Hindsight, Insight and Foresight: Planning for Growth and Change
Mitchell Silver, former Raleigh Planning and Development Director and Commissioner of the New York City Parks Department presented “Hindsight Insight and Foresight: Planning for Growth and Change” for RaleighForward’s third program of the year. During the program, Mitchell explored the history of planning in Raleigh as a way of explaining how we arrived at its current built environment. He then spoke about why planning is critical to shaping how Raleigh will grow in the future. He also emphasized that planning is of limited value without effective implementation. He acknowledged that because most cities continue to struggle with social and income inequality, it was important to prioritize equity throughout the urban planning and development continuum. He then concluded with a few predictions about Raleigh’s future urban environment. Here are a few key takeaways from the program:
Embrace the value of planning
Be a plan-making place and not a deal-making place
Follow your blueprint and have a plan that is predictable
Understand the implications of saying “NO”
Focus on the right rules for the right places and make rules easy for what you want to see
Understand the value of land
Explore every tool to make housing affordable and attainable
Understand past harm, but also avoid making new harm
Consider equity “fairness” in planning and zoning
Be visionary, embrace the big ideas and continue to make our region great
If you are interested in taking a deeper dive into Mitchell’s presentation, you can review his PowerPoint slide deck here.