Public policy is created from the linkage between the expected outcomes of Planning and Zoning decisions, building codes and traffic plans. Based on the responses of proposed project developers and proponents, their project justification rests heavily on the notion of “economic development” espoused by our elected officials. The source of that economic development, they say, is to be achieved through an increased property tax base and jobs.
Sounds good. A simple ‘take some land, decimate it, add some buildings and hardscape for parking.’ There may be some additional traffic as a result of the development. A big deal? Yes, today it is.
Today, open land exists in small, isolated parcels. Those parcels appear to be limited. It is safe to say that we are at a tipping point. Can we withstand one more development or paved surface or the loss of one more acre of open space?
We all have our opinions. Should our public policy be based on opinions, or yesterday’s analyses based on even older data probably calculated in a pre-computer age?
How can we balance tomorrow’s public policy and our expectations for quality of life? How do we get answers to whether we have outlived old beliefs that property tax on new developments will pay for those new developments over their lifetime, as seen through the lens of their impact on the overall community?
Our officials need to have tools and techniques that enlightened communities use. We have to embrace the benefits of life cycle costs analysis such as Sustainability Return on Investment and Computer Simulation and Modeling.
These are only tools, so they need to function within a process that is strategic and is able to take the results of these tools and techniques into an informed decision-making process. Sure, these tools may be expensive. That is why I propose that the project proponents pay fees that will cover these costs.
The overall process of public policy development and execution needs to be more open. We, the public, to whom those policies should matter, need to be more engaged. The objective data derived from those tools and techniques can help enlighten us, give us more insight into project cause and quality of life effect.
The plan is to open the closed world of public policy development and implementation to a wider world and give us all a voice.
[Originally posted in October 2015 and still relevant.]
eastport defined 