Initiative: Master Plan Implementation

Cascade Township, in partnership with residents and various planning committees, developed a Master Plan to guide the community's next decade. The lengthy guide shapes future zoning and land use for the Township. I've reviewed the plan and submitted considerations regarding feasibility and follow through given my expertise in project management. 

Overall, I am excited about the plan, but my largest concern is the ability to deliver on the goals and objectives, of which there are many and some of them are lofty. I would much rather see realistic and feasible goals/objectives that we can achieve (or even stretch to achieve) over those we are unable to measure and accomplish.

Communication

• The Township published the draft plan and called for feedback from businesses, residents and neighboring communities. No deadline was published for the feedback. I would like to see specific deadlines provided to create formality, urgency, and transparency. 

Considerations

• Page 11 (Preserve and strengthen residential neighborhoods)
  • There's a bullet to "encourage cluster developments and compact choices closer to shopping, dining and other commercial services" followed by another to "encourage new layouts that maintain maximum green space and common open space." How will the Township balance the compact vs. spacious development? Is there currently much room for the development of compact options near the Village area?
• Page 12 (Preserve open spaces and natural areas)
  • The Township is relying heavily on donated land to preserve green space. Will there be any protocol on how donated land or projects will be maintained to incentivize this practice?
  • When encouraging Developers to incorporate parks and recreation amenities into new developments, will there be an authority to see this through?
  • Along with the increase of donated land, does Cascade have the maintenance budget to care for the extra green space (for which we already lean on a lot of volunteers), and are we prepared to lose that taxable land revenue by acquiring it? 
• Page 20 (Pedestrian safety) 
  • There is so much content in this Master Plan about pedestrians and walkability, but that seems to be reserved for the pathways and new pedestrian bridge. Can we also ensure that pedestrian safety is enhanced (even with something like a beautiful elevated/over-street bridge to allow for regular traffic flow) to connect pedestrians from one side of Cascade Road to the other near 28th + Cascade Road, where we have ice cream shops and pedestrian incidents
    
    

Summary of Public Input & Surveys

• Public Feedback + Priority: Not raising taxes
• In addition to current millages, Cascade Township will be asking for a parks millage to help address the issue of the lack of maintenance. The community will need education on the need, purpose, and intended use. How will this millage differ from the donations to the Green Space Preservation Fund or new Parks and Recreation Fund?
• Public Feedback + Priority: Protecting personal safety
  Perceptions of decreased personal safety. With the KCSO no longer updating the quarterly dashboard on the Cascade website, could they host regular community updates at the Wisner Center? They meet with some HOAs, but otherwise, this contributes to a perception by residents that crime may be worse than it is in their backyard. 
• Public Feedback + Priority: Affordable housing
  The lack of sub $400K homes in this area is recognized and one reason some of the school districts are unable to grow enrollment. However, that also seems to be at odds with how some view the community. What is the reality of bringing affordable, entry-level housing to Cascade, and where? Grand Rapids Township recently experienced public uproar over the proposed addition of apartments or condos off of Knapp Street, which many folks seemed to say was unwelcome in their backyard, and would create even worse traffic issues. Traffic concerns also seem to be a problem within the public input. How will Cascade Township realistically navigate this?

Finally, it "recommended" to have a more clear and defined development plan. This should be mandatory based on how much time and budget and effort went into establishing this plan. 

Who will establish and manage this? What will it look like internally as well as for residents to see how we are progressing or sticking to the plan?