Meet the Planning StaffDavid Marin joined the Maryland Department of Planning as a GIS Planner in June, 2019. Since starting, his primary responsibility has been assisting Planning’s Property Mapping Unit in keeping tax map products for Maryland’s twenty-three counties and Baltimore City up to date. Continue reading
By Kristen Humphrey, MLA, Infrastructure and Development Planner
In this issue of Planning Practice Wednesday, we highlighted some common ground between two seemingly disparate initiatives: Planning’s Transit Station Area Profile Tool (TSAPT) and the Brownfield Redevelopment Outreach Program. Both articles discuss the Westport/Cherry Hill neighborhoods located in south Baltimore as being potential places where Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and brownfield redevelopment projects could occur. In an exciting coincidence, the winners of a design competition to revitalize the adjacent Middle Branch waterfront in Baltimore City were announced last month. Continue reading
Deborah “Deb” Sward serves as Lead Geographic Information Systems Planner for the Projections and State Data Center. Her primary responsibility is preparing and mapping Census data for general use, as well as tracking demographic trends in support of specific projects. Continue reading
Sometimes a concept or trend just needs to be expressed visually. In response to this, the Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) is fluent in the language of spatial analysis and representation. The goal of planning is to nurture and inform, and to play a vital partnership role alongside the diverse and numerous interests, stakeholders, and dynamics that influence our ever-changing society and communities. To maintain the highest-level of quality in our responses to the planning needs of Maryland, Planning employs a talented group of spatial technology professionals who share a mission to provide the department, our various public and private partners, and our citizens with data, analysis, and resources that are accurate and precise. This team of geospatial experts, with an extensive background in geospatial analysis, cartography, data modeling and management, and application development comprises Planning’s Geospatial and Data Analysis Unit (GDA). Continue reading
Planning is a highly interdisciplinary activity for any local or state government, incorporating land use, environmental protection, transportation, housing, economic development, and much more. An often-overlooked responsibility is advancing public health. Preserving green space, developing parks and other recreational facilities, connecting walkable and bikeable transportation networks, and ensuring the quality of Maryland’s air and water are just a few of the ways in which planners can promote healthy and vibrant communities. Considered from another perspective, this might be planning’s most significant role. The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DHMH) recently developed the Environmental Public Health Tracking Tool (MDEPHT) to promote the health of Maryland citizens and jurisdictions as they consider the future of their communities. The Maryland Department of Planning (Planning) is leveraging the extensive work completed by DHMH to advocate that the MDEPHT be used as an information resource for local governments during their planning efforts. Continue reading
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