Plan Canada - Vol 39 No 4 (1999)
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Item Plan Canada - Volume 39, Number 4 (September/October 1999)(Canadian Institute of Planners, 1999)The omnibus issue|Horizons diversItem Contents(Canadian Institute of Planners, 1999)Table of contents for Plan Canada - Volume 39, Number 4 (September/October 1999).Item The omnibus issue(Canadian Institute of Planners, 1999) Marshall, NancyThis volume of Plan Canada is entitled "The Omnibus Issue" because it is a compilation of unsolicited articles that were not specifically related to any of Plan Canada's recent themes. After reading the articles and columns presented in this issue, one's first reaction is to look for cross-cutting themes that knit them together. I believe the only thread that ties these articles together is that, collectively, they represent what the planning discipline is: changing, contextual and diverse.Item Don't be a drip: Planning for water efficiency(Canadian Institute of Planners, 1999) Bianchin, JohnThe process of providing drinking water to Canadians is a costly one. As a result of high replacement costs of water supply and treatment infrastructure, efficiency is attracting attention as an inexpensive solution to water concerns. Traditionally, planners have not played a direct role in water-efficiency planning, but they can become leaders in changing the way Canadians use water. When exploring potential efficiency initiatives, the qualifying principles are cost effectiveness and the maintenance of acceptable levels of service. Only an integrated and coordinated strategy that supports systematic and gradual changes in behaviour will result in substantial and sustainable improvements in efficient water use.Item Sense of community and neighbourliness in Vancouver suburban communities: The Picket Fence Project(Canadian Institute of Planners, 1999) Enns, Cherie; Wilson, JenniferWith every new development we hear the word "community," as if the attempt to redesign physical form automatically builds or facilitates a sense of community. It is the opinion of the authors, however, that "sense of community" must be better defined and understood if it is to be facilitated and enhanced. The following research findings are based on an innovative partnership formed to explore sense of community in the suburban neighbourhoods located in Township of Langley, Maple Ridge and Pitt Meadows, all three of which are suburbs of Vancouver. The data from responses to approximately 650 household surveys provides information on interaction and involvement at the neighbourhood and community level. While the information collected pertains to a range of factors including the link between community involvement and residents' perceptions of their own health, this paper focuses on the measurement of sense of community in neighbourhoods. It confirms that sense of community does exist as a force in suburban neighbourhoods and concludes with insights into social and physical factors that can play a role in enhancing sense of community at a neighbourhood level. For the purpose of this discussion, "neighbourhood" is a community of place, defined in the context of each resident's perception of its spatial extent.