Community planning has been taught at Queen’s University for almost 80 years. Here are some highlights:
| Year | Story |
|---|---|
| 1930s | Community planning lecture series in the Dept. of Political Economy by Horace Seymour, a founder and past-president of the Town Planning Institute of Canada (TPIC). |
| 1940s | Prof. C.A. Curtis’s Housing and Community Planning report for the federal government sets post-war national agenda for expansion of planning. |
| 1950s | Civil Engineering Department offers undergraduate planning courses by Dr. Stanley Lash. The Institute of Local Government offers summer courses for municipal officials, led by Dr. Stewart Fyfe. |
| 1960s | Planning course offerings expand in Civil Engineering at undergraduate and graduate levels |
| 1970 | School of Urban and Regional Planning (SURP) established; 2 year MPL program begins. Stanley Lash is the first director; Professor Robert Mackenzie jointly appointed to SURP and Law faculty. |
| 1971 | Mohammad Qadeer FCIP, Godfrey Spragge MCIP and Eric Thrift FCIP join the School’s faculty. Thrift had previously been Winnipeg Metropolitan Planning Director, National Capital Commission General Manager and TPIC president. |
| 1972 | Larry Miller is the first MPL graduate. He has a distinguished career in transportation planning. |
| 1973 | Gerald Hodge appointed Director. School curriculum changes to the social sciences, regional and metropolitan planning. |
| 1974 | SURP moves from Civil Engineering’s Ellis Hall to Mackintosh-Corry Hall, the new social-sciences complex. |
| 1975-80 | SURP is the home of Plan Canada, the journal of the Canadian Institute of Planners, edited by Hodge, Qadeer and Spragge. |
| 1979 | Hok-Lin Leung FCIP joins the faculty; physical planning quickly returns to the core curriculum. |
| 1984 | Pamela Sweet FCIP becomes first SURP alumni (and second woman) elected CIP President. |
| 1984 | Andrejs Skaburskis joins the SURP faculty, teaching economics, housing and policy analysis. |
| 1985 | Dr. Mohammad Qadeer appointed Director. SURP adopts a national outlook on urban planning with a strong policy orientation and new concentrations in environmental services, social and land-use planning. |
| 1986 | First edition of Hodge’s Planning Canadian Communities; later cited as the most influential Canadian book by CIP members. |
| 1987 | Sue Hendler appointed to the SURP faculty, developing courses in ethics, gender and environmental issues. |
| 1989 | First edition of Leung’s Land Use Planning Made Plain published, later cited as the second most influential Canadian book by CIP members and translated into Chinese. |
| 1989 | SURP moves into Robert Sutherland Hall with the School of Policy Studies. |
| 1994 | David Gordon joins the faculty after 15 years of practice, bringing skills in community design and urban development. |
| 1995 | SURP internship program started to help students obtain paid professional summer experience |
| 1996 | Hok-Lin Leung appointed Director. He expands the School’s outreach with the Land Forum, China Projects Office and Ambassadors’ Forum |
| 2000 | John Meligrana and John Andrew appointed to the SURP faculty, teaching environmental planning and real estate. |
| 2000 | Jackie Bell retires after over 20 years’ service on the School staff |
| 2001 | Mohammad Qadeer inducted into the CIP’s College of Fellows |
| 2006 | Hok-Lin Leung inducted into the CIP’s College of Fellows |
| 2007 | Graham Whitelaw appointed as Queen’s National Scholar at School of Environmental Studies and SURP, strengthening environmental and Indigenous planning. |
| 2008 | Gerald Hodge receives the CIP President’s Award for outstanding contribution to the planning profession. |
| 2009 | David Gordon MCIP becomes first SURP graduate to be appointed Director of the School. Renewal of SURP faculty and MPL curriculum continues. |
| 2009 | Ajay Agarwal and Leela Viswanathan join the SURP faculty, bringing transportation, design and social planning expertise. |
| 2011 | Patricia Collins appointed to the SURP faculty, expanding the School’s expertise in healthy communities. |
| 2012 | Queen’s Real Estate Roundtable established. |
| 2015 | SURP joins the new Department of Geography and Planning in the Faculty of Arts and Science. |
| 2017 | SURP moves into renovated space in Mackintosh-Corry Hall to be co-located with other Department of Geography and Planning labs and offices. |