Regional Land Use Approaches - GSMSummit 2014, Judy East

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Why plan for growth and change, when it seems so much easier to simply react? When there is a distinct and shared vision for your community - when residents, businesses and local government anticipate a sustainable town with cohesive and thriving neighborhoods - you have the power to conserve your beautiful natural spaces, enhance your existing downtown or Main Street, enable rural areas to be productive and prosperous, and save money through efficient use of existing infrastructure. This is the dollars and sense of smart growth. Success is clearly visible in Maine, from the creation of a community-built senior housing complex and health center in Fort Fairfield to conservation easements creating Forever Farms to Rockland's revitalized downtown. Communities have options. We have the power to manage our own responses to growth and change. After all, “Planning is a process of choosing among those many options. If we do not choose to plan, then we choose to have others plan for us.” - Richard I. Winwood And in the end, this means that our children and their children will choose to make Maine home and our economy will provide the opportunities to do so. The Summit offers you a wonderful opportunity to be a part of the transformative change in Maine that we’ve seen these gatherings produce. We encourage you to consider the value of being actively involved in growing Maine’s economy and protecting the reasons we choose to live here.

Transcript of Regional Land Use Approaches - GSMSummit 2014, Judy East

Regional Land Use Approaches GROWashington-Aroostook Regional Planning Initiative

GrowSmart Maine Summit 2014

Judy East, Washington County Council of Governments Tora Johnson, University of Maine at Machias GIS Service Center

www.wccog.net

giscenter@maine.edu

www.gro-wa.org

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

• On-line GIS mapping • Decision support matrices • Storm Surge Scenarios • Economic development planning • Collaboration with partners • Inventory/Policy Models for use by

individual municipalities

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

For all Washington County municipalities: • On-line access to Comprehensive Plan status • On-line GIS mapping for CEOs, Planning Boards, Assessors • On-line GIS parcel viewer for public, assessors, developers

For all coastal Washington County municipalities: • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide current sea levels • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide 3 ft of sea level rise Water Infrastructure Assessment (Washington & Aroostook)

• Matrix of investment, management, operations needs for 25 systems serving largest population centers

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

For all Washington County municipalities: • On-line access to Comprehensive Plan status • On-line GIS mapping for CEOs, Planning Boards, Assessors • On-line GIS parcel viewer for public, assessors, developers

For all coastal Washington County municipalities: • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide current sea levels • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide 3 ft of sea level rise Water Infrastructure Assessment (Washington & Aroostook)

• Matrix of investment, management, operations needs for 25 systems serving largest population centers

Storm Surge Scenarios Category 1-4 Mean/High Tide current sea levels Category 1-4 Mean/High Tide w/ 3’ SLR

Bay Name (# of Municipalities) • Pleasant Bay (5) • Wohoa Bay (4) • Machias Bay (4) • Cobscook Bay (5) • Upper St Croix

Estuary (2 )

Public Outreach and Model Refinement 5 meetings Sept – Nov, 2013 • Pleasant Bay - Steuben, Milbridge, Harrington, Cherryfield, Columbia • Wohoa Bay - Addison, Jonesport, Beals, Jonesboro • Machias Bay - Machias, Machiasport, East Machias, , Roque Bluffs, Marshfield,

Whiting, Cutler • Cobscook Bay - Lubec, Trescott, Edmunds, Dennysville, Pembroke, Perry, Pleasant

Point, Eastport • Upper St Croix Estuary - Robbinston and Calais

Target Audience: • First Responders • Road Commissioners • Selectmen • Public Works • County networks – academic, public

health, businesses, NGO • Border Patrol/Coast Guard

Input Sought/Received: • Map formats (on-line, static, both) • Map layers/data • Spatial scale • Time frame of interest for impacts from

alternative scenarios • Historical perspective • Evaluation and feedback

www.gro-wa.org/climate-change.htm

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

For all Washington County municipalities: • On-line access to Comprehensive Plan status • On-line GIS mapping for CEOs, Planning Boards, Assessors • On-line GIS parcel viewer for public, assessors, developers

For all coastal Washington County municipalities: • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide current sea levels • Bay- and town-specific storm surge scenarios – median/high

tide 3 ft of sea level rise Water Infrastructure Assessment (Washington & Aroostook)

• Matrix of investment, management, operations needs for 25 systems serving largest population centers

• Drinking Water System Assessment

• On-line Resource Guide for Decentralized Wastewater Alternatives

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

Regional Brownfields Assessment Program Healthy Communities

• Local Food GIS mapping • Maine Food Data Consortium • Increasing Physical Activity

Transportation Infrastructure in support of Economic Development

• Corridor planning • GIS mapping of alternative rail linkages/routes to

port of Eastport

Sub-regional maps for: • St Croix Region • Cobscook Bay • Machias Bay • Narraguagus Region

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

Regional Brownfields Assessment Program Healthy Communities

• Local Food GIS mapping • Maine Food Data Consortium • Increasing Physical Activity

Transportation Infrastructure in support of Economic Development

• Corridor planning update: Downeast Coastal Corridor • GIS mapping of alternative rail linkages/routes to port

of Eastport • Bold Coast Scenic Byway

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

Regional Sustainable Housing Plan for Washington County

• Common county-wide needs • Inventory and policy for town Comprehensive Plans

Transportation and Housing • Rural transportation summit • Mapping distance from employment and housing • Transit options

• Regional Housing Plan • Customizable templates for

local adoption

Regional Efficiencies, Innovations, Resiliencies

Regional Sustainable Housing Plan for Washington County

• Common county-wide needs • Inventory and policy for town Comprehensive Plans

Transportation and Housing • Rural transportation summit • Mapping distance from employment and housing • Transit options

• Income and Distance to Employment & Services mapping

• Rural Transit Summit

• Park and Ride Analysis

Lessons Learned………………still to do….

• Large region (Wash-Aroo) – minimal combined work

• 3 year project – staff turnover; continuity

• “regime change” -2010 election: new commissioners, loss of staff

• Statewide broker requirement for all CAP agencies; diverted attention

• No $$ for implementation (housing plan)

• Need for training/outreach (VERY time consuming)

• Training/outreach to muni officials

• Prioritize capital investments

• Working, networking, collaborating to merge storm surge models with inland flood model

• $$ to implement!!

Contact Information

Judy East

Executive Director

Washington County Council of Governments

jceast@wccog.net

207-454-0465

www.wccog.net

www.gro-wa.org

Tora Johnson

GIS Service Center Director

University of Maine at Machias

tjohnson@maine.edu

207-255-1214

http://machias.edu/gis-service-center.html