Clear as Mud

Robert Olshansky is professor and associate head of the Department of Urban and Regional Planning at the University of Illinois. Laurie A. Johnson is principal of Laurie Johnson Consulting and Research.

• 1. The Hurricane Katrina Catastrophe 2. Order from Chaos: Planning at the State and Federal Levels 3. Planning for New Orleans: October 2005-March 2006 4. Return to Chaos: Spring 2006 5. The New Orleans Neighborhoods Rebuilding Plan 6. The Unified New Orleans Plan 7. Passing the Planning Baton 8. Conclusions

This invaluable book belies its title because Clear as Mud deftly clarifies the complexity of the multiple planning processes in post-Katrina New Orleans. Sorting out the chronology of contested planning is itself a significant achievement, but Olshansky and Johnson have also managed to produce an account of the design politics that is reflective rather than scolding. Ultimately, this book is an affirmation of the need and possibility for deliberative planning in highly contentious settings. For practicing planners and scholars alike, this is the best account yet available on post-Katrina planning, and it is a significant addition to the literature on disaster resilience more generally. -Lawrence J. Vale, Ford Professor of Urban Design and Planning, MIT; co-editor, The Resilient City: How Modern Cities Recover from Disaster Clear As Mud is a masterful work that gives an insider's perspective into the complications and intricacies of planning in a postdisaster context. The book holds lessons for planners, policy makers, and citizens concerned with redevelopment, regeneration, and renewal anywhere in the world. The authors' understanding and grasp of macro planning issues and micro community issues gives this book power and authenticity that is often missing from academic publications. -Darren Walker, Vice President, Foundation Initiatives, the Rockefeller Foundation Olshansky and Johnson gamely dive into the muddy waters of post-Katrina planning to bring us the real story of New Orleans's patched-together recovery. As participant-observers they are uniquely qualified to untangle the puzzling web of competing plans-each with its own patron-generated through massive neighborhood participation, Big Easy politics, and a frantic quest for federal funds. -David R. Godschalk, FAICP, professor emeritus, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill