The Commissioner — Fall 2004

Commissioner's Voice

Planning Commissioners as Educators

By Alexandra K. Weldon, Chair
Kenton County Planning Commission, Kentucky

When I was first appointed to our city-county planning commission, I was brimming with blind idealism on how I was going to help change the face of our community for the better. Sixteen years later, I hope that I have a much wiser and wider viewpoint.

I have learned that positive change is incremental; that the acceptance of new ideas and new values only comes with exposure and education. As a result, I have come to the conclusion that beyond our administrative roles as interpreters of the comprehensive plan and enforcers of its regulatory tools, we have a much more important role as educators. As the public face of our professional efforts, it is our responsibility to explain to the general public the nuances and intention of the law and to communicate the benefit of the common good vs. an individual's preferences.

Planning and zoning issues are often unpalatable when first presented — why does that undeveloped land adjoining my property have to be subdivided? That high-density development is going to drive my property values down! We have all experienced the wrath of the public towards change. Hopefully we have also experienced public meetings where that wrath has been quelled and the audience calmed because the issue has been presented and explained in such a manner that ungrounded fears are allayed. These successful meetings are usually the result of thoughtful information gathering and calm, informed discussion by the planning commission.

We can often dispel the public's concerns by simply asking the right questions of the developer or staff. We can and should explain the values of controversial topics such as higher densities in limiting sprawl or mixed-use zones in providing more pedestrian-oriented communities. With each opportunity to disseminate and clarify constructive planning practices, we are more likely to see less resistance and ultimately growing support for good planning. A more desirable community will be our vindication.

"I know of no safe depository of the ultimate powers of society but the people themselves; and if we think them not enlightened enough to exercise wholesome discretion, the remedy is not to take it from them but to inform their discretion by education."
— Thomas Jefferson