Developers & Builders

illustration by Marc Hughes for the PlannersWeb

illustration by Marc Hughes for the PlannersWebDevelopers and builders often transform land from one use to another. In doing so, they are acting to satisfy a perceived community demand for a service or product. By recognizing the valuable role developers and builders play, and reaching out to gain their insights, planning commissioners can enhance the quality of the regulatory process.

Editor's Notes & Interviews

Swinging through Topsham

PlannersWeb Editor Wayne Senville, reporting from Topsham, Maine (Oct. 5, 2012)

Ten of us piled into a mini-van for a tour of Topsham, Maine (population about 9,100) — Brunswick’s suburb to the north. Stops included the historic Bowdoin Mill; a remarkable active-adult housing development; and the famous John A. Roebling-designed Swinging Bridge across the Androscoggin River.

Editor's Notes & Interviews

Building a New Downtown – Part II

In part II of this posting, we take a closer look at how the Town of Mansfield, Connecticut worked with UConn and and a private developer to move forward on its new downtown, Storrs Center. Including some tips from some of the project participants.

Editor's Notes & Interviews

We Don’t Let Planning Get in the Way: Pt. I

Rob Rowlson, the Town of West Hartford’s Director of Community Services, makes no bones about it: too often planning can be an obstacle to private investment and development. In Part I of this post, Rowlson talks about efforts to strengthen the core of the town’s downtown: West Hartford Center.

Editor's Notes & Interviews

Main Street Mill: “The Perfect Trifecta”

I returned to the small town of Richford, Vermont, as the starting point of my travel plans for this Spring. I had visited Richford last Summer to first learn about the Main Street Mill redevelopment.

Insights

Reality Check from the Homebuilder’s Sales Floor

Planner and real estate market researcher Wayne Lemmon offers a response to Jordana Maisel’s article on providing accessible housing.

Editor's Notes & Interviews

Talking with Wayne Lemmon about his article: “Proforma 101″

PCJ Editor Wayne Senville talks with Wayne Lemmon about his recent article on the basics of how developers use proformas.

PCJ Articles

Proforma 101: Getting Familiar with a Basic Tool of Real Estate Analysis

by Wayne Lemmon

Knowing how to read a proforma will give you a better understanding of what goes into putting together a project — and the challenges developers often face.

PCJ Articles

The Changing Face of Manufactured Housing

by Matt Weiser

There has been an evolution in manufactured housing: from mobile homes to homes that are hard to distinguish from traditional, site-built designs.

PCJ Articles

Homeowners Associations

by Alan Weinstein

There has been an explosion in the number of homeowners associations in the past decade. A look at some of the benefits and disadvantages of homeowners associations, and how their rules are shaping the lives of a growing number of people.

PCJ Articles

Improving the Subdivision Review Process

by Randall Arendt

Too often planning commission and neighborhood involvement comes only after costly subdivision drawings have already been prepared. Randall Arendt on three key steps in shifting to a more proactive review process.

PCJ Articles

Building Consensus

by Lawrence Susskind & Patrick Field

Land use mediation can be an effective tool in aligning divergent interests, developing creative solutions, and resolving heated disputes. An overview of how land use mediation works — and when it’s most effective.

PCJ Articles

Why Not in Our Back Yard?

by Michael Allen

Almost all of us have faced locally unwanted land uses. However, these “LULUs” are usually designed to provide vital community services. How your community can harmonize its housing and social service needs with the objections of neighborhood opponents.

« Older Articles