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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2022-01-10 Master Plan Implementation Committee Minutes Master Plan Implementation Committee Meeting Minutes January 10, 2022 Attending: (via Google Meet): Members - Jon Strauss (chair), Meredith Barnes-Cook (vice chair), Jay Dowd, Kelly Cormier, George Koehler, Stan Limpert, Sean McDonough. Absent: Chris Nobile; Holly Williams Staff: Andrew Shapiro (Director of Community and Economic Development), Jean Enright (Planning Director) and Dan Beckley (Staff Planner) Call To Order Immediately prior to calling the meeting to order at 5:04 PM, Jon Strauss read aloud a statement regarding the conduct of virtual meetings and public access. Public Comment No public comments were received by either Jon Strauss or Andrew Shapiro prior to the start of the meeting. Approval of minutes for the meeting held on Dec. 13, 2021 Stan Limpert moved to approve the minutes as presented. Jay Down seconded. The vote was 6-0-1 in favor, motion passed. Kelly Coemier did not attend the meeting so abstained. Old Business: Master Plan Implementation Status Report John Strauss discussed that we have begun to fill in the various element categories with status information. We have information in land use, housing, economic development, and transportation. Most if not all of this information has been provided by the staff. Stan mentioned that Meredith Barnes-Cook had done some good work in the physical facilities area, which could be transferred to the website at some point. George Kohler suggested that making this spreadsheet public might be too overwhelming, so we could just keep this to ourselves. John Strauss concurred and said this might just be a working document only for the committee. Kelly Cormier asked how we would differentiate between just providing information about strategies versus giving their status.Andrew Shapiro said that the vast majority of the strategies might be difficult to discuss in terms of completion, and that they might be a work-in-progress for some time. Jay Dowd said we might want to try to highlight those items which need attention. Kelly suggested we could identify items which were "underway" but still need attention. New Business A. MPIC Quarterly Report for 4Q 2021 The committee discussed the draft quarterly report. Kelly Cormier suggested that we needed to be cautious about appearing to support or advocate a project, such as the Royal Crest Redevelopment.Andrew Shapiro said he thought we could use appropriate language to make sure that we were only presenting facts. Both the Mass. DoT and Facilities Master Plan II bullets were removed, and replaced by a bullet which discussed the committee's application of its template to the downtown Master planning activity. Another bulleted item was changed to read "continue to monitor the proposed Royal Crest development project as warranted." Stan Limpert moved to accept the draft quarterly report as amended. Meredith Barnes-Cook seconded. The vote was 7-0. B. MPIC Implementation Website Discussion The committee discussed both the format and potential content of the MPIC implementation status website. Stan Limpert suggested that we might be able to use some of the narrative from the Master Plan itself as introductions to each of the element areas. The committee also discussed when the website should be made public. The consensus was that more work was needed prior to the website going "live." Jonathan Strauss suggested that prior to our next meeting, each of the element groups could work on narratives and strategy updates as inputs to the website. He said he would send out a memo with links and action items. As new materials are developed, they should be sent to Andrew Shapiro who will help with organizing them for the website. Community Development will be the "gatekeeper." Adjournment: Stan Limpert moved to adjourn, and Meredith Barnes-Cook seconded. The vote was 7-0 in favor. The meeting adjourned at 6:10 pm. Next meeting: February 7, 2022 at 5:00 PM..