Our initial work was to explore with stakeholders in Genesee County the complexity of local land use issues and use a report titled “Genesee Metropatterns” prepared by Myron Orfield and his associates at Ameregis to examine the implications of what has been called suburban sprawl. As this process was taking place, the Michigan Land Use Leadership Council was appointed by Governor Granholm with Genesee County Treasurer Dan Kildee as a member and Mr. Kildee’s participation enhanced the local dialogue on land use issues. A variety of issues emerged, but from the discussion it became clear that new land use mapping and a tool to analyze the maps would be a valuable contribution to improved land use planning in the region.
The second phase involved implementation of the
mapping and analysis.
We purchased digital aerial photography from the summer of 2003 for Genesee County and developed a methodology to map land use classes that would be compatible with the MIRIS data from 1978. We also added a house count to the inventory. In our community conversations we had developed a relationship with Mundy Township and so this area became our first township to map. Six other townships and three cities were mapped in this process, and the data is available in the download section of this web site. Mundy Township is getting ready to embark on a Master Plan revision. The new land use map showed clearly how development had expanded since 1980, but it was also important to know how to anticipate what new development patterns would look like.
Using a software system called Community Viz, we generated a set of build out scenarios which provided growth options that involved potentially retaining some land in agriculture and reserving other land for natural areas. Other scenarios involved zoning density shift and the projection of growth in a similar way to today but with some limited shifts in density and land to be retained. See how this all came together in the interactive slide show.
During our work with Mundy Township they joined with some adjacent communities in the Southern Lakes Planning Initiative, and we have supported this work with mapping to show where zoning incompatibilities at boundaries could be corrected and organizationally in promoting the more detailed exploration a joint planning agenda. Carrying this work forward has been supported by the Saginaw Bay Watershed Initiative Network.
You are looking at the third phase!
It is important to share our information. There are opportunities on the web site to find out what our mapping show in the vicinity of your home in Mundy Township, give us some feedback on what you see so we can continue the dialog on land use issues in Genesee County and even view and download our maps for your own use.
