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Training Opportunities Await This Month!

In-Person Planning Short Course Trainings Scheduled for April

No April Fools here- There are many great and free opportunities to get ahead on CM credits this month!

The WA State Dept. of Commerce’s Short Course on Local Planning has two in-person offerings this month across the State. The Short Course provides basic information on planning in Washington through in-person trainings and webinars hosted by Commerce. Please find more information on the Short Course here: https://www.commerce.wa.gov/growth-management/education-outreach/short-course/

  • In-Person Pierce County Session at the Annex
    • Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2025
    • Time: 1PM PT
    • Cost: Free!
    • Register Here
  • In-Person at the Planning Association of Washington Conference in Chelan!
    • Date: Wednesday, April 23, 2025
    • Time: 4PM PT
    • Cost: Free! (You do not need to register for the conference to attend)
    • Register Here

As always, below find curated training sessions that can offer invaluable insights to propel your career forward and stay ahead of AICP requirements:

1. Planners’ Briefing for Puget Sound Parcel-Scale Sea Level Rise Vulnerability Assessment

    • Date: Friday, April 18, 2025
    • Time: 10AM -11AM PT
    • Description: Assessing the vulnerability of coastal jurisdictions and Tribes to impacts exacerbated by sea level rise (SLR) is of growing importance, and is likely to be emphasized in new rules expected under Washington’s Shoreline Management Act. Vulnerability assessment couples hazard exposure information with the spatial distribution and relative value of community assets and their sensitivity to those hazards and provides better insights about areas that are most at risk due to SLR-driven hazards. A careful and comprehensive assessment of SLR-driven vulnerability, therefore, can lead to more-nuanced planning and decision-making and support more equitable distributions of resources and investment intended to reduce vulnerability.

The intent of this webinar is to introduce a project funded by the Habitat Strategic Initiative Lead that will improve upon a spatial analysis of SLR vulnerability initially developed between 2020-2023 that is intended to inform land use, ecological restoration, and hazard planning in Puget Sound. The assessment will re-calculate an SLR vulnerability index for every parcel within an SLR hazard zone, based both on the configuration of infrastructure and coastal habitats within the study area.

2. Urban Design Panel - Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities Walkable Design Standards Guidebook (hosted by APA Oregon)

    • Date: Tuesday, April 15, 2025
    • Time: 12PM PT
    • Description: The April Urban Design Panel welcomes the Cascadia Partners team who have supported the State's Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC) program in creating a new Walkable Design Standards Guidebook. The Guidebook serves as a resource to help local communities across Oregon implement more walkable development and site design standards responsive to updated Oregon Administrative Rules. This Guidebook provides local jurisdictions with a recommended process for evaluating walkability in their zoning code and guidance on standards and approaches in a variety of contexts.
At April’s Urban Design Panel, Pauline Ruegg and Jamin Kimmel will provide an overview of the design standards, provide guidance on how to apply it, and share early feedback from implementing these recommendations on the ground in several jurisdictions across Oregon State.

3. Data Centers and Community Development: Do they Compute? with Mark Partridge

    • Date: Friday, April 18, 2025
    • Time: 9AM PT
    • Description: In this talk, Dr. Mark Partridge will cover the following:
      • What are the typical circumstances that underlie the location of a data center?
      • Do Data Centers create local jobs and are they a net fiscal plus for local governments?
      • Do Data Centers have unintended consequences in terms of pollution, water usage, and electricity demands?
    • CM Equivalence: 1
    • Cost: Free!
    • Register Here

Of course, there are always other FREE trainings available on Planetizen and the APA Ohio based Planning Webcast Series!

Stay tuned for more updates and valuable resources in our upcoming newsletters!

And, as always, please reach out to Continuing Education Committee Chair Justin Patterson with any questions or ideas for training opportunities at [email protected].