WUPPDR offers grant possibility for county land use plan Lori Hauswirth, right, associate planner for the Western Upper Peninsula Planning District Region (WUPPDR), presents information about a Kellogg Foundation grant for land use planning to the Keweenaw County Zoning/Planning Commission at their recent January meeting. Commission members pictured, from left, are Robert Rippa, Zoning Administrator Jane Pelto and Commission Chair James Regis. EAGLE RIVER ’Äì The Western Upper Peninsula Planning District Region (WUPPDR) recently offered to apply to the Kellogg Foundation for a grant to assist Keweenaw County in developing a county-wide land use plan. The plan would not be a "comprehensive" plan but a "thorough land use plan," that WUPPDR planners estimate would take about 15 months to develop. Some township land use planning committee members advised caution, noting that even if the county authorizes WUPPDR to apply for the grant, county officials should be open to other proposals of assistance with their land use planning. After hearing from WUPPDR representatives Kim Stoker, planning director, and Lori Hauswirth, associate planner, early this week, the Keweenaw County Zoning/Planning Commission approved a motion to request that the County Board of Commissioners ask WUPPDR to apply for the grant. Lori Hauswirth, WUPPDR associate planner Hauswirth told the Zoning/Planning Board that a Kellogg grant might be available as early as June, 2001, if the county requests that WUPPDR apply for it. The County Board would have to authorize WUPPDR to apply for the grant by their Feb. 13 meeting, since the Kellogg Foundation grant administrators are expected to put out their request for proposals by the end of February or early March, Hauswirth said. The decision on grant recipients would reportedly be made by late April or early May; and, if awarded, the grant money could be available by June. "Our intent is that if we work with the county on the preparation of the application, then we would expect to work with them on the plan," added Hauswirth, who has a degree in planning from Northern Michigan University. Hauswirth said WUPPDR had talked recently to administrators of Kellogg Foundation grants concerning the $25,000 People and Land (PAL) grants for land use planning and learned from them that a follow-up granting opportunity for a larger amount of money and similar guidelines would better fit Keweenaw County’Äôs planning needs. The PAL grants were limited by a project time of eight months, while the new grant opportunity has a longer time period for completing a land use plan. "We want to be sure there’Äôs adequate time ’Äì review time and time for all stakeholders to contribute to the planning process," Hauswirth said. WUPPDR staff also learned from the grant administrators that the Kellogg Foundation’Äôs priorities for recipients of these grants are, in this order, (1) non-profit organizations, (2) educational institutions and (3) governments. Hauswirth said these administrators advised them to partner with non-profit organizations for the grant in order to receive more points for their application. Local non-profit organizations that could partner with Keweenaw County include the Keweenaw Community Foundation, which would serve as the financial agent for the grant; the Keweenaw Tourism Council and the Keweenaw Chamber of Commerce, both of which would be supporters of the application but would not receive funding. Hauswirth said WUPPDR so far has had only preliminary discussions with the Council and the Chamber concerning their possible participation in the application. Kim Stoker, WUPPDR planning director Stoker noted that WUPPDR is "a planning organization that Keweenaw County has been a (dues-paying) member of for approximately 27 years." He said while the dues amount has not increased in 27 years WUPPDR "lucked out" because Hauswirth happened to come across the Kellogg funding that, if granted, would allow them to offer the county more services for land use planning. "We see it as a unique opportunity," Stoker said, "and Keweenaw County is a great place for us to start." Matt Koss, WUPPDR Geographical Information Systems (GIS) specialist, second from right, shows Zoning Planning Commissioners Robert Rippa, left, James Regis, center, and David Latvala a large zoning map of Keweenaw County and explains the types of GIS maps he can produce for land use planning. Stoker introduced Matt Koss, a Geographical Information Systems (GIS) specialist for WUPPDR, who showed Zoning/Planning Board members a large zoning map for Keweenaw County and explained how he could produce computerized maps showing such data as ownership, zoning, lakes and rivers, census information, population projections and land cover. One type of map can be superimposed on another through the computer to allow for more efficient, informed decision-making in the planning process. Last fall Stoker gave each Zoning/Planning Commissioner a copy of the Michigan Society of Planning Officials’Äô publication, Workbook for Preparing or Updating a Master Plan or Growth Management Plan ’Äì an outline of steps to be taken in updating or preparing a community growth management plan. At that time he had explained that Hauswirth would be able to offer technical services and resources to the county in updating their Comprehensive Development Plan. Since then, the Zoning/Planning Commission charged the townships with creating land use study committees to collect data in their townships for updating that plan. All five townships now have committees whose volunteer members have started organizing the data collection, some using an outline presented by Pat Coleman, president of UP Engineers and Architects, Inc., who has also offered to help the county with planning. Stoker said the plan WUPPDR is proposing to the county fits very well with the fact that the townships are already gathering information for planning. Other funding is already available to WUPPDR for furnishing base maps and ownership maps to the townships and for advising the township committees. Stoker said, "The land use plan that you develop, and especially in Keweenaw County with trail access, land access ’Äì all the development pressures that you’Äôre starting to feel ’Ķ It’Äôs really important that this process is handled ’Ķ very carefully, very slowly, and that you have all the public meetings that you need ’Ķ so that this room (in the Courthouse) does not get packed like it did (with) Mt. Bohemia." Stoker added that, hopefully, county residents would attend the township planning meetings and township representatives would report back to the Zoning/Planning Commission. "And that information is going to come back to you through your township representatives, not from people flocking into this room and trying to overrun you with what they want," Stoker said. He noted WUPPDR has also been providing technical assistance to the Common Ground Initiative ’Äì a citizens’Äô planning group that will hold a workshop on Keweenaw County land use planning at 7 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 5, in the Mohawk School. All county residents interested in Keweenaw County’Äôs future are invited to attend. Stoker said while WUPPDR has not yet done a county-wide land use plan, they have been doing planning for six counties of the Western Upper Peninsula. He added he hoped Keweenaw County’Äôs future land use plan could be a model for other counties in the district. However, some county residents said they believed the county should still put out a Request For Proposal (RFP) to independent consultants who might have more professional experience with land use planning, and the county could thus become more familiar with what a land use plan might cost. Said Lac La Belle resident Diana Jones, "They (WUPPDR) came under the guise of providing guidance and now (because of this grant) are in a position to be the planners ’Ķ I think the county should consider receiving bids for similar services from independent sources." Anita Campbell, co-chair of the Grant Township Land Use Planning Advisory Committee, said she thought other non-profit agencies should be considered for partnering with the county on the Kellogg Foundation grant proposal. "I would feel much better if one of those non-profit groups was The Nature Conservancy," Campbell said. "A critical concern is that a lot of people are interested in preserving special areas of the Keweenaw. And what better partner could we have in this grant application than The Nature Conservancy?" County officials had mostly positive reactions to the WUPPDR proposal. Noted David Latvala, Zoning/Planning commissioner, "I think we should keep it as local as possible." Newly appointed Zoning/Planning commissioner Eric Bjorn, who represents the County Board of Commissioners on the zoning board, was enthusiastic about WUPPDR’Äôs offer. "What they’Äôre offering here is unbelievable," he said. "You can’Äôt lose." Bjorn added he believed the county would welcome any consultants who would offer services free for the county. Said Zoning Administrator Jane Pelto, "If the county can get a grant to cover 100 percent of the cost of the project, and we get a final product that is satisfactory to the residents of the county, that will be a good thing." County Board Commissioner Don Keith, who attended the Zoning/Planning Board meeting as an observer, stressed that the land use plan should be a grassroots effort. "At this time (WUPPDR’Äôs proposal) seems to be the best offer brought forward, but I still withhold my final decision until we have more information," Keith said. "My opinion is that the people who should decide the direction of the land use plan should be the grassroots committees that have been formed in the townships ’Ķ I want (the land use plan) to be something that’Äôs grassroots, broad-based and inclusive." Doug Sherk, Eagle Harbor Township deputy supervisor and Land Use Planning Committee co-chair Doug Sherk, Eagle Harbor Township deputy supervisor and co-chair of the Eagle Harbor Township Land Use Planning Committee, said he believed WUPPDR would be able to obtain the grant money but the county should not close its mind to an RFP to "keep the process open." By having a structure for an RFP ’Äì putting into it what the county wants in a land use plan ’Äì the county would be prepared and not lose time should WUPPDR not receive the grant, he said. Zoning/Planning Commission chair James Regis read a letter from Pat Coleman, president of UP Engineers & Architects, Inc., who had been requested to provide the commission with a draft RFP for professional services for a Land Use Plan and Zoning Ordinance. In the letter, Coleman said preparing the RFP would require more information as well as discussion and work with the Planning/Zoning Commission and others involved. "Before developing an RFP," Coleman writes, "it must be determined what final product is desired, the level of detail and study that is required, the time frame anticipated, who will be involved in the process, the level and type of citizen participation (number of meetings, surveys), etc. Having an overall budget in mind is also important. If this is what you are requesting help with, I propose to attend your next meeting to present a draft for your consideration and discussion." Coleman also reminded the board that his land use plan outline is being used by several of the township land use committees for guidance. "I have had the opportunity to discuss the land use plan with the township supervisors in Allouez, Houghton and Grant Townships, with some land use committee members, and with several county board members," Coleman continues. "I can tell you there is strong interest, but not a consensus as to what is desired and the process to be followed. There is agreement that action must be taken. It is unclear to several of the townships what the role of the committees is and how far they need to develop a plan." Coleman adds his informal discussions indicate the need for a leader and coordinator to direct the planning process and the agreement that the land use plan does not have to be a major study, but also the agreement that "the real work is needed in the zoning ordinance revision." Hauswirth and Stoker passed out an outline of a proposed land use plan with a timeline of 15 months, including several public forums and surveying residents. Steps in the process would include: Apply for land use planning grant (March) / Receive funding confirmation (April-May) Work with township planning committees, assisting with data collection and analysis and encouraging public input Collect data/ prepare maps (incorporating township information, analyzing and reviewing with County Planning Commission) Identify issues and opportunities on county-wide basis (4 months), providing for public forums and survey Compose land use goals and objectives (2 months), working with Planning Commission and township committee reps and providing public forums Draft Land Use Plan (3 months), creating map, providing for public forums, public review and revision Final Plan (3 months), with public hearing and adoption by County Planning Commission and County Board of Commissioners and commitment to action The WUPPDR staff members also provided a detailed list of the type of data to be collected by the townships and the county and a list of the GIS maps that would be critical to the land use planning process. ’Äì Michele Anderson February 3, 2001