Critical Planning Spring 1999 27 Visualization Tools and Public Par ticipation: From Crayons to Computers Kheir Al-Kodmany 1 The emphasis on the participatory and communicative side of planning has grown in the past decade, and plan- ners have developed various theories to empower commu- nities and increase communication (Healey 1992; Innes 1996, 1998; Talen 1999)F Planners increasingly find that public participation is fundamental to develop appropriate and effective solutions for community design and planning problemsF The benefits of broad-based community in- volvement in planning are widely documentedF