495/MetroWest Development Compact Plan Citizen Planner Training Collaborative Conference. March 17, 2012

Transcription

1 495/MetroWest Development Compact Plan Citizen Planner Training Collaborative Conference March 17, 2012

2 Project Process Local and Regional Priority Areas Growth Scenarios Transportation Investment Categories Implementation Toolkit

3 Where is the study area.

4 Includes 37 Cities and Towns and spans multiple RPAs

5 495/MetroWest Development Compact Plan Project Process Review of Previous Plans and Studies Local Meetings Community-Level Public Meetings First Round of Regional Forums Assessment and Identification of Regional Priorities Second Round of Regional Forums Project Conclusion and Finalize Plan

6 Project Process Create a shared framework for state, regional and local strategies for development, land preservation and infrastructure investments Encourage Regional Context for Planning Raise Awareness of Commonalities and Differences in Land Use Goals

7 Project Process Uses a Local Perspective to Identify:

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12 June Forums Westborough and Boxborough

13 June Forums

14 June Forums Presented city or town maps along with maps of neighboring municipalities Participants provided guidance on regional priorities and investments Land Use Environmental Resources Environmental Justice Water Resources Transportation Resources Agricultural and Historical Resources

15 What We Heard Focus on existing commercial/industrial areas Prioritize redevelopment/reuse of underutilized/vacant facilities Improve key interchanges and intersections Build around regional train stations Rectify lack of transit Importance of farms and orchards Open space has both habitat and scenic/social value Address housing needs And much more

16 PDA and PPA Roundtables Meetings with professionals in the preservation and development fields Goal: Additional input and expertise regarding identified priorities and regional screening Participants: State officials, land trusts, real estate and development professionals (housing and commercial), transportation planners, civil engineers, conservation professionals, and others

17 November Presentations Worcester and Framingham

18 November Presentations Distributed Growth Scenario Regional Priorities Growth Scenario

19 November Presentations

20 Locally Identified Priority Areas

21 Local Priority Development Areas 293 Local PDAs 29,800 acres Average: 102 acres 140,500 existing jobs (35% of Corridor total) 10 employees per acre (average) Employment capacity: 204,000 jobs Existing Land Use, Local PDAs with acreage Vacant Developable Land, 11,700 Undevelopable (Wetlands, Open Space, Other), 6,860 Commercial & Industrial, 8,430 Residential, 2,780

22 Local Priority Development Areas 52,000 jobs projected region-wide from years to buildout Only 25% of capacity utilized by 2035 PDA Development Capacity and Projected Employment 250, , , ,000 50,000 New Jobs 0 Local PDA Development Capacity Projected Employment,

23 Local Priority Development Areas Potential for 30,800 new housing units in local PDAs 60,000 units needed region-wide from Not sufficient to house needed workers PDA Development Capacity and Projected Housing Demand 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 Housing Units - Local PDA Development Capacity Housing Demand,

24 Local Priority Preservation Areas 497 PPAs 37,200 acres Average size: 75 acres 166 contain groundwater recharge areas 172 contain Priority Habitat 4,600 acres of agricultural land use At current acquisition rates, would take 124 years to protect all this land

25 Distributed Growth Scenario

26 Distributed Growth Scenario Assume 85% of employment growth occurs in PDAs 45,000 jobs, distributed equally across all PDAs Each PDA achieves 20% of employment capacity

27 Impacts of Distributed Growth 19 cities & towns with more than 1,000 new jobs 1,900 acres of land developed for commercial growth in PDAs Only 6,200 jobs through redevelopment 22,900 new jobs projected in municipalities with no public sewer system Job losses in municipalities with MWRA sewer Average PDA employment density increases to 19 jobs per acre Only 36% of jobs near existing transit

28 Impacts of Distributed Growth 16% increase in the number of trips 21% increase in vehicle miles travelled (up 4.7 million miles/day) Transit share remains steady at 0.6% Large increases in VMT in previously uncongested areas

29 Impacts of Distributed Growth Requests for infrastructure funding will quickly outpace available resources Less money available for maintenance and improvement in existing job centers Few PDAs built to their full capacity; municipalities and state will see less return on investment Few new housing opportunities near employment, shops, services, and transportation

30 Regional Screening

31 Regional Screening There are limited resources - financially, economically, environmentally To better guide investment of these resources, a Regional Screening was performed on the local PDAs and PPAs The screening was based on information and data that supported the six fundamental principles Local priorities will continue to be locations for growth and development and they are recorded on local maps created through this process

32 Regional Screening Regional Priority Areas Regional Screening Local Priority Areas

33 Regional Screening - GIS Geographic Information System (GIS) data used to guide the screening included Developed Land Housing Chapter 40R, 43D and Economic Growth Districts BioMAP 2 Wetlands Floodplains Impaired Streams Populations meeting Environmental Justice Criteria (e.g., income, minority population, etc.) Wellheads Aquifers Surface Water Supply Protection Areas Sidewalks, Shared Use and Bicycling Facilities, Trails, Transit Roadways and Interchanges Farms Prime Agricultural Soils Historic Areas

34 Regional Screening - Themes Downtowns, town centers, and villages, should be centers for development Housing as an element in PDAs was influential in advancing as regionally significant Regional Plan consistency as a guiding principle

35 Regional Screening Rail as a key asset: freight, commuter and abandoned corridors Interchanges as key transportation asset: Capacity to be protected Working farms and farms with prime agricultural soils are assets Connectivity between existing open spaces, clusters of identified PPAs

36 Regionally Significant Priority Areas

37 Regionally Significant PDAs 91 Regional PDAs 16,300 acres Average: 170 acres 110,400 existing jobs (27% of Corridor total) 14 employees per acre Capacity for 10,600 housing units Employment capacity: 109,000 jobs

38 Regionally Significant PPAs 192 Regional PPAs 21,400 acres Average: 111 acres 84 include Priority Habitat 66 include groundwater recharge areas 2,800 acres of agricultural land uses

39 Regional Priorities Growth Scenario

40 Regional Priorities Scenario Assume 85% of corridor employment growth in Regional PDAs 45,000 new jobs in Regional PDAs Housing development focused near town centers and transit

41 Scenario Comparison

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43 Impacts of Regional Priorities 15 municipalities with more than 1,000 new jobs 1,350 acres of land converted to commercial use (600 acres less than Distributed Growth) 18,100 jobs through redevelopment 7,520 new jobs projected in municipalities with no public sewer system 7,000 new jobs in MWRA sewer service area Regional PDA employment density increases to 28.6 jobs per acre (average) 56% of jobs in PDAs near existing transit

44 Impacts of Regional Priorities Supports existing employment centers by prioritizing growth where jobs already exist Leverages and protects previous infrastructure investments Reduces the need for new infrastructure extensions Increases transportation choice for workers and residents BUT Might result in less tax revenue for some cities and towns

45 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments

46 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments These investments aim to: Support the Regionally Significant PDAs Avoid adverse impacts to Regionally Significant PPAs Increase regional transportation choices and incorporate last-mile concepts into design plans Support reductions in greenhouse gas emissions as emphasized by the Global Warming Solutions Act and the GreenDOT initiative

47 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments Categories of Investment Category 1: Commuter and Freight Rail Category 2: Regional Transit Authorities Category 3: Highway Interchanges Category 4: Bridges Source: MetroWest Daily News Source: Wicked Local Source: Bing Maps

48 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments Categories of Investment Category 5: Connector Roadways to I-495 Category 6: Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Connections Category 7: Rail and Roadway Interactions

49 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments Example Example of Category 2: Regional Transit Authorities investment could include: Enhanced service on the MWRTA route 7 between the Framingham commuter rail station and Simarano Drive should be considered to connect employees to the PDA via transit.

50 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments Example Example of Category 3: Highway Interchanges investment could include: At the I-290 and I-495 Interchange, safety and geometric improvements have the potential to reduce crashes and better accommodate merging and weaving movements. Paired with limited expansions in existing capacity, these improvements could reduce overall delay and traffic congestion.

51 Regionally Significant Transportation Investments Example Example of Category 6: Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian Connections investment could include: The Assabet River Rail Trail (ARRT) would provide a shared use path connection between multiple PDAs, including the Tower Street Mill in the Downtown Hudson, Downtown Maynard and South Acton Village.

52 Additional Elements of the Compact Plan

53 Additional Elements of the Housing Compact Plan With the housing gap comes reduced ability to meet affordable and workforce housing needs Actions are recommended to reduce the projected housing gap PDA Development Capacity and Projected Housing Demand 70,000 60,000 50,000 40,000 30,000 20,000 10,000 Housing Units - Local PDA Development Capacity Housing Demand,

54 Additional Elements of the Compact Plan Additional Infrastructure Investment Needs Non-transportation infrastructure needs were cited as critical Actions are proposed for Water and Wastewater resources and for related data needs

55 495/MetroWest Development Compact Plan Web-Based Implementation Toolkit

56 Toolkit Overview Chart