Creating a community-driven land use plan is an important step communities can take towards developing the necessary tools to help guide future decision making regarding their lands and resources. With an established plan in place, community leaders will have a roadmap that guides where and how certain types of developments, such as housing, can occur, and identifies areas where critical protections should be implemented. When considering today’s ever-evolving industrial and environmental landscape, now more than ever communities could benefit from tools that promote sustainable and resilient development.
We have had the opportunity to create land use plans for a number of our clients, including Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek. Each community that we work with has a unique vision, and it is essential that their plans produce actionable steps to guide future development in alignment with their distinct values and goals. Plans contain everything from broad community input on development goals, to detailed zoning and lot plan maps. By nature, these plans are living documents, and as such can grow and change alongside the community as needed.
We combine our planning and GIS expertise with consistent community engagement and direction to create land use plans with action-oriented implementation strategies. These projects required a lot of hard work and dedication to meet pre-established goals , but with the help of Elders, leadership, and community members, we deliver plans to each community that are based on their individual values, provide guiding steps for the future, and can be used to address current needs like housing and economic development. To close off Bingwi Neyaashi Anishinaabek’s plan in 2022, we printed high-quality, large format hardcover copies of their land use plan; a beautiful reminder for the community of the time and effort they invested into their future.
In visiting our clients since these projects, it has been exciting to see everyone’s hard work being put into action. Miigwetch to all of the communities who have trusted and allowed us to be a part of these important projects!
