on land use, planning, and community development in this series. Learn more about AJ from her GovLove interview! Planning & Shaping Cities The Scoop on Comp, Master, General, Strategic, Vision Plans The Lowdown on Multimodal Transportation...

The Lowdown on Multi-Modal Transportation

Posted on July 19, 2017

The Scoop on Comp, Master, General, Strategic, Vision Plans

Posted on June 24, 2017

This is a new monthly blog by AJ Fawver, the Planning Director in Amarillo, Texas. She'll share her perspectives on land use, planning, and community development in this series. Learn more about AJ from her GovLove interview! In the initial post of this series, we talked briefly about what makes cities successful, and the fact...