The Northeast Ohio Application Consoritum worked together with subject matter experts to develop a set of priorities for our Sustainable Planinng. The priorities are categorized to demonstrate their alignment with the Sustainable Communities Partnership's Six Livability Principles:

Click on the category title to view the more detailed set of priorities.

Enhance Economic Competitiveness

• The Consortium first developed a set of detailed priorities and then condensed the priorites to the critical points
• Identify and leverage critical industry clusters
• Support efforts to cultivate a 21st century workforce to lift up economically disadvantaged communities
• Engage residents and businesses in planning that establishes Northeast Ohio as a place of choice to live and work
• Coordinate land use planning to foster a sustainable tax base in all communities through ongoing collaboration and dialoge across political boundaries

Coordinate Polices and Leverage Investment 

• Establish a set of shared policies, priorities that incorporate a holistic, sustainable view of development alternatives to guide local action
• Leverage existing planning expertise and institutionalize a network to facilitate ongoing collaboration and dialogue across functions and political boundaries
• Establish a repository of state and federal investments in the region
• Plan infrastructure growth and reinvestment to align with optimal population and economic patterns
• Develop a planning protocol based on teh EPA's smart growth principles

Support Existing Communities

• Identify all sources of investment in communities and increase alignment of housing, transportation, land use, infrastructure &environmental priorities and policies among agencies
• Incorporate long-term analysis in all urban, suburban and rural planning that looks beyond trends and projections to better understand the true impact of decisions
• Inventory assets of the built environment to develop a plan for restoration
• Create incentives for “fix-it-first” strategies and development

 Value Communities and Neighborhoods

• Identify, document and celebrate the distinctive assets and legacy of place for each community
• Increase incentives for mixed use and higher-density development
• Create criteria to evaluate the needs of existing neighborhoods and communities in the context of specific growth scenarios; implement strategies for “right-sizing”
• Develop a region-wide toolbox to inform planning decisions and support the implementation of policies that can be leveraged locally, such as land banking

 Provide More Transportation Choices

• Systematically link land use, housing and transportation policy and planning
• Encourage transportation policy that drives clustered development
• Create land use patterns that support the use of mass transit and non-motorized transportation to reduced VMT and greenhouse gases
• Improve reach, accessibility and appeal of mass transit for all ages and incomes
• Proactively link multimodal transportation for leisure, commuting and inter-regional travel
• Minimize spatial mismatch of housing and jobs, especially for low-income and minority communities
• Expand the “Ride Share” model to create a regional, multimodal online transportation portal

Promote Equitable, Affordable Housing

• Adopt a “fix-it-first” housing strategy that minimizes blight and creates affordable alternatives for all income brackets
• Provide mobility counseling for low-income residents to promote zip codes of opportunity
• Implement strategies that facilitate aging in place for seniors
• Affirmatively further fair housing (AFFH) initiatives and support the development of housing opportunities near jobs, especially for lower incomes
• Support housing strategies that prioritize the proximity of mixed use development and multi-modal transportation centers
• Create a comprehensive Housing Information System to increase the transparency of regional affordable housing and home maintenance alternatives

Preserve and Restore Natural Systems

• Establish watershed-based planning processes
• Incentivize innovative land use strategies for environmental protection and restoration that promote equitable, health-oriented economic development
• Identify issues of environmental use, protection and restoration that will benefit from regional policy and guidelines