AMES, Iowa -- A three-hour workshop designed to introduce the basic principles of land-use planning and development management to elected officials, planning and zoning officials and board of adjustment members will be offered at 14 locations around Iowa in March and April.
Community development and land-use planning create ongoing challenges for Iowa’s city and county officials, many of whom have not been formally trained, according to Gary Taylor, assistant professor of Community and Regional Planning at Iowa State University and coordinator of the workshops for ISU Extension.
Introduction to Planning and Zoning for Local Officials presents case scenarios in a highly interactive format highlighting issues frequently faced in the land-use process. Subjects covered during the training include roles and responsibilities of land-use decision makers, the planning and zoning commission, the zoning board of adjustment, common legal issues, rezoning, nonconforming uses, variances and special uses, and conflict of interest procedures.
The registration fee is $45 per person, which covers the cost of workshop materials as well as a meal. If a city or county registers five or more people, registration drops to $35 per person. Registration forms and payment are due at least two weeks before the scheduled date of the workshop.
Registration brochures will be mailed to city clerks’ offices after the first of the year and are available for download in Adobe PDF format at www.design.iastate.edu/extension/planning-workshops.php.
Interested city and county officials should visit the Web site or, for questions regarding workshop content, contact Taylor at (515) 294-2973, gtaylor@iastate.edu . Questions regarding the registration process can be directed to Cindy Stuve, (515) 294-5263, cstuve@iastate.edu .
Dates and workshop locations are as follows:
March 11: Johnston, Hilton Garden Inn
March 11: Council Bluffs, Iowa School for the Deaf
March 12; Creston, Southwest Community College
March 25: Dubuque, Northeast Iowa Community College
March 26: Decorah, Hotel Winneshiek
April 2: Fort Dodge, Iowa Central Community College
April 3: Spencer, Clay County Regional Events Center
April 7: Iowa City; Johnson County Fairgrounds
April 8: Davenport, Scott County Extension Office
April 16: Fort Madison, Comfort Inn and Suites
April 17: Ottumwa, Indian Hills Community College
April 21: Waterloo, Hawkeye Community College
April 22: Clear Lake, Best Western Holiday Inn
April 29: Sioux City, ISU Design West
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