AICP Functional Areas of Practice 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A regional planning agency creating a coordinated land use and transit investment strategy is using which approach?
- Transit-oriented development planning
- Multimodal systems planning
- Integrated land use and transportation planning (Correct answer)
- Corridor planning
Correct answer: Integrated land use and transportation planning
Integrated land use and transportation planning coordinates land development patterns with transit infrastructure to achieve regional goals.
Question 2: Which functional area uses tools such as tax increment financing (TIF) districts to spur investment in distressed areas?
- Housing planning
- Economic development planning
- Redevelopment and revitalization planning (Correct answer)
- Capital improvement programming
Correct answer: Redevelopment and revitalization planning
Redevelopment and revitalization planning commonly employs TIF districts to capture future tax revenue for reinvestment in blighted areas.
Question 3: Environmental justice as a planning concern primarily falls under which functional area?
- Social and community planning (Correct answer)
- Environmental planning
- Health planning
- Housing planning
Correct answer: Social and community planning
Environmental justice—ensuring equitable distribution of environmental benefits and burdens—is a core concern of social and community planning.
Question 4: Which functional area involves preparing documents that assess potential environmental effects of proposed actions under NEPA?
- Land use planning
- Environmental impact planning (Correct answer)
- Natural resource management
- Sustainability planning
Correct answer: Environmental impact planning
Environmental impact planning encompasses the preparation of Environmental Assessments (EAs) and Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) required under NEPA.
Question 5: A planner helping a city adopt a new zoning code with form-based standards is primarily engaged in which area?
- Urban design
- Land use and zoning regulation (Correct answer)
- Redevelopment planning
- Code enforcement
Correct answer: Land use and zoning regulation
Updating zoning codes, including form-based codes, falls within land use and zoning regulation as a core functional area.
Question 6: Long-range demographic forecasting and growth management policies are central to which planning functional area?
- Strategic planning
- Comprehensive planning (Correct answer)
- Regional planning
- Population planning
Correct answer: Comprehensive planning
Comprehensive planning uses long-range demographic projections to guide growth management and community vision over a 20–25 year horizon.
Question 7: Which functional area of practice is most concerned with the adaptive reuse of historic buildings and preservation of cultural landscapes?
- Urban design
- Historic preservation planning (Correct answer)
- Community development
- Land use planning
Correct answer: Historic preservation planning
Historic preservation planning addresses the identification, evaluation, and reuse of historic structures and cultural landscapes.
AICP Functional Areas of Practice 3
A regional planning agency creating a coordinated land use and transit investment strategy is using which approach?