Balanced Growth
Balanced Growth Program
Rationale for balanced growth and this initiative
Planning by watersheds
Watershed Balanced Growth Plans
Watershed Planning Partnerships
Local government roles
State roles
Conclusions
Balanced Growth is a strategy to protect and restore Lake Erie and its watersheds to assure long-term economic competitiveness, ecological health, and quality of life. The Balanced Growth Program is a voluntary, incentive-based program that has been piloted in Ohio’s Lake Erie basin. It calls for:
• A new focus on land use and development planning in the major river tributary watersheds of Lake Erie. The goal is to begin to link land-use planning to the health of watersheds.
• The creation of Watershed Planning Partnerships composed of local governments, planning agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other parties in each watershed. Participation in these partnerships is voluntary but encouraged by incentives.
• The locally determined designation of Priority Conservation Areas and Priority Development Areas in each watershed.
• The development of suggested model regulations to help promote best local land use practices that minimize impacts on water quality.
• The alignment of state policies, incentives, and other resources to support watershed planning and implementation.
This Planning Framework, which is the guidance document for the Balanced Growth Program, was created as a result of recommendations and the "10 Guiding Principles" of the Lake Erie Protection & Restoration Plan. It builds on many existing watershed initiatives that have received broad community support and will allow the state to promote many other important objectives related to economic competitiveness and quality of life.
Rationale for balanced growth and this initiative
• Lake Erie is Ohio’s greatest natural resource and provides tremendous natural and economic benefits to all Ohioans. It truly is a resource of global significance. As part of the Great Lakes, it is part of an interconnected, natural system with one-fifth of the world’s surface freshwater and many rare ecosystems. These lakes have also been the source of one of the world’s leading economies.
• The citizens of Ohio are stewards of this valuable resource. They must work together in their own communities and in cooperation with other communities throughout the Great Lakes basin, to protect the health of the lake and its ability to sustain economic prosperity in the 21st century.
• Recognizing the critical link between land use and water quality, the Lake Erie Protection & Restoration Plan called for a Balanced Growth Task Force to recommend ways that the State of Ohio can promote sustainable patterns of development.
Planning by watersheds
• The major river watersheds of Ohio’s Lake Erie Basin are appropriate geographic areas for effective land-use planning that addresses growth and development issues transcending county, municipal, and township boundaries, as well as local issues.
• The concept of watershed-scale planning is becoming an accepted approach in Ohio. Indeed, noteworthy collaborations are occurring in watersheds throughout the Lake Erie watershed and the rest of the state. Many local government activities already address watershed issues
Watershed Balanced Growth Plans
• A Watershed Balanced Growth Plan is a framework for coordinated, local decision-making about how growth and conservation should be promoted by local and state policies and investments in the context of watersheds.
• The process is locally driven and voluntary. The state offers incentives for participation.
• The main feature of watershed balanced growth plans is the designation of Priority Conservation Areas (PCAs) and Priority Development Areas (PDAs). Watershed plans are not comprehensive plans.
• PCAs are locally designated areas for protection and restoration. They may be critically important ecological, recreational, heritage, agricultural, and public access areas that are significant for their contribution to Lake Erie water quality and general quality of life.
• PDAs are locally designated areas where growth and/or redevelopment is to be especially encouraged in order to maximize development potential, maximize the efficient use of infrastructure, promote the revitalization of existing cities and towns, and contribute to the restoration of Lake Erie.
Watershed Planning Partnerships
• Watershed Balanced Growth Plans are developed by local Watershed Planning Partnerships.
• Their work needs to be open, inclusive, and focused on consensus-building. Public education and involvement are important parts of the process.
• To assist with coordination and provide state level input, state agency representatives should participate in the planning process as advisors.
• To assure the implementation of plans, the partnerships must demonstrate the support of local governments with land-use planning and implementation authority.
Local government roles
• Since local governments can influence land use in Ohio, it is vital that they be strongly involved in the Watershed Planning Partnerships. Local governments are townships, villages, cities, and counties. Their approval of the final plan is a requirement prior to state endorsement.
• Once a Watershed Balanced Growth plan has been approved, local governments in the watershed will be encouraged to: (a) update and amend their existing land-use plans to reflect the watershed plan and establish consistency; (b) if no comprehensive or master land-use plans exist, develop such plans to the extent necessary to support implementation of the watershed plan; (c) adopt local ordinances/resolutions based on the guidance for applicable best practices and models recommended by the Lake Erie Balanced Growth Task Force; (d) direct local capital expenditures to support the Priority Conservation Areas and Priority Development Areas in the watershed plan, as opportunities arise during the expansions or maintenance of existing infrastructure.
State roles
• State support for balanced growth planning includes information, guidance, financial assistance, technical assistance, and public education. The Lake Erie Commission has begun the balanced growth planning process by promoting pilot planning projects in four watersheds
• To support implementation of watershed plans, the state has developed a Lake Erie Balanced Growth Strategy that describes how state programs, policies, and incentives will be aligned with local efforts to focus development efforts in PDAs and promote successful conservation efforts in PCAs.
Conclusion
Overall, balanced growth is in the long-term interest of Ohio. By linking land-use planning with the health of watersheds, the state will also be promoting other important objectives related to economic competitiveness and quality of life, including:
• Sustaining natural systems in the Lake Erie Basin, as well as restoring what has been degraded.
• Providing consistency and predictability for development decisions, thus enabling more cost-effective development.
• Encouraging the reuse and redevelopment of urban lands.
• Maximizing the efficient utilization of infrastructure.
• Conserving farmland.
• Providing open space and recreational opportunities.
• Promoting compact development patterns that build on the unique qualities of communities.
• Helping local governments plan for economic development opportunities and streamline decision-making processes.
• Promoting greater transportation choices for communities.
• Providing consistency and predictability for development decisions, thus enabling more cost-effective development.
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