Paul Stangl has taught a range of courses in urban planning, urban geography and urban studies. He currently teaches Introduction to Planning, Planning Studio I: Urban Design Methods, Planning History and Urban Transportation Planning. Click on the course title to see a recent syllabus. A link to recent course evaluations appears at the bottom of the page.
Introduction to Planning provides an overview of the practice of public planning in the United States. This includes a survey of major subfields in planning practice with an emphasis on contemporary issues, and approaches taken by planners to improve livability and sustainability in urban areas. City planning has had a tremendous impact in shaping urban form over the past century, and decisions being made today will continue to have significant, long-term impacts. Students of all majors find this course useful for gaining a better understanding of the world around them.
Transportation Planning is desig
ned to provide students with basic literacy on transportation issues and how city planners and governmental decision-makers approach these. The first half of the course provides an overview of urban transportation systems and the methods used by transportation planners. The second half of the course examines key transportation issues including finance, energy consumption, environmental impacts, social justice, and the relationship between land use and transportation.
Planning History examines the origins, development and significance of the planning profession in the United States from nineteenth-century reform movements through present day. The relationship of cultural values, political agendas, economic, social and environmental issues are examined as the roots of innovations in planning practice, as well as means of assessing their achievements and shortcomings. Special attention is given to innovative urban design.
Planning Studio I: Urban Design Methods introduces students to methods and techniques in urban design through lectures, in-class exercises and design projects. The course enables students to develop skills in visual representation, site planning, urban design, plan presentation and public speaking. Most class projects have centered on the creation of area plans to guide the redevelopment of sprawl into urban villages in Bellingham, WA. Sample projects have included shaping arterials such as Samish Way into boulevards and creating an inviting multi-modal corridor linking the Bellis Fair Mall, the WTA transit center and Whatcom Community College. The class has also worked on greenfield sites, such as the design of an urban village with a light industrial park in Ferndale, WA.