David Boeri reports that African American community leaders and city officials have proposed to build the new headquarters of the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA) in Roxbury. Boeri notes that the MWRA headquarters would be the cornerstone in a project to develop Parcel 18, located near the Ruggles MBTA station. Boeri's report includes footage of a press conference with city officials and African American leaders. Charles Stith (Union United Methodist Church), Bruce Bolling (Boston City Council), Ray Flynn (Mayor of Boston), Harold Hestnes (member of 'The Vault'), and James Kelly (Boston City Council) all speak out in favor of Parcel 18. Boeri reports that the Massachusetts State Legislature is also considering the city of Quincy for the MWRA site. Boeri notes that African American leaders are asking state legislators to show their support for the African American community by choosing Parcel 18. Boeri's report includes footage of Paul Harold (State Senator) speaking to the media. Harold says that Quincy is the right place for the MWRA headquarters. Boeri's report also includes footage of Paul Levy (MWRA) at a press conference. Levy says that the MWRA site does not have to be in Quincy. Boeri reports that city officials and African American leaders are pressuring state legislators to support Parcel 18.

City to City, as a class, will jump into the complexity of planning in New Orleans, a post-disaster city. City-to-City will ask how a post-disaster city grapple with its ideas of identity, what it is, who it represents, and how it projects its sense of self to residences, businesses, tourists, and to the outside world. In considering its people, how do city planners think about who lives where and why? At the same time, how can city planners celebrate a city's history and its culture and how can these elements be woven into reconstruction? Students will travel from Cambridge to New Orleans over Spring Break to meet and consult with their alumni clients, and continue to work on projects.

Students begin by reading Dr. Seuss' The Lorax as an example of how over-development can cause long-lasting environmental destruction. Students discuss how to balance the needs of the environment with the needs of human industry. Student teams are asked to serve as natural resource engineers, city planning engineers and civil engineers with the task to replant the nearly destroyed forest and develop a sustainable community design that can co-exist with the re-established natural area.

David Boeri reports that Ray Flynn (Mayor of Boston) held a press conference in Roxbury to unveil plans for a new housing and commercial development to be built on a vacant lot in Douglass Square. Boeri notes that the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) cleared the land in the 1960s and never rebuilt on the lot. Boeri adds that the owners and developers of the new project are African American. Boeri's report includes footage from the press conference. Flynn and Bruce Bolling (Boston City Council) talk about the new development. Flynn says that all neighborhoods and all residents must share in the growth of the city. Bolling says that the proposal for the creation of Mandela, Massachusetts is a 'dead issue.' Boeri reports that Flynn held a unity breakfast with Roxbury community leaders today. He adds that Bolling and other Mandela opponents believe that the new development signifies a renewed commitment to the Roxbury neighborhood by the city of Boston.

This course introduces incoming students in the Master in City Planning (MCP) program to the theory and history of planning in the public interest. It relies primarily on challenging real-world cases to highlight persistent dilemmas, the power and limits of planning, the multiple roles in which planners find themselves in communities around the globe, and the political, ethical, and practical dilemmas that planners face as they try to be effective. As such, the course provides an introduction to the major ideas and debates that define what the field labels “planning theory,” as well as a (necessarily) condensed global history of modern planning. Courses in planning history, politics, and ethics--often several of them--are required in all accredited graduate programs in planning in the U.S. Gateway: Planning Action combines those contents, with a stronger focus on real-world cases than more conventional lecture-based planning theory and history courses at other schools. It also adds several opportunities to strengthen hands-on professional competencies, especially in communication.

The purpose of the course is to cultivate the sensibilities necessary for effective planning practice. This objective rests on one key assumption: that a set of key sensibilities creates the right mindset for practice.

In this activity, students act as power engineers by specifying the power plants to build for a community. They are given a budget, an expected power demand from the community, and different power plant options with corresponding environmental effects. They can work through this scenario as a class or on their own.

" This course develops logical, empirically based arguments using statistical techniques and analytic methods. Elementary statistics, probability, and other types of quantitative reasoning useful for description, estimation, comparison, and explanation are covered. Emphasis is on the use and limitations of analytical techniques in planning practice."

Students learn about various natural hazards and specific methods engineers use to prevent these hazards from becoming natural disasters. They study a hypothetical map of an area covered with natural hazards and decide where to place natural disaster prevention devices by applying their critical thinking skills and an understanding of the causes of natural disasters.

Christopher Lydon introduces a Ten O'Clock News special broadcast marking the birthday of Martin Luth King, Jr. (civil rights leader). Lydon reviews King's life and accomplishments. This report features footage of King during the civil rights movement. Paul Solman reports on unemployment in the African American community. Solman notes that many young African Americans are not given the training, education, and support necessary to succeed in the workplace. Solman's report includes footage from interviews with Paul McLemore (Boston resident), Sarah Flint (McLemore's aunt), and Tom Jones (Vice President, John Hancock Mutual Insurance). Gail Harris reports on development in the Roxbury/Dorchester/Mattapan neighborhoods. Harris reports that the area is becoming more attractive to developers and that property values are expected to rise. Harris adds that many residents are suspicious of development plans by the Boston Redevelopment Authority (BRA) and fear being displaced from their homes. Harris' report features footage from interviews with Mamie Mabine (tenant, Orchard Park Housing Project), John Cruz (developer), Ken Guscott (developer), Byron Rushing (State Representative), Otto Snowden (co-founder, Freedom House), Muriel Snowden (co-founder, Freedom House), and a BRA official. Meg Vaillancourt reports on the long-term effects of school desegregation on the Boston Public School system. Vaillancourt notes that attendance and test scores have dropped since 1974. Vaillancourt reports that many African American parents support a 'freedom of choice' plan in which a certain number of seats in each school are set aside for students of each racial group. Vaillancourt interviews Robert Peterkin (Former Deputy Superintendent, Boston Public Schools), Robert Spillane (Superintendent, Boston Public Schools), Kenneth Haskins (Harvard School of Education), Charles Willie (Court Appointed Master for Desegregation), Mildred Reid (Jamaica Plain resident), and Kim Reid (student, Brighton High School) for the report. Vailancourt's report also includes footage of students at Brighton High School, Jackson/Mann Elementary School, South Boston High School, and English High School. Dr. Virgil Woods and Dr. Helen Edmonds discuss civil rights. Christopher Lydon interviews in-studio guests Dr. Virgil Wood (Pond Street Baptist Church) and Dr. Helen Edmonds (Visiting Professor, MIT) about King's legacy and progress in the civil rights movement since King's death. Wood says that society has regressed in the areas of racism, war and poverty since the death of King. Wood and Edmonds talk about African American students at white universities. Wood and Edmonds discuss the gap between the African American middle class and the African American underclass. Callie Crossley (WGBH reporter) talks about her memories of King as a teenager growing up in Memphis, Tennessee. The newscast closes over footage of Stevie Wonder (pop singer) and Jesse Jackson (African American political leader) at a celebration in honor of King in Washington DC. Produced by Glenda Manzi. Directed by Heather Aveson.

Deborah Wang reports on a labor dispute concerning the Boston Harbor Cleanup project. Wang notes that labor have signed an agreement with the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). Wang reports that the unions have promised not to strike if the MWRA agrees to hire only union workers for the project. Wang interviews John Cruz (J.B. Cruz Construction). Cruz says that many minority businesses would like to bid on the project. Cruz says that he runs an 'open shop.' Cruz adds that he can afford union wages but cannot afford union rules. He says that his business is more efficient because his workers are not unionized. Wang's report includes footage from an interview with Richard Fox (MWRA). Fox says that the MWRA wants to avoid a work stoppage during the project. Wang also interviews Joe Nigro (Building Trades Council). Nigro says that unions give workers good healthcare and pensions. Wang reports that Cruz and other non-union contractors may challenge the agreement in court. Wang's report is accompanied by footage of African American and white construction workers working at a construction site. This tape includes additional footage of construction workers and construction sites.

An introduction to the methods of recording, evaluating, and communicating about the urban environment. Through visual observation, field analysis, measurements, interviews, and other means, students learn to draw on their senses and develop their ability to deduce, conclude, question, and test conclusions about how the environment is used and valued. Through the use of representational tools such as drawing, photographing, computer modeling and desktop publishing, students communicate what is observed as well as their impressions and ideas. Intended as a foundation for future studio work in urban design.