Future City Competition 2020 Recap

The theme for this year’s Future City Competition – held on Saturday, JanuaryThe winning team with their city 18th – was Clean Water.  Teams of middle schoolers from around the Philadelphia region were tasked with designing a city that guaranteed a reliable water source for all citizens.   APA PA SE continued our support of the event by providing a judge at the competition, who awarded Queen of Angels Regional Catholic School (Willow Grove, PA) with the APA, PA Chapter, SE Section Award for Planning Excellence.

Students from Queen of Angels demonstrated a clear vision for their city, the reimagined ancient city of Tenochtitlan, and they were able to articulate their process for achieving goals that supported their vision. For their efforts, they were also awarded 3rd place overall.  Lionville Middle School claimed 1st place at Future City Philadelphia Competition, and they will represent the region at the finals on February 28th. Downingtown Middle The winning team with their awardSchool rounded out the top three with a 2nd place finish. Congratulations to all of the students who participated in this year’s competition!

Feb. 12: Walkability for All- Putting Equity into Practice

When: February 12, 2020 2pm

Registration: https://americawalks.org/new-webinar-walkability-for-all-putting-equity-into-practice-february-12-2020/

How do we move beyond talking about equity to building equitable communities? Explore ways individuals and organizations are taking action to create walkable and movable communities for all people. This webinar is intended for those just starting out on the walking path as well as those interested in learning more about the topic.

Attendees of this webinar will:

  • Learn about strategies, resources, and data to help implement equity into your own work
  • Hear from those working to develop and implement strategies to improve engagement and participation
  • Explore how we take equity from a buzzword to an action item

Featured Listing – DVRPC – Transportation Planner / Engineer

DVRPC is looking for a Transportation Planner/Engineer! Click through for the full listing.

https://apapase.org/job/dvrpc-transportation-planner-engineer-jan20/

APAPASE New Officers

APAPASE is pleased to announce contact information for the section’s new officers! The chapter has one Citizen Planner spot open as well. If you or someone you know is interested in being a citizen planner, please contact us at nominations@apapase.org.

Executive Committee
Alexis Williams – Chair – chair@apapase.org
John Federico – Vice Chair vicechair@apapase.org
Rick Collier – Treasurer – treasurer@apapase.org
Pattie Guttenplan – Secretary – Secretary@apapase.org
Justin Dula – Past Chair – justin@apapase.org
Citizen Planner 
Cheryl Tumola
Linda McIsaac
Are you interested in being a citizen planner on the council? Contact us at nominations@apapase.org

At Large
Ramond Joseph
Amanda Lafty
Kiersten Mailler
Maureen McQuilkin
Rebecca Ross
Rebecca Wetzler

Jan. 9: Section Meeting – First 2020 meeting!

APA PA SE will have its first section meeting of 2020 on January 9, 2020.

The meeting will be from 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM at STV.

STV, Inc
1818 Market St, Suite 1410
Philadelphia, PA 19103

Please email chair@apapase.org if you plan to attend in person so you can be added to the security list. To attend remotely call 1-866-499-7054 and use code: 7352890020. 

 

Sponsor APA Pennsylvania Southeast for 2020

The work and programs by the Southeast Section of the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Planning Association (APAPASE) aren’t possible without the support of our sponsors. We are releasing sponsorships now for organizations who prefer to take advantage of end of year giving, but are always happy to work with new year sponsors as well.

The sponsorship levels are laid out in our 2020 Sponsorship Package . If you would like to discuss a custom sponsorship, simply contact sponsorship@apapase.org to start the discussion.

Sponsors reach the diverse membership of APAPASE which includes citizen planners, planning officials, and professions planners from the public, private and nonprofit sectors. It also supports programming for emerging professionals and students.  We host a variety of events, ranging from educational to social.

The APAPASE Annual Event brings together planners from around the region.

Our Annual Event is the headline event for planners in the Philadelphia region.  Each fall, the membership meets at this educational and networking event.  AICP certified planners receive CM credits for the educational portion. Student are on hand to receive the annual John E. Pickett Awards. All members then have a chance to network and enjoy refreshments at a unique venue in the region.  Most sponsorship levels receive tickets to the event.

Annual Event Sponsors now have the exclusive opportunity to sponsor the event. Annual event sponsors are able to have their name exclusively highlighted in event marketing. They are also able to introduce the keynote speaker of the event and address the assembled membership. This is in addition to all the other sponsorship benefits.

Platinum Sponsors and Gold level and greater sponsors also have the option to submit select project highlights and received featured job postings to our members.

All sponsors are featured on this website, which receives over 44,000 website hits and an average of over 4,000 unique visitors each month! Articles are emailed to over 1,400 planners and colleagues every month. Our popular Job Postings section of the website has become a go-to tool for finding planning jobs in Greater Philadelphia and sponsors receive featured postings as articles on the website for greater visibility.

Southeast Chapter's booth at Future City

Events highlighting planning projects in Greater Philadelphia are made possible through sponsorship of APAPASE

There are also opportunities to sponsor specific events that meet your organization’s outreach goals. AICP study group sponsors reach professionals who are reaching the next level of the profession while assisting them by providing study materials and refreshments for sessions.

Mentorship program sponsors reach graduate planning students in the region who are looking to learn more about the professional experience they will have after graduation.

Happy Hour sponsors reach a range of professionals and students at a local networking event.

Educational Seminar sponsors reach AICP certified professionals looking to learn about a particular topic. Sponsors can help shape the agenda for the topic if they wish or sign on to sponsor an event already being planned.

Future City Engineering Fair Recap

APAPA-SE participated in the 2nd annual Future City Engineering Fair at SAP America in Newtown Square, PA on Saturday, October 26. This year’s competition theme is Clean Water: Tap Into Tomorrow. Volunteers Addison Larson (Princeton Mathematica) and Bill Deguffroy (McMahon Associates) engaged students in a hands-on activity to demonstrate the benefits of incorporating green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) into roadway design. The activity, which was devised by Bill Deguffroy, showed students how GSI (kitchen sponges) absorbs and filters stormwater by capturing pollutants Southeast Chapter's booth at Future City(breath mints) and forcing water to drain slowly, thereby minimizing flooding and helping maintain a healthy urban environment. The children liked the learning activity, and students, parents, and teachers asked questions about applying this concept to their models, as well as careers in planning! A special thank you to our volunteers!

APAPASE booth at the Future City Engineering Fair. Our volunteers Addison Larson (Princeton Mathematica) and Bill Deguffroy (McMahon Associates) engaged students in a hands-on activity that demonstrated the benefits of GSI and its relation to clean water.

Mentor Opportunities

Also, Future City Philadelphia is still looking for mentors for the following middle schools in the Greater Philadelphia region:

 

  • Keith Valley Middle School – Horsham, PA
  • Lehighton Area Middle School – Lehighton, PA
  • Montgomery County OIC – Norristown, PA
  • Penn Wood Middle School – Darby, PA
  • St. Alysius Academy – Bryn Mawr, PA
  • St. Hilary of Poitiers School – Rydal, PA
  • St. Jane Frances de Chantal School – Easton, PA
  • St. Katherine of Siena School – Philadelphia, PA
  • St. Martin de Porres Catholic School – Philadelphia, PA
  • Stewart Middle School – Norristown, PA
  • The Anderson School – Eagleville, PA

 

For more information about your role as a mentor go to: https://futurecity.org/participants/mentors.

 

For more information on mentoring, please contact: Mike McAtee at mjmcatee@urbanengineers.com.  

Jan 18: Excellence in Sustainability Award Nominations Due

The American Planning Association Sustainable Communities Division annual Awards for Excellence in Sustainability program honors projects, plans, policies, individuals, and organizations dedicated to supporting sustainable communities. The nomination period for the 2020 Awards is now open, through January 18, 2020! There are nine categories of awards this year. The nomination packet can be downloaded at planning.org/divisions/sustainable/awards/. At that link, you can also find more information about two upcoming webinars, during which we will describe the 2020 Awards process and celebrate last year’s winners.

Nov. 20 CM Webinar: Indianapolis MPO’s Formula for Actionable Public Input on Bike, Ped & Transit

1 CM Credit Available
November 20 @ 2 PM Eastern

Register Here

Meaningful public input is critical to creating bike, pedestrian and transit plans that truly meet the needs of the communities they serve. Join Indianapolis MPO November 20th for a fast-paced tour through its ground-breaking formula for engaging the public in alternative transportation planning.

Our friend Jen Higginbotham, AICP, Principal Planner at Indianapolis MPO, will share her step-by-step formula for blending online engagement with traditional involvement methods in a cost-effective way that consistently engages large numbers of residents. You’ll learn how Indianapolis MPO collects massive amounts of usable public input to inform better alternative transportation plans.

Creating engaging surveys is both an art and a science. Join Jen and Dave Biggs, Chief Engagement Officer at MetroQuest, as they share best practices for designing surveys that deliver actionable public input for your plans.

Attend this complimentary 1-hour webinar for proven ways to:

  • Build public awareness and notoriety for your agency
  • Educate the public about transportation tradeoffs
  • Design online surveys that result in usable public input
  • Gain the support of local agencies to move your plans forward

Ryerson University (Toronto, Canada) School of Urban and Regional Planning Students Visit Philadelphia

From October 6-9, 2019, a group of approximately 45 undergraduate students from Ryerson University’s School of Urban and Regional Planning in Toronto, Canada visited Philadelphia. One of their instructors, René Biberstein, explained that the group was here to learn about planning issues in the city. During their four days in Philadelphia, the students and their instructors participated in walking tours, a bus tour, and panel discussions to learn more about the city’s planning history, and how this history affects local planning issues, opportunities, and decision-making.

APAPASE helped connect the group with a variety of planning-related organizations, including the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC), Delaware River Waterfront Corporation (DRWC), Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority (PRA), SEPTA, Pennsylvania Horticultural Society (PHS), Lindy Institute, Drexel University, USA250, and McCormick Taylor, a full-service transportation and energy consulting firm with a Planning and Communications practice.

While at McCormick Taylor, the students met with company ownership and staff to discuss the differences in planning culture between the United States and Canada and what it is like to work as a professional planner. Presenters also provided information on local projects, such as SEPTA’s extension of the Norristown High Speed Line, King of Prussia Rail.

Students from Ryerson University’s School of Urban and Regional Planning in Toronto, Canada visited Philadelphia and meet with local planners

Photo Credit: Adam Dall, McCormick Taylor

 

Students from Ryerson University’s School of Urban and Regional Planning listen to a panel discussion about the Function and Role of Consultants in the Planning Process on Monday, October 7, 2019, at McCormick Taylor’s headquarters in Philadelphia.