DPPA / LWV Comp. Plan Forums Mark your calendars: What is a Comprehensive Plan, anyway? DPPA and the League of Women Voters will be hosting a pair of forums, January 11 (Wed.) and 25 (Wed.) examining Comp. Plans in general and Duluth's in particular. Both meetings 7pm, location TBA. DPPA Annual Civic Activist Award. Join us in honoring this year's recipient - Debbie Ortman. Debbie's long record of involvement in civic activism has touched many of us in Duluth, and we should also be grateful for all her work in Hermantown - after all, we live downstream. Debbie has chosen to use the award to buy some new equipment for Hartley Nature Center's environmental education program. Please join us on November 15th, at 5pm at Hartley Nature Center for the award presentation, snacks, and a chance to thank Debbie for all that she's done. Process, Standards, and Sugarloaf By Terry Brown, DPPA steering committee member DPPA has long been a promoter of open, transparent, and inclusive process. So we'd be really pleased with the way the Sugarloaf development decision was made, right? Well, no, not entirely. Overall the process was a good model for land use decisions where a development must be carefully designed to fit local social, economic, and environmental parameters. A good model, that is, for cases where it's clear that some sort of out-of-zoning development is desirable. It's not clear that the Sugarloaf development was such a case. One concern voiced by some members of civic activist community was that of inclusiveness or openness. Is the process really open and transparent when discussions are held in private between the developers, one or two councilors, and a few community representatives selected by the councilors? Compared to the Housing Redevelopment Authority's numerous public meetings on the Hawk Ridge Estates development - no, the process wasn't particularly open. But HRA is a public entity. In the Sugarloaf case a private developer is developing private land. Although it would be a great gesture on the developer's part if they were to hold open public meetings, it's not something they can be forced to do. So long as the councilors and community representatives are sufficiently representative of the various sides of the argument, such meetings are a definite improvement over a disconnected competition to secure the most votes. Another issue raised by many was that of spot re-zoning on the eve of a comprehensive plan. It's true that the comprehensive plan has been in the pipeline for many years and that the final plan and associated re-zoning work may not be completed for another two or more years. But it's also true that mature drafts of the comprehensive plan's land-use maps should be available early next year. Preempting the comprehensive plan process with such a large re-zoning to a significantly different land-use type doesn't project a lot of commitment to the comprehensive plan process. While the current zonings are old, they are not random - the S-1 zoning of the greenbelt was actively maintained by the City Planning Department for many years, with a forward looking vision that is echoed by the preliminary land use maps coming from the current comprehensive plan process. But perhaps the biggest danger in the precedent set by the Sugarloaf case is that of a process without adequate standards. No matter how open and inclusive a process may be, if the standards used to measure outcomes are inappropriate or absent from the discussion, the result can not be sound. A concrete example of "standards" makes this clearer. In the Sugarloaf case the process leads to significant improvements in the proposal by appearance standards. But the obvious environmental standard, percent of forest cleared, was not part of the discussion. The decision to turn forest into subdivision, which is at the core of the the decision to move from S-1 to R-1A zoning, was made by default, without being addressed by the process. The relevant standards weren't necessarily omitted from the process deliberately. The developers final pre-vote proposal included construction envelopes intended to minimize tree removal on individual lots. While such constraints often fail on the ground, on paper at least it appeared that the issue of percent of forest cleared had been addressed. But without explicitly evaluating the project against an appropriate standard like total canopy removal under both an S-1 and an R-1A scenario, the core decision was made not consciously, but as a side effect of the decision to enter into the discussion process in the first place. The risk of this type of accidental decision making is of particular concern as the comprehensive plan consultants have also been promoting a process oriented approach that "maximizes opportunities and minimizes risks", while vilifying the up/down vote approach. In a perfect world a case by case evaluation of every proposal on its own merits would be great. But it would be a terrible mistake to underestimate how difficult such evaluations are. How are cumulative impacts addressed? Zoning does this implicitly, ignoring zoning can ignore cumulative impacts. In many cases a proposal may be a good idea in the wrong place. How often is the standard of appropriate location likely to be included in the discussion? For a developer it's usually "here or nowhere". Has the process been successful if a developer adds assurances that they'll use Best Management Practices and mitigate negative impacts? Shouldn't those assurances have been included from the outset? Does having a process that adds assurances replace the need to decide whether the project itself is really appropriate? Win-win situations are great, and they are out there. But let's not confuse them with situations where discussion occured. It's not the same thing. Comprehensive Plan Update - It's Really Happening! By Vicki Sanville, DPPA steering committee member Twelve Governing Principles, comprehensive plan guidelines now available on the Duluth web site, were recently approved by the Duluth Planning Commission and the City Council. This is great news! During the first round of area-wide public meetings held in October, residents studied draft alternative land use scenarios while focusing on the opportunities and risks that might be involved in bringing about change. Planning from this perspective encouraged community members to think about priorities as well as how a change in land use could impact factors such as future transportation needs, natural systems, city services, or the city budget. As an example, when projected demographic numbers are considered, other necessities may become more evident. Attendees submitted comments and land use ideas that will be discussed at future Comprehensive Plan Committee meetings. For example, one land use idea focused on creating bicycle paths for commuters. City-wide goals, quite neglected during the previous process, will then be considered along with policy language. Once an area where several small communities co-existed, Duluth now is one large urban area geographically with unique neighborhoods representing diverse cultural values and traditions. With spectacular natural features, interesting and successful commercial ventures, and a population that is working toward respectfully supporting its people and the place they have chosen to live, an environment is created where a healthy community can thrive. A second round of area-wide public meetings scheduled for February will present goals and policies in the context of neighborhood plans. Input from these meetings will be incorporated into a future land use scenario and followed by public facility and capital improvement planning by the CPC. After creating implementation strategies and formulating priorities, the plan will be discussed, finalized, and likely sent forward for approval by the City's Planning Commission and the City Council in June of 2006. Hooray! Sustainable Duluth Surfaces By Jan Karon, DPPA steering committee member Quiet work on sustainable projects and practices has been going on for decades here at the Head of the Lakes - by many nonprofits, individuals, businesses, and at all levels of government. In March 2005, a new group surfaced in Duluth to join these organizations. Sustainable Duluth evolved last spring from an Ashland workshop presented by the co-authors of The Natural Step for Communities, Torbjorn Lahti (www.esam.se/eng/) and Sarah James. The workshop focused on the four principles of The Natural Step: #1 Reduce dependence upon fossil fuels #2 Reduce dependence upon synthetic chemicals and other unnatural substances #3 Reduce encroachment upon nature (land, water, wildlife, forests, soils, etc.) #4 Better meet human needs fairly and efficiently These principles were created in the early 1990s by a large group of Swedish scientists and environmentalists who were concerned that communities and their governments often did not cooperate to meet social, environmental and economic goals. For example, one community adopted a policy to reduce and eventually eliminate the use of chemical pesticides in public parks and school recreation fields. But before long, another branch of the government sprayed most of the city out of fear of West Nile virus carried by mosquitoes. It was this lack of any overall guiding principles that led the professional community in Sweden to develop the four principles of The Natural Step. To date over 80 communities in Sweden as well as communities in other northern European countries have adopted these principles, communities ranging from small rural towns to cities the size of Stockholm. These communities receive the designation "eco-municipality," uniting financial development and ecological balance in a common development strategy based on an area's natural resources and environmental values, its local commercial and industrial structure, and local lifestyles. It is both possible and beneficial for communities to work towards satisfying, simultaneously, environmental, economic and human needs. Eco-municipalities illustrate how economic and environmental choices can work together to benefit the entire community. For example, a wide variety of measures were taken to support the four principles of the Natural Step in Umea, a city north of Stockholm. One of the most notable was the replacement of the municipal oil-burning heating plant to one that burns solid waste. The municipality reduced fossil fuel consumption by about 90%, and became a world model for this type of heating plant. It is important to note that these same four principles of the Natural Step have been adopted in the United States by the American Planning Association (APA -www.planning.org.), which represents 37,000 practicing planners, officials, and citizens involved with urban and rural planning issues. The objective of the APA is to encourage planning that will meet the needs of people and communities more effectively. This fall, 2005, Ashland and Washburn, WI became the first two cities in the United States to adopt these four principles as guidelines for decision-making, thus becoming the first two eco-municipalities in the U.S. Adopting these principles does not necessarily mean a large number of instant, radical, or costly changes for these communities, since the principles encourage the reduction of certain kinds of practices, not necessarily their instant elimination. What would it take for Duluth to become the third eco-municipality in the U.S? There are a number of factors pointing favorably in this direction. Duluth's Mayor Herb Bergson has met several times with Torbjorn Lahti and visited Duluth's Sister City in Sweden this past summer, learning more about eco-municipalities. The head of the Duluth-Superior Eco-Industrial Committee, Ralph Loomis, also participated in the Sister City trip and extended his trip to Sweden to visit a model municipal heating system and other projects guided by the four principles. On the local scene, City of Duluth and St. Louis County facilities managers are engaged in a wide variety of energy reduction activities, including the consideration of alternative fuels for Duluth's worst polluter, the steam plant. Duluth participates in the International Cities for Climate Protection project (www.iclei.org ), which "enlists cities to adopt policies and implement measures to achieve quantifiable reductions in local greenhouse gas emissions, improve air quality, and enhance urban livability and sustainability." Duluthians are also actively engaged with the Northeast Region of the state's Clean Energy Resource Team (CERT, www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org/northeast.) Educational projects in the schools across northeastern Minnesota are the primary objective of this group. In addition, the Duluth Green Party recently called for the establishment of a Sustainable Energy Committee. A local chapter of the international group Green Drinks is meeting monthly (www.greendrinks.org). The unique mission of Sustainable Duluth (www.sustainableduluth.zoomshare.com) is to further economic, environmental and social sustainability in Duluth and Western Lake Superior communities. The organization is sponsoring monthly forums highlighting ongoing sustainable practices in the community, such as Cities for Climate Protection, WLSSD, and Louisiana Pacific of Two Harbors. Education and networking are current activities, as the organization develops and creates goals and strategies for action. Using the Sustainable Duluth listserve, the 5 members of sustainability organizations who are already on the list will be reporting monthly on their group's activities. A longer-term goal of the organization is to have the Duluth City Council pass a resolution adopting the four principles of sustainability as priorities for city decision-making, thus making Duluth the third eco-municipality in the U.S. For more information or to be added to Sustainable Duluth listserve, email jskaron@chartermi.net. Comprehensive Planning: What, Why and Potential Challenges By Jane Silberstein, UW-Extension, Community, Natural Resources and Economic Development Educator Forward-looking communities, businesses and people plan for what they want and/or need. It is basic. It has been said, "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail." It is hard to argue with this concept. When a community becomes engaged with planning for its future, people of course want to know what a comp plan is, why it is needed and what are some challenges to expect. A comprehensive is, simply put, an official statement of local government policy regarding the physical development of a community. Most municipal plans cover all dimensions of community: transportation, housing, economic development, natural resources, utilities and community facilities, and so on. The plan sets forth a vision for the future of the community. The power of this vision and probability of its fulfillment depend, in large part, on the extent to which the community participates in its creation. Those who participate will usually embrace the vision. It is such emotional investment that usually assures the realization of any vision. And why develop a plan? There are many reasons. One compelling reason is that broad-based citizen participation helps build community as people work through their differences together and arrive at a common vision. A comprehensive planning process can thus forge community and, when done well, will become an ongoing process responding to change, which we all know is constant. Further, a comprehensive plan can help citizens' understanding of the past, provide a road-map for the future, promote economic development as well as intergovernmental cooperation. While many understand the fundamental reasons for planning, others may fear its implications related to government control. This typically happens when people feel separate from government or underrepresented and/or do not embrace the notion that government regulations are for the "common good." Enter property rights issues. One tool for implementing a comp plan is zoning. Zoning does indeed mandate development standards, for example. However, these regulations are tied directly back to the overall plan for a municipality and are intended to do such things as protect views, infrastructure, transportation systems and access, all of which are important to the value of an individually-owned property. Thus, we can say that comp planning actually works to preserve property value. One other challenge may be inadequate citizen participation in the process. Without a good cross-section of the community as well as a significant number of citizens involved in the process, the plan is less likely to be implemented, since the citizen investment has not been made. It is wise indeed to make sure a community understands the what and why of planning prior to, or near the beginning of, such a process. With this in place, the positive outcomes will likely be many. And, the value of a completed plan to community well being, hope for the future and to an enhanced understanding of the interrelationship and interdependence of all dimensions of community is worth noting, especially as we in this country continue to build a democratic society. A New Super By Joan Logan He appears to be a man with a charming smile and reflective manner. His educational philosophy revolves around kids. How do they learn best? How well fed and warmly clothed are they? Are their homes warm enough? Do they have homes? He has thoroughly acquainted himself with the demographics of Duluth, the process and programs of our schools and what needs to be accomplished. Dr. Keith Dixon, who replaced Julio Almanza as schools superintendent, has already begun to make a place for himself in the community. He writes a column for the Budgeteer News, is doing a monthly program for KDAL radio and has joined Rotary. He hopes to work with the city, county and other such entities to help build a tax base to support the public needs, particularly those whose needs are greatest. The schools themselves are a large community with facilities to share with the city just as the city and county have facilities to share with schools (for example leasing the DECC for hockey). He hopes more and more adults, with or without children, can be brought together within these facilities to build closer community ties. This includes isolated individuals and groups. His role, Dixon says, through listening and trust, is to build consensus and solve problems. Dr. Dixon is an advocate of comprehensive education for all children. Kids need to master the skills needed to become literate, articulate and self-supporting. He believes greatly in the arts, all arts: drawing, drama, theater, music and literature. Certainly technology is part of the curriculum. For example, the school has one computer for every five children. Even the yearbooks are done on the computer. One of his greatest concerns, according to Dixon, is to unify the programs and curriculum from school to school. "Our buildings shouldn't be competing with each other," he says. If a creative and innovative program tests well at one school, the others should also have access to it. What is taught and how at the east of Duluth should be available in the west and vice versus. If the district were state mandated, and only then, to teach Intelligent Design, a Conservative Party proposal, Dixon would offer it with a Comparative Religion class but not in the science program as promoted by conservatives. The "no Child Left Behind" currently mandated across the country by the Bush administration makes sense conceptually and the "new normal" makes clear what kids should know and what skills they need to master. However, the results of the testing measurements are different each year because each year brings a different set of kids with differing skills and backgrounds. As well, each year the bar is raised higher and higher setting some kids up for failure. Furthermore, the state of Minnesota is providing less and less money to fund the programs, he says. Dixon recently attended a conference at which the speaker, a senator, reported that Minnesota is 22nd in the nation for educational spending but fifth in wealth, pointing to a discrepancy in priority funding. When asked about environment, Dixon believes it to be a vital factor in learning; that schools must be safe and kids must behave. Children aren't born evil when coming into the world. Behavior is learned so kids need to learn how to treat others with civility, not harassment, threats or lack of respect. Closing schools? He doesn't yet know. First, an assessment must be made of space issues and life safety needs, and then he'll work toward a district-wide comprehensive plan. "closing schools is difficult but works best when there is a gain at some level, not just all loss" he adds. Enrollment decline is a nation wide trend, one that has had a serious effect in Duluth. Next year, he reports, enrollment will be down 300 students. Only 1/3 of Duluth homes have children enrolled in school, 2% are in parochial schools on average (a figure consistent with past years), and 8 to 10% attend charter or out of district schools (i.e. Hermantown), percentages which haven't changed much. Dixon's agenda is a busy one. He and Eric Kaiser have recreated the Quality Steering Committee of Unions, Administration, Board, teachers and other staff to problem solve and offer recommendations. He has initiated Spending an Hour with the Superintendent, hosting three meetings for community and schools at Central, Denfield and East beginning November 7 at Central. Everyone is welcome. Also, he took part in the Race, Culture and Achievement Gap Summit. Particularly, the new superintendent wants to be available in the schools and community. "I have children of my own and these children are just like my own, as well," he remarked on television recently. More than anything, Dixon is worried about students graduating into minimum wage jobs, having potential jobs eliminated by outsourcing, and losing pensions and health care. "We've lost sight of the common good, the need to survive with affordable housing, health care, and a living wage." In speaking with him, one senses his sincerity. Dixon tells a story of a couple he knows well, and their young son. Both parents work two jobs, four jobs in all and all at slightly above minimum wage. This they did for their child, for a place to live, and food to eat. This they did, making sure one of them was with him for all but 20 minutes of each day. And yet the day came when someone fired a gun and that gun shot occurred during those 20 minutes, just 20, when the parents couldn't be with their child. The young boy did not survive. Is this a reason for re-examining our social system? Keith Dixon believes so. Thanks to Joan Logan for both writing this piece and for applying her expert eye to the rest of this issue of Common Sense. Have you paid your dues? DPPA dues, that is. Please check the address label on this copy of Common Sense and see if the membership information in the top line indicates a year has passed since you last paid. By keeping your membership up to date you help DPPA focus on issues like the ones you see in this newsletter - Thank You! These articles are retained on the web for historical interest and do not necessarily reflect the views or goals of DPPA today.