All GIS Courses
Photoshop CC for Planners 4: Creating Visual Simulations
In this course, we'll use the skills and techniques covered in the previous three Photoshop CC courses to create an advanced visual simulation of a re-imagined public space.
Defensible Sign Regulations
Communities regulate the characteristics of signs to achieve multiple goals, such as limiting driver distraction, maintaining the aesthetic character of the community, and implementing aspects of related plans. This course will show participants how to draft—and adopt—sign ordinances that accomplish those purposes while conforming with the First Amendment.
Regulating Sex Businesses, Part 2: Practical Tips
This course will provide practical tips for developing local zoning and licensing regulations for sexually oriented businesses. This course builds on material from Part 1 of this two-part series.
Regulating Sex Businesses, Part 1: Principles and Foundations
This course shows how to lay the foundation for ordinances that mitigate the negative effects of sex businesses while conforming with constitutional requirements under the First Amendment.
Photoshop CC for Planners 3: Advanced Techniques
This course builds upon the first two courses in the "Photoshop CC for Planners" series. In this installment, we'll cover more advanced functions in the program and start building a digital library, which we'll use in the next course to create a complex visual simulation.
Photoshop CC for Planners 2: More Tools and Techniques
This course builds upon the first Photoshop CC course, giving you step-by-step instructions on how to use more complex tools and techniques in the program.
Photoshop CC for Planners 1: Basic Functions
Adobe Photoshop CC is widely recognized among design professionals as the premier image editing software, with a number of useful applications for urban planning. This course gives you a step-by-step introduction to the basic tools of Photoshop CC.
Parking Reform Made Easy
Reforming minimum parking requirements is one of the most effective ways to support Smart Growth. This course explains the many problems created by the parking regulation status quo before presenting a process for reform, providing examples of parking management tools, and discussing strategies for dealing with political and stakeholder issues.
Planning and the Law: Procedural Due Process
The United States Constitution protects rights to "due process." In a land use law context, due process is why local governments must treat legislative and quasi-judicial decision making differently. At the end of this course, students will be able to differentiate between legislative and quasi-judicial decisions and to understand the due process implications of the distinction.
Planning and the Law: The Takings Clause
This course will help students understand and explore three legal concepts borne of the United States Constitution's Takings Clause: eminent domain, regulatory takings, and exactions. By the end of the course, students will be able to identify whether a particular government action is at risk of violating the Takings Clause.
The DIY Form-Based Code: Publishing and Expanding
In this fourth and final course of the DIY Form-Based Code series, learn to visually communicate publishable form-based code by using SketchUp and InDesign.
The DIY Form-Based Code: Testing and Refining
This third of four courses from the "DIY Form-Based Code" series shows how to use Excel and SketchUp to generate randomization tests, modeling, and refinements for a draft version of a form-based code.
The DIY Form-Based Code: Research and Development
Covering concepts critical to developing the foundation for a code, this course takes a a tour through the creation of a code for the hypothetical city of Wrightville.
Drawing in the Landscape: Water and Oil
This is the fourth and final course in the Drawing series. In this course we inquire into the nature of observing and representing color works in transitive environments, building upon the initial sketch, and beginning water color and oil technique.
Drawing in the Landscape: Painting Color
This is the third course in the Drawing series. In this course we inquire into the nature of observing and representing color works in transitive environments, building upon the initial sketch, and beginning watercolor technique.
The DIY Form-Based Code: An Introduction
Citing standards and design guidelines from SmartCode and The Form-Based Code Guide, this first of several courses introduces a novel, iterative, and testable methodology.
AutoCAD for 3D Modeling
Most planners and designers don't use just one drawing or visualization program. In this course you'll learn how to create 3D drawings in AutoCAD and how to use AutoCAD in concert with other programs, such as Adobe Illustrator and Sketchup, to create illustrative plan, section, and perspective views.
AutoCAD for Site Planning
This course establishes a workflow for an illustrative site plan, including how to represent existing conditions and create detailed plans for specific areas within a larger project. Building on AutoCAD 101, learn to draw more complex plans using aerial imagery, photography, and hand-drawn sketches as the base layer.
AutoCAD 101
This course provides an introduction to AutoCAD’s essential functions for first-time users and demonstrates how to create site plans, street sections, and other two-dimensional scaled diagrams.
Photoshop CS5 for Planners - Introduction
Design professionals widely recognize Adobe Photoshop as the premier image editing software, with many valuable applications for urban planning. This course gives planners a step-by-step introduction to the basic tools of Photoshop CS5.