Grants: Land Use

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Bay County Farmland Preservation Program

Oct 2005

This project coordinated and developed a Farmland Preservation Program for Bay County. Led by a steering committee consisting of both rural and urban interests, this project established the mechanism by which Bay County can potentially preserve high quality farmland through a variety of market mechanisms such as the purchase of development rights. Currently, many farmers are facing escalating lad prices and pressure to sell their land to developers, which can result in “urban sprawl”, loss of community character, and adverse environmental consequences. This project help Bay County plan for the protection of high quality areas, while at the same time identify areas where development may make sense.

Urban and Community Forestry/Saginaw Bay Watershed Region

Jun 2005

This project, developed by Global ReLeaf of Michigan, propsed to support and grow a network of communities in the Saginaw Bay Region that are focused on maintaining and establishing urban tree programs. This grant supported quarterly meetings for watershed communites, provision of technical assstance to communites, the utilization for native and local provenance trees for street tree replacement and park plantings, and the engagement of volunteers in tree inventories, tree boards, and tree plantings.

Chippewa Trail

Jun 2005

Proposed by the Chippewa Nature Center, this project provided support for the Chippewa Trail which was constructed adjacent to the Chippewa Nature Center and City of Midland property and connects Downtown Midland with the Pere Marquette Rail-Trail. This project was built on recommendations published in Saginaw Bay Greenways Collaborative’s Vision of Green report. This trail includes interpretive stations that discuss economic, environmental, and community issues related to the area that the trail traverses.

Tittabawassee River Watershed Priority Conservation Land Assessment

Oct 2004

The Little Forks Conservancy developed a green infrastructure based strategy for the identification of priority conservation lands within the Tittabawassee River Watershed. A steering committee made up of members of land conservancies working in this region provided project direction and input based on the working priorities and strategies employed by their respective organizations, while facilitation and strategic visioning was guided by members of the National Park Service RTCA program. The development and need for a green infrastructure based strategy was driven by the diverse needs of these conservancies and the need for a cooperative, systemic approach to resource protection in the Tittabawassee basin. Utilizing the principles of green infrastructure, a strategy was developed that allowed regional conservation organizations to evaluate potential protection projects against an overall planned preservation framework while taking into account relative risk of development. Such a strategy can be used on a broad scale to target the most logical properties to protect, and on a much smaller scale for a detailed site analysis of individual ecoblocks. Geographic Information Systems and other planning information systems, utilized in conjunction with the goals and operating strategies of the collaborating organizations, were the predominant tools used in creation of this strategy.

Green Infrastructure GIS Development

Oct 2001

This project was a subset of three ongoing projects in the Saginaw Bay region: Saginaw Bay Greenways Collaborative, Ducks Unlimited Habitat Evaluation Network (HEN), and associated planning at East Central Michigan Planning & Development Region. The project created three Geographic Information System (GIS)layers for the 22-couty Saginaw Bay Watershed. To aid regional planning, these layers are be identified as Conservation and Recreational Lands, Part 361 Agricultural Easements, and Water Bodies.

Pere Marquette Rail Trail Event (Spring 2002)

Sep 2001

The Little Forks Conservancy is held this event to highlight conservation values associated with land and water resources adjacent to the Pere Marquette Rail Trail in Midland County The event was designed to bring awareness to the land use surrounding the trail . The project discussed the importance and opportunities available for additional land conservation to enhance the rail trail and the community’s quality of life. Six to ten educational stations, discussing a variety of topics, were located along the trail on the day of the event.

Saginaw Bay Greenways Collaborative

May 2001

This project developed a greenways vision plan for Bay, Midland and Saginaw Counties that can be eventually expanded watershed-wide. Similar to efforts conducted in Northwest Michigan and Southeast Michigan, the formation of a greenways vision involved an extensive public involvement process whereby information was gathered and analyzed regarding existing and future non-motorized transportation facilities as well as cultural, recreational, environmental, economic, developmental and agricultural resources. Geographic Information Systems databases were utilized, allowing for the analysis of information gathered, and the establishment of alternative greenways network scenarios, highlighting key properties and corridors. A complete public involvement education plan was developed. Partners included Little Forks Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited, Saginaw Basin Land Conservancy, Bay, Midland & Saginaw County Planning and Parks, Bay and Midland Area Community Foundations, MSU, Midland Conservation District, National Park Service, The Conservation Fund and others.

Bay County Fiscal Impacts & Public Education Process

Apr 2001

This project consisted of a fiscal impacts analysis of the proposed Bay County land use build-out analysis that was completed by Bay County using WIN funding. This project developed the accompanying fiscal (cost) report to the build-out analysis, and developed a system (presented through workshops) that taight community leaders how to perform this analysis on smaller, development specific projects. The project provided citizens and governments with broader knowledge about the long-term fiscal impacts of planning, zoning, and development activities and decisions. The project and analysis system were designed in such a way that the methodology is easily transferrable throughout the region.

Conservation Development Workshop

Mar 2000

Conservation-type development has been a growing interest for the WIN Land Use Task Group. WIN has sponsored tour of conservation development projects, and task group members have developed model conservation design guidelines and ordinances, and prepared the Conservation Development Recognition Program. This project supported a one-day workshop for developers realtors, lenders and engineers discussing the benefits of conservation design. Through a number of speakers and hands-on experiences, this worshop assisted participants in learning the benefits of conservation design.

Mapping of Existing “Tri-County” Trails

Nov 1999

The project developed GIS maps of all trails in Saginaw, Bay, Midland and Genesee Counties. The maps were shared with all trail organizations, appropriate government agencies, and have been incorporated into the regional GIS database.

Regional Cooperation for Efficient GIS Development

Oct 1999

The project created a Regional GIS (Geographical Information Systems) Coordinating Council, inventoried existing GIS data sets, developed regional standards for new data that is acquired, integrated existing data sets, and shared them with interested groups and agencies across the region. This initial effort was focused on the Tri-County area, with the plan to include other watershed counties in the future. Project partners included the Land Information Access Association and East Central Michigan Planning and Development Region.

Bay County Build Out Analysis

Oct 1998

Bay County has experiencing rapid growth in its southern sections. The County used the “build out analysis” to analyze land use and growth patterns. Build out analysis is a new tool which shows what an area of land will look like if it all building permitted by existing zoning is constructed. The County used the analysis, in partnership with developers, townships, municipalities, and farm organizations, to plan for future growth.