JANUARY 2003 MUNICIPAL IMPLEMENTATION TOOL #3: MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING GRO WTH DE VELOPME NT AWARENESS VISI ON OUTREACH Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission
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JANUARY 2003
M U N I C I P A L I M P L E M E N T A T I O N T O O L # 3 :
M U L T I - M U N I C I P A L P L A N N I N G
G R O W T H
D E V E L O P M E N T
A W A R E N E S S
V I S I O N
O U T R E A C H
SOURCES
Chester County Planning Commission, May 1997. Landscapes,Community Planning Handbook: A Tool for Managing Change in ChesterCounty.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, June 1998. Highwayand Transit Corridor Planning: Inter-Municipal CooperationAlternatives, Publication Number 98011.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, 2002. Horizons: TheYear 2025 Land Use and Transportation Plan for the Delaware Valley.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, July 1997. RegionalRecreation Commissions: Inter-Municipal Cooperation Alternatives,Publication Number 97011.
Governor's Center for Local Government Services, 2000. Land Use in Pennsylvania: Practices and Tools.
Montgomery County Planning Commission, 2002. Vision Planning-Shaping our Future: A Comprehensive Plan for Montgomery County.
Municipal Land Use Law, Chapter 291, Laws of N.J., 1997, est. 1975.
New Jersey Future, Newsletter, Summer 2002.
Office of Smart Growth, Department of Community Affairs, March2001. The New Jersey State Development and Redevelopment Plan.
10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, 2002. Planning Beyond Boundaries:A Multi-Municipal Planning and Implementation Manual forPennsylvania Municipalities.
Created in 1965, the Delaware Valley Regional PlanningCommission (DVRPC)is an interstate, intercounty andintercity agency that provides continuing, comprehensiveand coordinated planning to shape a vision for the futuregrowth of the Delaware Valley region. The region includesBucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties, as wellas the City of Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania; and Burlington,Camden, Gloucester and Mercer counties in New Jersey.DVRPC provides technical assistance and services; conductshigh priority studies that respond to the requests anddemands of member state and local governments; fosterscooperation among various constituents to forge aconsensus on diverse regional issues; determines and meetsthe needs of the private sector; and practices publicoutreach efforts to promote two-way communication andpublic awareness of regional issues and the Commission.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning CommissionThe Bourse Building, 8th Floor111 South Independence Mall EastPhiladelphia, PA 19106-2582
Staff contact:Karen Cilurso, Regional PlannerDirect Phone:215-238-2813Email:[email protected]:www.dvrpc.org
Delaware Valley RegionalPlanning Commission
10
Multi-municipal planning allows neighboring municipalities todevelop a shared vision and to coordinate on various planningissues, including growth management, infrastructure provisions,preservation of natural and historic resources and economicdevelopment. It can also help municipalities receive fundingfrom state agencies, address issues that cross municipalboundaries and reinforce the importance of local planning.
Why Does DVRPC Care about Multi-MunicipalPlanning?
This brochure is part of a series being published by theDelaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) insupport of the region's long-range plan, Horizons 2025. ThePlan provides an integrated land use and transportationvision for the region's growth and development through theYear 2025, and specifically seeks to encourage core cityrevitalization, stabilization of older townships and boroughs,growth management in growing suburbs, and preservation ofrural communities and natural areas.
In Pennsylvania and New Jersey, townships, boroughs andcities have the primary authority and responsibility toimplement these policies. This series of brochures aredesigned to introduce local officials and citizens to planning
tools that may be useful in their communities, and to provideintroductory information about these tools. Multi-municipalplanning can be one of the most effective ways to implementthe policies of Horizons 2025.
A variety of sources are available to provide additionalinformation on multi-municipal planning, such as the 10,000Friends of Pennsylvania report, Planning Beyond Boundaries:A Multi-Municipal Planning Manual for PennsylvaniaMunicipalities. That report outlines the process, barriers andcase studies of cooperative planning. DVRPC has alsopublished several reports on multi-municipal approaches totransportation, open space and recreation planning.Interested readers are encouraged to consult the sourceslisted on pages 10 and 11 for more details on the topicssummarized in this brochure.
1WHAT IS MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING?
Governor's Center for Local Government Serviceswww.inventpa.comThe Governor’s Center provides a range of technical andfinancial assistance to Pennsylvania local governments.Located in Harrisburg, this Center is responsible for land useplanning assistance. For more information, call thesoutheastern PA Regional Office at 1.215.560.2374.
10,000 Friends of Pennsylvaniawww.10000friends.org10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania is an alliance of variousorganizations and individuals working to promote sound landuse policies and planning in Pennsylvania in order to reducesprawl and its effects. For more information, call1.877.568.2225.
American Planning Association (APA)www.planning.orgThe APA is the leading organization for planners across thenation. They publish several journals and periodicals eachmonth to keep planners and other professionals up to datewith new trends in the planning field. For more informationon multi-municipal planning, call 1.312.431.9100.
New Jersey Future (NJF) www.njfuture.orgNJ future is a non-profit organization working to promotesmarter land use and improving the quality of life for NewJersey residents. NJF promotes New Jersey as a sustainablestate, recognizing the balance of economic, environmentaland social goals to enhance the quality of life. For moreinformation, call 1.609.393.0008.
New Jersey Office of Smart Growthwww.state.nj.us/dcaLocated in the Department of Community Affairs, the Officeof Smart Growth provides assistance to New Jerseymunicipalities on redevelopment, design, or grantdevelopment. For more information, call 1.609.292.7156.
MULTI-MUNICIPAL RESOURCES
9
2
Multi-municipal planning has long been permitted byPennsylvania's Municipalities Planning Code (MPC)Act 247, of 1968. The "Growing Smarter" amendments, Acts67 and 68, to the MPC in June 2000 made the use of multi-municipal planning easier and more attractive for localgovernments.
For example, local governments are now able to designategrowth areas (and, conversely, areas where growth will notbe encouraged) and to distribute all uses throughout themunicipalities involved in the multi-municipal plan. A keypoint in the 2000 MPC amendments involve curativeamendment challenges to a zoning ordinance. Instead ofbasing the area for a given land use or dwelling type on asingle municipality, the challenge (and defense) mustaddress the entire area of the cooperating municipalities.The 2000 Amendments clearly specify elements that must beincluded in the multi-municipal plan. They are objectives,goals, land use, housing, transportation, community facilities,natural resources, regional impact and a ten-year updatereview.
New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law also provides formulti-municipal efforts. The process for "joint exercise ofpowers of planning and land use control" is outlined insection 40:55D-77. Two or more municipalities may enterinto an agreement to provide for joint administration,planning or zoning. Joint administration may also provide fora regional planning board, a regional board of adjustment,or other joint officials. The regional board must then preparea master plan for the physical, economic and socialdevelopment of the region with elements similar to municipalland use plans, such as the required land use, a statementof objectives and housing elements and optional elementssuch as open space, historic preservation, natural resources,circulation or recycling. As more local municipalities arerealizing the effects of development in neighboring towns,recent planning efforts are now involving several groups ofmunicipalities with either common transportation corridors orwatershed areas. Working cooperatively with neighboringmunicipalities is encouraged through the State Developmentand Redevelopment Plan; while special priority is given tojoint municipal plans for Smart Growth Planning Grants.
ILLUSTRATION #3
LEGAL BASIS FOR MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
This illustration is an example of one of the benefits of multi-municipal planning. The cooperating municipalities pro-activelycreated a regional plan where they were able to target more clustered development to certain areas while maintaining largetracts of farmland and open space.
Targeted higherdensity housing
Borough ofSchwenksville
Preserved open space
3
8
Through recent efforts to combat suburban sprawl andpreserve natural resources, many municipalities have beentaking a pro-active approach to planning and are workingcooperatively with neighboring municipalities to plan forfuture development. What follows summarizes some of thebenefits that multi-municipal planning can bring.
Multi-municipal planning can encourage economicdevelopment. By cooperating, local governments canformulate a consistent and comprehensive strategy foreconomic development, rather than competing for taxrevenues. Because local governments may designate growthareas, they can identify areas where commercial or industrialdevelopment should be encouraged, and provide publicinvestment in these areas to attract developers. This can alsostrengthen existing communities by focusingdevelopment within existing centers, and by concentrating allcommercial and high-density residential growth in these areas.
Multi-municipal planning can preserve farmland andnatural resources. Often, natural features such aswatersheds are more appropriate areas for environmentalplanning activities than political boundaries. Also, byallowing Transfer of Development Rights (discussed later)across municipal boundaries, more farmland and other
natural resources can be preserved. Multi-municipalplanning can save money. Not only can costs of activities,such as developing a comprehensive plan, be shared byseveral municipalities, multi-municipal planning can providethe basis for other service-sharing relationships. Stateagencies often give priority in grant programs and fundingdecisions to multi-municipal planning areas, and often givegreater weight to multi-municipal plans more thanindividual local plans.
Multi-municipal planning can provide additional defenseagainst curative amendments. Municipalities are requiredto provide land for every type of use. Local governmentsthat adopt multi-municipal planning still must provide landfor every use, but not individually. For example, if aborough or township participates in a multi-municipal plan,and the borough has adequate high-density housing, theparticipating communities may agree to plan or zone for allof the additional high-density housing in the township. If theordinance is challenged, the court would evaluate the entirearea of the multi-municipal plan, not just the individualmunicipality, enhancing the rationale for the zoning strategy.
BENEFITS OF MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
ILLUSTRATION #2
In this illustration, development of available farmland and open space in the Township of Perkiomen and LowerFrederick is reflecting the forecasted 56% average population growth in these municipalities by 2025.
Borough ofSchwenksville
Developmentpressures inLower Frederickand Perkiomenhave causedsprawl
7
4
Multi-municipal planning also enables local governments touse other related planning tools in more effective ways. ThePennsylvania amendments address:
· Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) programs, which direct growth into designated areas, allowing conservation of natural or rural areas. In a TDR program, the rights to develop land are separated from the title of the land, and these rights may be sold to landowners in areas designated for growth. Multi-municipal planning enables a larger market area for the development rights to be created, thus enhancing their purchasing potential.
· Tax Revenue or Service Sharing between the governments in the planning area. This can allow municipalities that conserve sensitive land to still benefit from nearby commercial or industrial development.
· Specific Plans provide detailed strategies for non-residential development that supersede zoning and other land use regulations, and can speed up development approvals.
Planning Areas
One of the most important elements of multi-municipal planningis to decide on priority areas that each participating governmenthas in common and what activities will benefit them the most.The decision on what area to focus on is entirely up to theparticipating governments, however, the municipalities must becontiguous. The planning area could be:
· Existing configurations of political jurisdictions - city or borough and surrounding townships or a school district thatalready shares a tax base in the region;
· A natural resource- based area such as a watershed;
· A corridor or an area surrounding a proposed highway expansion, interchange or network;
· An area motivated to preserve viable farmland and/or aquifer recharge capacity by focusing growth in boroughs and villages;
· An area comprised of municipalities that have more commercial and industrial development and municipalities that are more residential, where services can be shared and benefit both.
ILLUSTRATION #1
DECIDING ON A PLANNING AREA
This illustration shows the Village of Schwenksville as it exists today, surrounded by the Townships of LowerFrederick and Perkiomen in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Open Space inSurroundingTownships
Borough ofSchwenksville
5
6
OTHER EFFORTS IN MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
CASE STUDY - CENTRAL PERKIOMEN VALLEY REGIONAL PLAN
First Steps in Multi-Municipal Planning
Municipalities can get started by simply adopting a resolutionauthorizing their participation in a multi-municipal planningprocess. The most important first step is to decide whatthey would like to accomplish. It is a good idea to havecounty planning assistance or a planning consultant for thedevelopment of the multi-municipal plan. A facilitator orprofessional planner can help them reach consensus on goalsand objectives, develop a scope of work and to providerelated technical assistance. Within the resolution of thenewly formed planning committee, a timetable for thedevelopment and adoption of the multi-municipal plan shouldbe clearly defined, as well as implementation agreementsamong all the participating governments. This will ensurequick and decisive steps to put the new plan into place.
Other Efforts in Multi-Municipal Planning
Joint Purchasing Programs
Joint purchasing agreements between boroughs or townshipsis another form of multi-municipal planning. This allowsmunicipalities to benefit from certain economies of scale ineither their purchases or services. For instance, if twoneighboring boroughs are paying for private trash pickup, it
may be costing millions of dollars from each borough'sbudget each fiscal year. With joint purchasing agreements,these boroughs could purchase private trash pickup togetherand pay less.
Joint Zoning
Once a multi-municipal plan has been completed, a jointzoning ordinance may also be prepared. The joint zoningordinance would become the primary implementation tool forthe multi-municipal plan. However, each municipality maystill enact their own zoning ordinance. If separate zoningordinances do remain, each of the participating municipalitiesneed to work together to at least ensure consistency withthe multi-municipal comprehensive plan.
The Central Perkiomen Regional Planning Commissionconsists of seven municipalities in upper Montgomery County,including Upper Frederick, Lower Frederick, Skippack, andPerkiomen Townships, and Collegeville, Trappe, andSchwenksville Boroughs. These municipalities have beenconducting joint meetings for several months, assisted by theMontgomery County Planning Commission, and are in thefirst year of a three-year multi-municipal planning process.As shown in the rendering on the next page, there is a cleardistinction between land use in Schwenksville Borough and inthe surrounding townships. The Borough has a fairly denseland use pattern, with homes, businesses and streets in agrid pattern. Meanwhile, portions of Lower Frederick andPerkiomen Townships are mostly undeveloped, covered byacres of forests and productive farmland. Thesecommunities are aware that there are few areas left in theentire Delaware Valley Region that retain this traditionalpattern of development, a historical village surrounded byfarmland and open space and are taking pro-active steps topreserve the rural character of their municipalities. Theadjacent chart shows the forecasted growth that is expectedfor the Central Perkiomen Valley, while the following threeillustrations provide three scenarios of what exists today,what will inevitably occur with no action at all and what can Source: 2000 Census and DVRPC 2025 Forecasts.
result from cooperative, multi-municipal planning. Creating amulti-municipal plan is in their best interest, as any developmentwill affect each of the surrounding municipalities.
Municipality
Collegeville Borough
* Lower Frederick Township
* Perkiomen-Township
* SchwenksvilleeBorough
Skippack-Township
Trappe Borough
Upper Frederick-Township
Total Central Perkiomen
* Total Study Area
2000 Census
4,628
4,795
7,093
1,693
9,720
3,210
3,141
34,280
13,581
2025Forecast
5,050
8,490
11,000
1,700
14,850
3,510
5,080
49,680
21,190
% Change
9%
77%
55%
0%
53%
9%
62%
45%
56%
5
6
OTHER EFFORTS IN MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
CASE STUDY - CENTRAL PERKIOMEN VALLEY REGIONAL PLAN
First Steps in Multi-Municipal Planning
Municipalities can get started by simply adopting a resolutionauthorizing their participation in a multi-municipal planningprocess. The most important first step is to decide whatthey would like to accomplish. It is a good idea to havecounty planning assistance or a planning consultant for thedevelopment of the multi-municipal plan. A facilitator orprofessional planner can help them reach consensus on goalsand objectives, develop a scope of work and to providerelated technical assistance. Within the resolution of thenewly formed planning committee, a timetable for thedevelopment and adoption of the multi-municipal plan shouldbe clearly defined, as well as implementation agreementsamong all the participating governments. This will ensurequick and decisive steps to put the new plan into place.
Other Efforts in Multi-Municipal Planning
Joint Purchasing Programs
Joint purchasing agreements between boroughs or townshipsis another form of multi-municipal planning. This allowsmunicipalities to benefit from certain economies of scale ineither their purchases or services. For instance, if twoneighboring boroughs are paying for private trash pickup, it
may be costing millions of dollars from each borough'sbudget each fiscal year. With joint purchasing agreements,these boroughs could purchase private trash pickup togetherand pay less.
Joint Zoning
Once a multi-municipal plan has been completed, a jointzoning ordinance may also be prepared. The joint zoningordinance would become the primary implementation tool forthe multi-municipal plan. However, each municipality maystill enact their own zoning ordinance. If separate zoningordinances do remain, each of the participating municipalitiesneed to work together to at least ensure consistency withthe multi-municipal comprehensive plan.
The Central Perkiomen Regional Planning Commissionconsists of seven municipalities in upper Montgomery County,including Upper Frederick, Lower Frederick, Skippack, andPerkiomen Townships, and Collegeville, Trappe, andSchwenksville Boroughs. These municipalities have beenconducting joint meetings for several months, assisted by theMontgomery County Planning Commission, and are in thefirst year of a three-year multi-municipal planning process.As shown in the rendering on the next page, there is a cleardistinction between land use in Schwenksville Borough and inthe surrounding townships. The Borough has a fairly denseland use pattern, with homes, businesses and streets in agrid pattern. Meanwhile, portions of Lower Frederick andPerkiomen Townships are mostly undeveloped, covered byacres of forests and productive farmland. Thesecommunities are aware that there are few areas left in theentire Delaware Valley Region that retain this traditionalpattern of development, a historical village surrounded byfarmland and open space and are taking pro-active steps topreserve the rural character of their municipalities. Theadjacent chart shows the forecasted growth that is expectedfor the Central Perkiomen Valley, while the following threeillustrations provide three scenarios of what exists today,what will inevitably occur with no action at all and what can Source: 2000 Census and DVRPC 2025 Forecasts.
result from cooperative, multi-municipal planning. Creating amulti-municipal plan is in their best interest, as any developmentwill affect each of the surrounding municipalities.
Municipality
Collegeville Borough
* Lower Frederick Township
* Perkiomen-Township
* SchwenksvilleeBorough
Skippack-Township
Trappe Borough
Upper Frederick-Township
Total Central Perkiomen
* Total Study Area
2000 Census
4,628
4,795
7,093
1,693
9,720
3,210
3,141
34,280
13,581
2025Forecast
5,050
8,490
11,000
1,700
14,850
3,510
5,080
49,680
21,190
% Change
9%
77%
55%
0%
53%
9%
62%
45%
56%
7
4
Multi-municipal planning also enables local governments touse other related planning tools in more effective ways. ThePennsylvania amendments address:
· Transfer of Development Rights (TDR) programs, which direct growth into designated areas, allowing conservation of natural or rural areas. In a TDR program, the rights to develop land are separated from the title of the land, and these rights may be sold to landowners in areas designated for growth. Multi-municipal planning enables a larger market area for the development rights to be created, thus enhancing their purchasing potential.
· Tax Revenue or Service Sharing between the governments in the planning area. This can allow municipalities that conserve sensitive land to still benefit from nearby commercial or industrial development.
· Specific Plans provide detailed strategies for non-residential development that supersede zoning and other land use regulations, and can speed up development approvals.
Planning Areas
One of the most important elements of multi-municipal planningis to decide on priority areas that each participating governmenthas in common and what activities will benefit them the most.The decision on what area to focus on is entirely up to theparticipating governments, however, the municipalities must becontiguous. The planning area could be:
· Existing configurations of political jurisdictions - city or borough and surrounding townships or a school district thatalready shares a tax base in the region;
· A natural resource- based area such as a watershed;
· A corridor or an area surrounding a proposed highway expansion, interchange or network;
· An area motivated to preserve viable farmland and/or aquifer recharge capacity by focusing growth in boroughs and villages;
· An area comprised of municipalities that have more commercial and industrial development and municipalities that are more residential, where services can be shared and benefit both.
ILLUSTRATION #1
DECIDING ON A PLANNING AREA
This illustration shows the Village of Schwenksville as it exists today, surrounded by the Townships of LowerFrederick and Perkiomen in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania.
Open Space inSurroundingTownships
Borough ofSchwenksville
3
8
Through recent efforts to combat suburban sprawl andpreserve natural resources, many municipalities have beentaking a pro-active approach to planning and are workingcooperatively with neighboring municipalities to plan forfuture development. What follows summarizes some of thebenefits that multi-municipal planning can bring.
Multi-municipal planning can encourage economicdevelopment. By cooperating, local governments canformulate a consistent and comprehensive strategy foreconomic development, rather than competing for taxrevenues. Because local governments may designate growthareas, they can identify areas where commercial or industrialdevelopment should be encouraged, and provide publicinvestment in these areas to attract developers. This can alsostrengthen existing communities by focusingdevelopment within existing centers, and by concentrating allcommercial and high-density residential growth in these areas.
Multi-municipal planning can preserve farmland andnatural resources. Often, natural features such aswatersheds are more appropriate areas for environmentalplanning activities than political boundaries. Also, byallowing Transfer of Development Rights (discussed later)across municipal boundaries, more farmland and other
natural resources can be preserved. Multi-municipalplanning can save money. Not only can costs of activities,such as developing a comprehensive plan, be shared byseveral municipalities, multi-municipal planning can providethe basis for other service-sharing relationships. Stateagencies often give priority in grant programs and fundingdecisions to multi-municipal planning areas, and often givegreater weight to multi-municipal plans more thanindividual local plans.
Multi-municipal planning can provide additional defenseagainst curative amendments. Municipalities are requiredto provide land for every type of use. Local governmentsthat adopt multi-municipal planning still must provide landfor every use, but not individually. For example, if aborough or township participates in a multi-municipal plan,and the borough has adequate high-density housing, theparticipating communities may agree to plan or zone for allof the additional high-density housing in the township. If theordinance is challenged, the court would evaluate the entirearea of the multi-municipal plan, not just the individualmunicipality, enhancing the rationale for the zoning strategy.
BENEFITS OF MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
ILLUSTRATION #2
In this illustration, development of available farmland and open space in the Township of Perkiomen and LowerFrederick is reflecting the forecasted 56% average population growth in these municipalities by 2025.
Borough ofSchwenksville
Developmentpressures inLower Frederickand Perkiomenhave causedsprawl
9
2
Multi-municipal planning has long been permitted byPennsylvania's Municipalities Planning Code (MPC)Act 247, of 1968. The "Growing Smarter" amendments, Acts67 and 68, to the MPC in June 2000 made the use of multi-municipal planning easier and more attractive for localgovernments.
For example, local governments are now able to designategrowth areas (and, conversely, areas where growth will notbe encouraged) and to distribute all uses throughout themunicipalities involved in the multi-municipal plan. A keypoint in the 2000 MPC amendments involve curativeamendment challenges to a zoning ordinance. Instead ofbasing the area for a given land use or dwelling type on asingle municipality, the challenge (and defense) mustaddress the entire area of the cooperating municipalities.The 2000 Amendments clearly specify elements that must beincluded in the multi-municipal plan. They are objectives,goals, land use, housing, transportation, community facilities,natural resources, regional impact and a ten-year updatereview.
New Jersey Municipal Land Use Law also provides formulti-municipal efforts. The process for "joint exercise ofpowers of planning and land use control" is outlined insection 40:55D-77. Two or more municipalities may enterinto an agreement to provide for joint administration,planning or zoning. Joint administration may also provide fora regional planning board, a regional board of adjustment,or other joint officials. The regional board must then preparea master plan for the physical, economic and socialdevelopment of the region with elements similar to municipalland use plans, such as the required land use, a statementof objectives and housing elements and optional elementssuch as open space, historic preservation, natural resources,circulation or recycling. As more local municipalities arerealizing the effects of development in neighboring towns,recent planning efforts are now involving several groups ofmunicipalities with either common transportation corridors orwatershed areas. Working cooperatively with neighboringmunicipalities is encouraged through the State Developmentand Redevelopment Plan; while special priority is given tojoint municipal plans for Smart Growth Planning Grants.
ILLUSTRATION #3
LEGAL BASIS FOR MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
This illustration is an example of one of the benefits of multi-municipal planning. The cooperating municipalities pro-activelycreated a regional plan where they were able to target more clustered development to certain areas while maintaining largetracts of farmland and open space.
Targeted higherdensity housing
Borough ofSchwenksville
Preserved open space
10
Multi-municipal planning allows neighboring municipalities todevelop a shared vision and to coordinate on various planningissues, including growth management, infrastructure provisions,preservation of natural and historic resources and economicdevelopment. It can also help municipalities receive fundingfrom state agencies, address issues that cross municipalboundaries and reinforce the importance of local planning.
Why Does DVRPC Care about Multi-MunicipalPlanning?
This brochure is part of a series being published by theDelaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (DVRPC) insupport of the region's long-range plan, Horizons 2025. ThePlan provides an integrated land use and transportationvision for the region's growth and development through theYear 2025, and specifically seeks to encourage core cityrevitalization, stabilization of older townships and boroughs,growth management in growing suburbs, and preservation ofrural communities and natural areas.
In Pennsylvania and New Jersey, townships, boroughs andcities have the primary authority and responsibility toimplement these policies. This series of brochures aredesigned to introduce local officials and citizens to planning
tools that may be useful in their communities, and to provideintroductory information about these tools. Multi-municipalplanning can be one of the most effective ways to implementthe policies of Horizons 2025.
A variety of sources are available to provide additionalinformation on multi-municipal planning, such as the 10,000Friends of Pennsylvania report, Planning Beyond Boundaries:A Multi-Municipal Planning Manual for PennsylvaniaMunicipalities. That report outlines the process, barriers andcase studies of cooperative planning. DVRPC has alsopublished several reports on multi-municipal approaches totransportation, open space and recreation planning.Interested readers are encouraged to consult the sourceslisted on pages 10 and 11 for more details on the topicssummarized in this brochure.
1WHAT IS MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING?
Governor's Center for Local Government Serviceswww.inventpa.comThe Governor’s Center provides a range of technical andfinancial assistance to Pennsylvania local governments.Located in Harrisburg, this Center is responsible for land useplanning assistance. For more information, call thesoutheastern PA Regional Office at 1.215.560.2374.
10,000 Friends of Pennsylvaniawww.10000friends.org10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania is an alliance of variousorganizations and individuals working to promote sound landuse policies and planning in Pennsylvania in order to reducesprawl and its effects. For more information, call1.877.568.2225.
American Planning Association (APA)www.planning.orgThe APA is the leading organization for planners across thenation. They publish several journals and periodicals eachmonth to keep planners and other professionals up to datewith new trends in the planning field. For more informationon multi-municipal planning, call 1.312.431.9100.
New Jersey Future (NJF) www.njfuture.orgNJ future is a non-profit organization working to promotesmarter land use and improving the quality of life for NewJersey residents. NJF promotes New Jersey as a sustainablestate, recognizing the balance of economic, environmentaland social goals to enhance the quality of life. For moreinformation, call 1.609.393.0008.
New Jersey Office of Smart Growthwww.state.nj.us/dcaLocated in the Department of Community Affairs, the Officeof Smart Growth provides assistance to New Jerseymunicipalities on redevelopment, design, or grantdevelopment. For more information, call 1.609.292.7156.
MULTI-MUNICIPAL RESOURCES
JANUARY 2003
MUNICIPAL IMPLEMENTATION TOOL #3:
MULTI-MUNICIPAL PLANNING
GROWTH
DEVELOPMENT
AWARENESS
VISION
OUTREACH
SOURCES
Chester County Planning Commission, May 1997. Landscapes,Community Planning Handbook: A Tool for Managing Change in ChesterCounty.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, June 1998. Highwayand Transit Corridor Planning: Inter-Municipal CooperationAlternatives, Publication Number 98011.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, 2002. Horizons: TheYear 2025 Land Use and Transportation Plan for the Delaware Valley.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, July 1997. RegionalRecreation Commissions: Inter-Municipal Cooperation Alternatives,Publication Number 97011.
Governor's Center for Local Government Services, 2000. Land Use in Pennsylvania: Practices and Tools.
Montgomery County Planning Commission, 2002. Vision Planning-Shaping our Future: A Comprehensive Plan for Montgomery County.
Municipal Land Use Law, Chapter 291, Laws of N.J., 1997, est. 1975.
New Jersey Future, Newsletter, Summer 2002.
Office of Smart Growth, Department of Community Affairs, March2001. The New Jersey State Development and Redevelopment Plan.
10,000 Friends of Pennsylvania, 2002. Planning Beyond Boundaries:A Multi-Municipal Planning and Implementation Manual forPennsylvania Municipalities.
Created in 1965, the Delaware Valley Regional PlanningCommission (DVRPC) is an interstate, intercounty andintercity agency that provides continuing, comprehensiveand coordinated planning to shape a vision for the futuregrowth of the Delaware Valley region. The region includesBucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties, as wellas the City of Philadelphia, in Pennsylvania; and Burlington,Camden, Gloucester and Mercer counties in New Jersey.DVRPC provides technical assistance and services; conductshigh priority studies that respond to the requests anddemands of member state and local governments; fosterscooperation among various constituents to forge aconsensus on diverse regional issues; determines and meetsthe needs of the private sector; and practices publicoutreach efforts to promote two-way communication andpublic awareness of regional issues and the Commission.
Delaware Valley Regional Planning CommissionThe Bourse Building, 8th Floor111 South Independence Mall EastPhiladelphia, PA 19106-2582
Staff contact: Karen Cilurso, Regional PlannerDirect Phone: 215-238-2813Email: [email protected]: www.dvrpc.org
Delaware Valley RegionalPlanning Commission
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