What's the Plan? Where's the Planner?

This comes immediately to mind: http://tinyurl.com/5hxvdr

Kind of goes along with seeing Kimelberg's face on milk cartons all around Buffalo for several weeks now...

Don't even think of trying to get Chuck Thomas back -- My Fair City has him now, and we're not giving him back!

Who cares. the guy is a skirt anyway three steps behind his wife holding her dress while trying not to dirty his.

The least the City could of done is put a decent suit on the guy. How pathetic were those off the rack outfits. On the bright side, at least the folks in City Hall will be spared from enduring his monthly tampon change in the stall.

The least we could of done is send him back in a body bag. I'll miss him dressing in drag walking down Chip late at night looking for his dime bag.

now that just stinks! i was so looking forward to seeing the windmill, the microphone swing, the choreographed dance moves, the boob cam, and the pyrotechnics of the planning world...
well, maybe they'll have a better chance with the kajagoogoo of the planning world...

Two sides to ever story. You talk to people in seattle's strategic planning office and they think he's a joke. Rock star as in Not to mention his suits were hideous. I'm glad he's not coming and the City should be happy to rid themselves of Mr yes, no, yes, no, yes, no, yes, yes, no.

bye loser...

We know what works in the area of urban planning for old cities. Respect the history and originality of the place, protect the building stock to maintain density and variety, improve/enhance green space, calm/re-rout traffic, and reclaim waterfront assets. Making places more livable is the only way to succeed. We don't need a "rock star" just strong community support and the resources that are presently squandered subsidizing sprawl.

I vote for plan C

Open casting call to all you wannabe urban planners. Time to dust off your BA in Architecture or Urban Design and put your money where your mouth is. I can't wait to see how quickly this city will turn around with a mixed use, built to the curb, bike rack friendly, mass transit only, no parking lot having, LEED certified, migratory bird friendly, tear out the highways, and let's have a flea market in the green space, urban planner in charge. One stipulation is that you must know the size of Richard Florida's jock to apply.

Interview Question 1 to applicants from now on: Will your spouse and/or significant other and/or special friend be willing to move to Buffalo and find a job here?

Question 2: Seriously?

Question 3: You do realize that means living within city limits here, right?

Question 4: And he or she realizes that too, right?

Question 5: Did you ask, or are you just assuming?

Question 6: Do you mind swearing to that in writing and placing a nonrefundable deposit? We can take cash, or with a two dollar convenience fee, a major cerdit card.

Question 7: I saw you met the First Deputy Mayor on the way in - nice guy, huh?

Question 8: Just hypothetically, do you think you'd be good at collecting party committee member petitions door-to-door?

Question 9: When talking to the media, will you comfortable using the word "renaissance" with a very broad, open minded definition?

Question 10: How about "upswing"?

maybe someone should have reminded kimelburg that in Buffalo, 80 grand a year gets you a life of luxury as apposed to the rest of the country, and that his wife wouldnt even have to work! oh well.

If I didn't move to Austin a few months ago (where I'm writing a plain English form/Euclidian hybrid unified development code in one of the 'burbs, which also just adopted the SmartCode), I'd jump at the chance.

I'm visiting Buffalo now. As a planner, it's the little things you notice -- not just the biggies like low-density suburban-context development near transit stations, but the mundane things like visible rooftop mechanical equipment, portable signs in the right-of-way, huge bubble awning signs everywhere, poor commercial architectural design for new development, nonexistent landscaping, and so on -- that makes me hope Buffalo adopts a new zoning code with teeth, not just something that reflects the current "it's better than nothing" development philosophy.

A new zoning code is useless unless it's enforced, something the city has been unwilling to do in the past. Used car inventory on the sidewalk on Main Street in University Heights for the past five years, anyone?

Also, I'm going to guess that if Kimelberg bought a house in Seattle a few years ago, e might only be able to sell it at a huge loss. We're not talking about Buffalo-style price declines like $5000 or so, but rather hundreds of thousands of dollars. Home prices may be keeping him in Seattle as much as his wife is.

Thanks, now whoever gets it will be tagged as Second Choice. Professional etiquitte lesson (because apparently they don't cover this in planning school): don't publicly accept a job unless you are really taking it. You shouldn't publicly decline a job for the same reason.

Someone without such professional grace would not be expected to succeed. We're probably better off.

Whatever. The next city planner should come from Las Vegas, now that the revolving tower got cancelled.

There is much better talent out there for urban design than Miami. Go where there are real examples of sustainable urban planning. Portland, Seattle, Toronto... Miami just isn't in that list.

Maybe WestCoastPerspective will apply for the job. He's a planner.

I guess Kimelberg didn't plan his move to Buffalo very well.

Is it possible Kimelberg backed out because he heard that BuffaloRuse is reporting the Elmwood and Hertel areas have been trying to secede from the city?

http://buffaloruse.com/2009/03/elmwood-village-hertel-avenue-attempt-to-secede-from-city-of-buffalo

Was 80 grand enough? It isn't much of a salary on the west coast. Is it sexist to suggest that the wife might have had a lot to do with it?

The guy's suits were pathetic. The least the City could of done is brought him to one of local mens store and rid him of that off the rack look. {deleted}

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To be honest with you I'm not sure his suit even said Wingate, more like a Perkins somewhere down south. At least get the guy into a Nordstrom, isn't that store based in Seattle.
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An ill-fitting suit can be seen from miles away and has a damaging effect on the City's image. So getting the right fit in a suit and having it tailored is rather important, that is if you have any concern about how you might come across. It looks like a suit you'd wear to your first communion at St. Marks.

Unless Paul, you sold the suit to him, then shame on you!

Not to mention word on the street is he balled a mule in Eden and got caugh on film.