By Marsha Smith
October 15, 2007 04:00 am On Wednesday, Oct. 17, the Grand Traverse region is kicking off a new planning process that will help shape the future of this region. It is called The Grand Vision, and it aims to develop a consensus vision for how we manage growth and development and preserve our outstanding quality of life. In 1990, when I led the Grand Traverse 20/20 Visioning Process, the major concerns were increasing traffic and sprawling development that led to damage of the environment and dismantling of our community character. Since then, many significant strides have been made to manage these threats to the quality of our lives. But despite the efforts of planners, citizens and private-public partnerships like New Designs for Growth, these issues still remain. Now more than ever we need a clear vision for how and where we want to grow and an action plan to implement it. That is why I am volunteering my time to support this important planning process; I want to be sure it delivers real results. Here are five key reasons why the Grand Vision is different, and why I am confident that it will result in meaningful change: •Diverse stakeholder support: The Grand Vision planning process was developed by more than 34 people including builders, Realtors, environmentalists, government officials, affordable housing specialists and business leaders. This disparate group demonstrated their commitment by working together for more than two years to design this process using a consensus decision-making process. •Regional scope: This process is designed to include input and develop growth management strategies for the entire five-county region. Growth and traffic congestion do not respect township or county borders. The only way to tackle the area's growth is on a regional scale. •Backing of all levels of government: The Grand Vision process has significant federal, state and local funding that has allowed us to hire the nation's premier scenario planning experts. •State-of-the-art approach: The scenario planning process uses cutting-edge computer modeling and visualization technology that is specifically designed to incorporate the input from thousands of citizen viewpoints. It actually gives people a picture of the various growth scenarios and results in one publicly supported scenario. •Emphasis on results: In addition to incorporating the good planning work that has already been done in the region, the Grand Vision will include a detailed and measurable implementation plan and some funding to implement prioritized projects. Ultimately, you are the key to making this planning process work. Come to the first visioning workshop at 6:30 pm Wednesday, Oct. 17, at the Park Place Hotel. This process will extend over two years and there will be plenty of additional public meetings, but it is important to gather diverse public input at the first one. For more information, and to register for the workshop, go to www.thegrandvision.org or call toll-free at (866) 441-5214. About the author Marsha Smith is a 30-year resident of northern Michigan. As a member of the Grand Traverse County Planning Commission she led a comprehensive visioning process in 1990. She is one of the founders of New Designs for Growth and is currently serving as a Champion of the Grand Vision.
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