Assignment -Public Meeting Evaluation and Critique

Assignment Overview

The best way to learn about the public participation process in urban planning is to attend an actual public meeting. In this assignment you will observe and analyze such a meeting, evaluating not only what took place during the meeting, but more importantly how public participation was including in the agenda.

Select a public meeting for any city within the Valley of the Sun by searching the local government website.

Appropriate meetings include regular city council meetings, subcommittee meetings, hearing officer meetings, commission meetings (i.e. development review commission, historic preservation commission, neighborhood advisory commission, transportation commission, etc.), board meetings (i.e. board of adjustment, advisory board, board of appeals, etc.), visioning workshops, or other local government agency public meetings.

*Recommended

At the event, take detailed notes on what you observed, including how public participation was incorporated into the meeting, the types of stakeholders involved, the dynamics that emerged, and the results of the meeting. Pay attention to who the decisions-makers are and how they respond to the input of participants.

IMPORTANT: Your essay must include proof of attendance at the event. This should include a photo of the event before and after, as well as "selfies" of yourself at the event. Failure to submit adequate proof of attendance will result in a score of "0" for this assignment.

Completing the Evaluation and Critique

After attending the public meeting, formulate an essay that clearly addresses each of the following points:

--Describe the meeting and its purpose, including an overview of the topics discussed.

--Describe the way in which public participation was incorporated into the meeting agenda.

 --Identify where the participatory techniques utilized fall along the public participation continuum discussed in class, and whether the techniques were appropriate for the meeting in your opinion.

--Describe the types of stakeholders (economically, geographically, use-value, or philosophically impacted) who participated in the meeting, and the types of concerns they voiced.

--Describe the observed dynamics that developed among the participants at the event.

--Describe the strengths and weaknesses of the participatory process that took place at the event.

--Finish with a brief conclusion on the lessons learned from attending the public meeting.

Your written essay should be roughly 2-3 single-spaced pages in length, and should be written in essay format (i.e. include an introductory and concluding paragraph, and content paragraphs consisting of well-structured complete sentences).

Assignments are due Monday 3/26 by 4:50PM. Assignments should be submitted electronically as a Word or PDF document under the "Assignments" tab on Blackboard before the due date and time. After that point, the link will no longer be visible. NO late essays will be accepted.

All essays should reflect your own individual work.

Your essay should be thoroughly proofread for spelling, punctuation, and grammatical errors. Essays containing excessive proofreading errors will not be accepted for credit.