Land Use Planning & Zoning
HUD Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant Program
Project Overview
The FRCOG and its Project Partners representing Franklin County were selected as one of 45 consortiums nationwide, to receive a Sustainable Communities Regional Planning Grant. Our project partners are Community Action, Franklin County Regional Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA), North Quabbin Community Coalition (NQCC), Franklin County Community Development Corporation (FCCDC), Greenfield, Montague, Orange, and Deerfield. The Franklin Regional Council of Governments (FRCOG), in collaboration with our Consortium Members and Project Partners (the "Steering Committee") will conduct a comprehensive planning process to create a Regional Plan for Sustainable Development. This multi-year project has the following goals which will identify short and long term policies and projects that will support sustainable development and redevelopment.
- To understand key issues impacting the region and to create a vision for sustainable development and redevelopment to guide future growth
- To understand the needs of disadvantaged populations and impediments to accessing affordable housing, transportation and living wage jobs
- To identify housing, transportation, economic development, energy conservation, natural resource protection, and infrastructure needs and priorities
- To build local and regional capacity and increase collaboration among regional agencies and communities
Current Activities
Work on this project will occur in three stages: (1) establishing a regional vision and goals for a “Sustainable Franklin County”; (2) Development of a Regional Plan for Sustainable Development (RPSD) and public art display; and (3) Implementation of the RPSD at the local planning level. A survey to establish goals and a vision for the Regional Plan for Sustainable Development is currently underway and will close on 10/28/11. All are welcome to take the survey to establish goals and a vision and provide feedback about their priorities for the region.
Three Sustainable Franklin County workshops were held across the county in late September and early October to gather public input about the RPSD. A total of 102 attendees participated in the hands-on planning exercises and expressed their vision of what they would like Franklin County to look like in 20 years. Results of the workshops will be incorporated into the RPSD and will help identify projects to be implemented throughout the County.
Future Plans
Over the next year, the FRCOG and its Project Partners will begin the production of the RPSD using the public input gathered from the survey and workshops. To become involved in the development of the Regional Plan for Sustainable Development (RPSD) please check this page for materials and meeting dates.
This page was last updated on October 19, 2011 .