This session will share successes (and a few not-so-successful) attempts for gathering public input at public forums, planning charrettes and other venues. How do you get residents to attend? How do you gather useful feedback? How to you ask the “right” questions to get at the information you need for your planning project?

1. Public
Participation
SUBTITLE: HOW TO COLLECT DIVERSE
AND USEFUL INFORMATION
MAPD ANNUAL CONFERENCE
JUNE 15, 2017 10:30 A.M.

2. WAR
STORIES
(SUB-SUB-TITLE)
2

3. Who are we? 3
 Michelle Collette, Interim Land Use
Director/Town Planner, Town of Groton
 Daphne Politis, Principal,Community
Circle
 Maren Toohill, Planning
Administrator/Permit Coordinator, Town
of Littleton
 Judi Barrett, Executive Director,
Plymouth Regional Economic
Development Foundation

4. Why are we here?
 Public Participation
 Before
 During
 After
 Inclusive Planning
 The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
4

5. The Groton
Story
CAPITAL
IMPROVEMENT NEEDS
+ DEBT OVERRIDE =
NO
5

6. “Preaching to the Choir”
but which choir?
6

7. “Use it up, wear it out,
make it do, or do
without!”
• Needs Survey – mailed to all
households with annual
census requesting a
response from people 60
and older
• COA convened six focus
groups with 5-6 people in
each group
• COA Planning Committee
worked with EOEA, visited
other senior centers, and
prepared needs assessment
• COA appointed a Feasibility
Study Committee
7
Before

8. 8

9. Public
Outreach
 Town Meeting voted for feasibility
study funds to evaluate three
public buildings
 ADA training for employees and
volunteers at Senior Center
 COA Director conducted 16
information sessions from January
– April 2016 at multiple locations,
weekdays, weeknights, and
Saturdays
 Saturday morning working session
(with food!) facilitated by local
attorney
 Town Meeting voted to fund final
design and bid specifications/plans
9
During

10. Why?
 Debt-exclusion
ballot question
defeated at
municipal
election – 57%
no, 43% yes
10
After

11. 11
After-After

12. Finding the
Difficult-
to-Reach
12

13. What makes someone “difficult
to reach”?
 Too busy
 Negative attitude
 English is not first language
 Comes from non-
participatory culture
 Difficulty getting there
(elderly, youth, low income,
minority, people with
disabilities)
• Provide multiple options,
including different times of day,
on-line
• Clear explanation of purpose,
make participation meaningful,
built trust
• Bilingual materials,
interpretation
• Work with formal and informal
leaders to explain process and
purpose of participation
• Go to where they are
13

14. Why Bother trying to reach the
“difficult to reach” ?
 Democratic process implies inclusion
 Gain support for planning initiatives
 Opportunityfor community building
 Excluding members of society leads to
marginalization
 It’s the right thing to do
14

15. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Leave Town Hall
Neighborhood walk with townofficials
Southbridge, MA
Making cable TV show withresident voices
Holden, MA
15

16. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Go to where they are
Focus Group held in Spanish @ Social Service Agency
Southbridge, MA
Evening Basketball Game
Southbridge, MA
16

17. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Go to where they are
Luncheon, Senior Center
Millbury,MA
High School: Visioningwith students
Amherst,NH
17

18. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Go to where they are
Senior housing
Roxbury,MA
Pizzeria,popular hang-out place for
undocumented Brazilian residents
Acton, MA
18

19. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Provide on-line opportunities
Social Media
On-line surveys
Webpage
19

20. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Join or create town events
Master Planning Booth at town event,
Lexington,MA
Playback Theater event, Saturday night
Southbridge, MA
20

21. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Join or create town events
Feedback stationoutside Crafts Fair
Tyngsborough,MA
Event held in vacant storefront
Southbridge, MA
21

22. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Recognize cultural and
linguistic barriers
Interpreters at Publicmeeting
Chinatown, Boston, MABi-lingual Meeting flyer
Methuen, MA
22

23. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Targeted invitation to participate
Youth representative at Round Table discussions
Fall River,MA
Focus Group, members of the Indian Community
Acton, MA
23

24. Examples of how to reach
“difficult to reach”:
Make participation meaningful
Provide easy to understand
information
24

25. The
Littleton
Story
THE QUEST FOR
BALANCED DEVELOPMENT
25

26. 0 26

27. The
Northborough
Story
YOU CAN’T MAKE THIS STUFF UP
27

28. Before
 Old, tired,
disorganized
Zoning Bylaw
 Split lots
 The Industrial
district that
couldn’t …
 Divided
permitting
28

29. Before
 Contract & scope
1. Implement master plan land use policies
2. Get Town boards on the same page
3. Work with Zoning Subcommittee
4. Write new Zoning Bylaw
5. Make everyone happy
6. Assumption: 32 meetings
29
Planning Board
Prediction:
“You’ll never need
32 meetings to do
this job.”

30. During
 Planning Board-
ZBA turf war
 Building
inspector
30

31. During
 Many wars
Main Street
Mixed uses
Gateways
Housing
Elephant in the
room
31

32. After
 Zoning passed!
 The facelift
begins!
 So does World
War III . . .
32
57 meetings later …

33. After-After
 Town Meeting rescinds
multifamily use east of
downtown
 ZBA denies two
multifamily special
permits because they
thought it was too
dense, yet the developer
met the MF
requirements in the
zoning district
33

34. The
Elephant
34
 The Industrial district
that couldn’t …
 Wegman’s!
 Use variance:
670,000 sq. ft.
commercial space
 382-unit very
friendly
comprehensive
permit

35. Discussion!
35