2009-Annual Town Report - Laserfiche WebLink

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i Report of the Planning Department i . To the Honorable Board of Selectmen and Citizens of the Town of Mashpee ; Y" During 2009 the Planning Department continued to provide Town boards, developers and residents with the highest quality planning advice and standards, and was able to begin work on the update of the Town's Comprehensive Plan, due to the hiring of William Newton as a half- time Assistant Planner on May 18. In addition Tom Mayo remains physically in the Planning Department office and able to provide office coverage and field some inquiries, as well as having committed to helping with several elements of the Comprehensive Plan. However, our primary work involved managing the Planning Board's regulatory process, along with similar staff support to the Historic District Commission, and dealing as well as we can with the day-to-day requests of other departments, boards, developers and the public. After having lost the Planning Board's long-time Chairman Beverly Kane in late 2008, the May election brought new Board member Mary Waygan and Associate Member John Cotton. Al Wickel did a fine job on the Board between Ms. Kane's resignation and the May election. A further update of the Town's Open Space Conservation and Recreation Plan was begun at the suggestion of the State, which will extend for an additional two years (until October 2015) the Town's qualification for state LAND (formerly Self-Help) and PARC (formerly Urban Self- Help) grants, as well as federal Land & Water Conservation Fund grants for open space purchases and development of outdoor recreation facilities. I With the help of a State LAND grant received through the Department's efforts, the Conservation Commission was able purchase the Shields property on Meetinghouse Road as an addition to the Mashpee River Woodlands Conservation Area. A parking lot and trail has now been developed on the property, which has been named for the late Conservation Commission stalwart John Johansen. Regarding the update to the Town's Local Comprehensive Plan, originally adopted in 1998, a draft Open Space element has been completed, along with a preliminary draft of the Human Services element. Bill Newton has completed work on a draft Affordable Housing element. In addition, we developed and are distributing a new Comprehensive Plan Public Opinion Survey both in paper form through various outlets, and electronically through the Town's web site (with great assistance from Tom Mayo). The survey results will help guide us in our work with the Planning Board on the Comprehensive Plan update. Work on the Plan will proceed over the next few years, with timing dependent on available staffing and other competing work items. We continued to maintain a Town lands database and provided our annual housing, land use and I population estimates and projections. i As staff to the Planning Board, the Department was involved in the review and permitting of a �- number of subdivision and commercial development projects during the year, along with input to the Zoning Board of Appeals when requested, with much of the Department's time again spent on modification requests to previously approved projects such as Willowbend and the SouthCape Village shopping center. Much time was also spent with the Planning Board, Cape Cod Commission staff and Mashpee Commons on initial steps towards a long-term Development Agreement for the remaining portions of the Commons project. F•.Y. 149