MAPC Policy Summit: Equitable Development

From the MAPC:

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council and MetroFuture present a policy summit on some of the region's most critical development issues, viewed through the lenses of equitable development, sustainability, and smart growth.  Following an opening plenary, issue-specific breakout sessions will cover impact fees, housing choice, our aging population, and making our plans into reality. The event takes place on Tuesday morning, Oct. 23 in Boston.

Participants will learn about different perspectives, new research, and will contribute to strategies for advancing these issues.  Outcomes of the day will inform legislation to be filed on Beacon Hill, model by-laws to be considered by municipalities, and recommendations for actions by the private sector.

These conversations are important steps in the implementation of MAPC's MetroFuture plan for Metro Boston's growth and development through 2030, which was ratified at a Boston College Citizen Seminar earlier this year. The summit is designed to continue the civic engagement that was the hallmark of MetroFuture's development.

Participants in the summit will choose one area to explore in a focused breakout session, although everyone will receive a summary of key points and emergent ideas in all four topic areas.  Issues include:

Impact Fees
Developers, conservationists, municipal officials, and others struggle to encourage necessary development while at the same time addressing the impacts created by it. Might impact fees be one way to address the regional impacts of development?

Housing Choice
Metro Boston has a diverse population with a wide variety of housing needs and preferences. However, we are not providing all of our residents with affordable, accessible housing.  This is made worse in the Metro Boston region because we continue to lack a sufficient housing supply.


Our Aging Population
Metropolitan Boston and many of its communities will see significant increases in their senior populations in coming decades.  In fact, in the region overall, age cohorts over 55 are expected to increase by roughly 75%.  How can greater Boston most effectively prepare for the needs and preferences of the growing older population?


Making Plans into Reality
In order for plans to become reality, Massachusetts must develop mechanisms to ensure consistency among master (and other) plans, zoning bylaws, and development decisions. Massachusetts also needs ways to ensure that local plans and actions support statewide and regional goals.


MAPC Policy Summit
Tuesday,
October 23, 2007
Omni Parker House
60 School St., Boston

Registration:
8:00 a.m.
Policy Summit: 8:30-11:00 a.m.
Breakfast will be served!

Register at the MAPC Web site.