AICP Test Questions – Latest Exam Prep
2025/2026 | Complete Study Guide & Verified
Q&A
Which of the following is 36 square miles in size?
A. Quarter Section
B. Metes and Bounds
C. Township Square
D. Section - correct answerC. Township Square
The squares you see are called "Township Squares" and are 6 miles square and
contain 36 square miles. Each township contains 36 sections. Each section is one
square mile (640 acres).
Who wrote "Carrying Out the City Plan"?
A. Flavel Shurtleff
B. Nelson Lewis
C. Patrick Geddes
D. Walter Moody - correct answerA. Flavel Shurtleff
He specialized in the legal aspects of planning. He helped organize the National
Conference on City Planning and was also a charter member of the American City
Planning Institute. His book, Carrying Out the City Plan, was the guide to the legal
issues, opportunities, and techniques of city planning for many years.
Which Housing Act called for the construction of 800,00 new housing units and created
the federal urban renewal program?
A. 1949
B. 1954
C. 1951
D.1959 - correct answerA. 1949.
The Housing Act of 1949 called for the construction of 800,000 new housing units and
created the federal urban renewal program. This was the first comprehensive housing
legislation passed.
Which theory of urban development states that, as a result of transportation routes,
cities developed as a series of sectors radiating from the Central Business District?
A. Central place Theory
B. Multiple Nuclei Theory
C. Concentric Circle Theory
D. Sector Theory - correct answerD. Sector Theory.
Sector theory was a land use model proposed by Homer Hoyt to explain how cities
grew.
,Which city was the first to use City beautiful principles?
A. Chicago
B. San Francisco
C. New Orleans
D. Savannah - correct answerA. Chicago.
Rachel Carson wrote which of the following books?
A. The Rise of the Creative Class
B. Ladder of Participation
C. Silent Spring
D. Design with Nature - correct answerC. Silent Spring.
Where was the first historic preservation commission designated?
A. New York City
B. Savannah
C. Charleston
D. New Orleans - correct answerD. New Orleans.
In 1921, New Orleans was the first city in the United States to pass an ordinance
creating a historic district. The Vieux Carré Commission was created to preserve
buildings in the French Quarter with historic and architectural value.
In the rural-to-urban transect, T1 is know as the:
A. Urban Core Zone
B. Urban Center Zone
C. Rural Zone
D. Natural Zone - correct answerD. Natural Zone.
Here are all the transect zones. The urban-to-rural transect is an urban planning model
created by New Urbanist Andrés Duany. The transect defines a series of zones that
transition from sparse rural farmhouses to the dense urban core.
Who is best known for developing the neighborhood unit concept?
A. James Rouse
B. Clarence Perry
C. Rexford Tugwell
D. Sir Raymond Unwin - correct answerB. Clarence Perry
He was an advocate of the neighborhood unit and early promoter of neighborhood
community and recreation centers.
What year was the National Park Service established?
A. 1814
B. 1816
C. 1916
D. 1920 - correct answerC: 1916.
The National Park Service was established with the passing of the Organic Act of 1916.
What year was the first Earth Day held?
,A. 1969
B. 1970
C. 1971
D. 1921 - correct answerB. 1970.
The first Earth Day was celebrated on January 1st, 1970. Now we celebrate every year
on April 22nd.
Which city constructed America's first subway system?
A. New York City
B. Boston
C. Chicago
D. Washington, DC - correct answerB: Boston, MA.
Boston opened the country's first subway system in 1897, known as the Tremont Street
subway.
Which was the first designated National Park?
A. Yosemite National Park
B. Grand Canyon National Park
C. Yellowstone National Park
D. Sequoia National Park - correct answerC. Yellowstone National Park.
Who wrote the book How the Other Half Lives?
A. Jane Jacobs
B. Jacob Riis
C. Catherine Bauer Wurster
D. Lawrence Veiller - correct answerB. Jacob Riis
Jacob Riis documented the living conditions of New York City slums in the 1880s in his
book How the Other Half Lives, originally published in 1890.
Which type of zoning allows a mixture of uses and promotes flexibility in design and
density?
A. TDRs
B. Pyramid Zoning
C. Overlay Zones
D. PUD - correct answerD. PUD
A planned unit development (PUD) is a type of building development and also a
regulatory process. As a building development, it is a designed grouping of both varied
and compatible land uses, such as housing, recreation, commercial centers, and
industrial parks, all within one contained development or subdivision.
Who wrote "Image of the City"?
A. Frank Lloyd Wright
B. Kevin Lynch
C. Louis Wirth
D. James Rouse - correct answerB. Kevin Lynch
, Which TDM strategies are commonly used specifically for Commute Trip Reduction?
i. Unbundled Parking Costs
ii. Traffic Calming
iii. End of Trip Facilities
iv. Transit Fare Subsidy
A. i
B. i, ii, iv
C. ii, iii
D. iii, iv - correct answerD. iii, iv
Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) (also called Employee Trip Reduction or Vehicle Trip
Reduction) programs give commuters resources and incentives to reduce their
automobile trips.
A city condemns a landowner's property in order to stop blight from further extending
into other areas of the city. The City intends to clear the land and resell it to another
private owner who is willing to construct new commercial space. The same City
condemns another private site for a parking garage to be constructed by the City and
leased to a private operator. The operator is free to set parking rates at any level and
may use part of the property for a restaurant. Under what circumstances would the
courts uphold the "urban blight" condemnation as an appropriate exercise of eminent
domain?
A. If the owner receives fair compensation for the property.
B. If the owner receives fair compensation for the property and is properly relocated to a
suitable residence within the community.
C. If the legislative body believes this will benefit the community.
D. The courts will not uphold this exercise of eminent doman. - correct answerC. If the
legislative body believes this will benefit the community.
Berman vs. Parker (1954)
Which book did the "father of regional planning" write?
A. Cities in Evolution
B. The Devil in the White City
C. Garden Cities of Tomorrow
D. The Culture of Cities - correct answerA. Cities in Evolution
Cities in Evolution was written by Patrick Geddes.
What can be described as a budget that reflects one time major expenditures to be
used over a long period of time?
A. PPBS
B. Capital Budget
C. Operation Budget
D. None of the Above - correct answerB. Capital Budget
A Strategic Plan involves:
2025/2026 | Complete Study Guide & Verified
Q&A
Which of the following is 36 square miles in size?
A. Quarter Section
B. Metes and Bounds
C. Township Square
D. Section - correct answerC. Township Square
The squares you see are called "Township Squares" and are 6 miles square and
contain 36 square miles. Each township contains 36 sections. Each section is one
square mile (640 acres).
Who wrote "Carrying Out the City Plan"?
A. Flavel Shurtleff
B. Nelson Lewis
C. Patrick Geddes
D. Walter Moody - correct answerA. Flavel Shurtleff
He specialized in the legal aspects of planning. He helped organize the National
Conference on City Planning and was also a charter member of the American City
Planning Institute. His book, Carrying Out the City Plan, was the guide to the legal
issues, opportunities, and techniques of city planning for many years.
Which Housing Act called for the construction of 800,00 new housing units and created
the federal urban renewal program?
A. 1949
B. 1954
C. 1951
D.1959 - correct answerA. 1949.
The Housing Act of 1949 called for the construction of 800,000 new housing units and
created the federal urban renewal program. This was the first comprehensive housing
legislation passed.
Which theory of urban development states that, as a result of transportation routes,
cities developed as a series of sectors radiating from the Central Business District?
A. Central place Theory
B. Multiple Nuclei Theory
C. Concentric Circle Theory
D. Sector Theory - correct answerD. Sector Theory.
Sector theory was a land use model proposed by Homer Hoyt to explain how cities
grew.
,Which city was the first to use City beautiful principles?
A. Chicago
B. San Francisco
C. New Orleans
D. Savannah - correct answerA. Chicago.
Rachel Carson wrote which of the following books?
A. The Rise of the Creative Class
B. Ladder of Participation
C. Silent Spring
D. Design with Nature - correct answerC. Silent Spring.
Where was the first historic preservation commission designated?
A. New York City
B. Savannah
C. Charleston
D. New Orleans - correct answerD. New Orleans.
In 1921, New Orleans was the first city in the United States to pass an ordinance
creating a historic district. The Vieux Carré Commission was created to preserve
buildings in the French Quarter with historic and architectural value.
In the rural-to-urban transect, T1 is know as the:
A. Urban Core Zone
B. Urban Center Zone
C. Rural Zone
D. Natural Zone - correct answerD. Natural Zone.
Here are all the transect zones. The urban-to-rural transect is an urban planning model
created by New Urbanist Andrés Duany. The transect defines a series of zones that
transition from sparse rural farmhouses to the dense urban core.
Who is best known for developing the neighborhood unit concept?
A. James Rouse
B. Clarence Perry
C. Rexford Tugwell
D. Sir Raymond Unwin - correct answerB. Clarence Perry
He was an advocate of the neighborhood unit and early promoter of neighborhood
community and recreation centers.
What year was the National Park Service established?
A. 1814
B. 1816
C. 1916
D. 1920 - correct answerC: 1916.
The National Park Service was established with the passing of the Organic Act of 1916.
What year was the first Earth Day held?
,A. 1969
B. 1970
C. 1971
D. 1921 - correct answerB. 1970.
The first Earth Day was celebrated on January 1st, 1970. Now we celebrate every year
on April 22nd.
Which city constructed America's first subway system?
A. New York City
B. Boston
C. Chicago
D. Washington, DC - correct answerB: Boston, MA.
Boston opened the country's first subway system in 1897, known as the Tremont Street
subway.
Which was the first designated National Park?
A. Yosemite National Park
B. Grand Canyon National Park
C. Yellowstone National Park
D. Sequoia National Park - correct answerC. Yellowstone National Park.
Who wrote the book How the Other Half Lives?
A. Jane Jacobs
B. Jacob Riis
C. Catherine Bauer Wurster
D. Lawrence Veiller - correct answerB. Jacob Riis
Jacob Riis documented the living conditions of New York City slums in the 1880s in his
book How the Other Half Lives, originally published in 1890.
Which type of zoning allows a mixture of uses and promotes flexibility in design and
density?
A. TDRs
B. Pyramid Zoning
C. Overlay Zones
D. PUD - correct answerD. PUD
A planned unit development (PUD) is a type of building development and also a
regulatory process. As a building development, it is a designed grouping of both varied
and compatible land uses, such as housing, recreation, commercial centers, and
industrial parks, all within one contained development or subdivision.
Who wrote "Image of the City"?
A. Frank Lloyd Wright
B. Kevin Lynch
C. Louis Wirth
D. James Rouse - correct answerB. Kevin Lynch
, Which TDM strategies are commonly used specifically for Commute Trip Reduction?
i. Unbundled Parking Costs
ii. Traffic Calming
iii. End of Trip Facilities
iv. Transit Fare Subsidy
A. i
B. i, ii, iv
C. ii, iii
D. iii, iv - correct answerD. iii, iv
Commute Trip Reduction (CTR) (also called Employee Trip Reduction or Vehicle Trip
Reduction) programs give commuters resources and incentives to reduce their
automobile trips.
A city condemns a landowner's property in order to stop blight from further extending
into other areas of the city. The City intends to clear the land and resell it to another
private owner who is willing to construct new commercial space. The same City
condemns another private site for a parking garage to be constructed by the City and
leased to a private operator. The operator is free to set parking rates at any level and
may use part of the property for a restaurant. Under what circumstances would the
courts uphold the "urban blight" condemnation as an appropriate exercise of eminent
domain?
A. If the owner receives fair compensation for the property.
B. If the owner receives fair compensation for the property and is properly relocated to a
suitable residence within the community.
C. If the legislative body believes this will benefit the community.
D. The courts will not uphold this exercise of eminent doman. - correct answerC. If the
legislative body believes this will benefit the community.
Berman vs. Parker (1954)
Which book did the "father of regional planning" write?
A. Cities in Evolution
B. The Devil in the White City
C. Garden Cities of Tomorrow
D. The Culture of Cities - correct answerA. Cities in Evolution
Cities in Evolution was written by Patrick Geddes.
What can be described as a budget that reflects one time major expenditures to be
used over a long period of time?
A. PPBS
B. Capital Budget
C. Operation Budget
D. None of the Above - correct answerB. Capital Budget
A Strategic Plan involves:
