Despite the regular trend of municipal business slowing down a little during the summer months the CCRC is chugging full steam ahead. We have finally started our Sustainability Self-Assessment project and we have retained Mr. Stephen Quinton as our Project Coordinator. Stephen will be responsible for all the logistics and reporting for the project and he will be in contact with every municipal office over the coming months to arrange a time for each council to go through the Sustainability Self-Assessment tool kit.
The process should take about 3 or 4 hours and we are flexible to arrange these sessions around the schedules of councillors and staff. Summer is a difficult time to start a project of this nature but we have to get it off the ground now and it will run for approximately 5 months. We are asking that all municipalities take the time to engage in this process because it is a great opportunity to step back and take an honest look at long term sustainability issues and it is a first step toward developing ICSPs as mentioned in previous posts.
If you would like to be proactive you can give Stephen a call here at the MNL office at 709-753-6820 and he can begin setting up meeting times that work for you. Otherwise expect a call form him in the near future.
The CCRC is also continually involved in the Functional Regions research project as mentioned here. That project involves multiple researchers and research assistants including Ann Marie Cashin working out of the MNL office under the direction of the CCRC. She is conducting some follow up work on the 2007 Census that the CCRC completed recently.
Beyond those two projects is the work on regional cooperation that the CCRC is continually involved with and the work related to building our resource centre and having it searchable online. Unfortunately it is not yet searchable from the CCRC website but we're working on it.
Cheers to a safe and happy summer all around.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Monday, June 16, 2008
What's in a plan?
Dwight D. Eisenhower is reputed to have once said that "Plans are worthless, but planning is everything."
The intent of the message is not lost on those who have shelves of pans but no method to implement, monitor or revise them. Instead they sit, collecting dust and providing nothing but a distant reference point to a conversation that includes "Yeah we've got one of those plans.......somewhere around here." Municipal operations are no different. Many times legislation simply requires that you have a plan but nothing more. Enter the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan.
With the "new deal for cities and communities" the Federal Government has designed a program to flow gas tax monies back to local governments for infrastructure projects. One of the issues is the desire to enhance the sustainability of communities and also to ensure that funding is spent on sustainable projects in sustainable communities. One of the ways to accomplish this is through the development of long term sustainability plans or ICSPs by all municipalities in Canada.
While it is an obligation of gas tax funding to complete ICSPs the most important note is that it is an opportunity to improve the planning processes and possibly even enhance some planning capacity in the province. ICSPs must be integrated and must be "living" plans that are continuously consulted, maintained and revised. They must be flexible and useable and involve goals and directions as developed by the community. Obviously this is a different approach that requires more community engagement and simply more work up front. However the advantages are exponential to the amount of work required.
Recently the CCRC arranged a session for the senior administrators from the municipalities in the province with more then 4000 residents. This session was intended to give these administrators an opportunity to speak with senior staff within the Provincial Department of Municipal Affairs and Infrastructure Canada regarding their perspectives on ICSPs and the specific requirements involved. The main points that developed from this discussion included the need for ICSPs to be a living document, the importance of building on existing planning processes and the importance of identifying infrastructure needs.
Also of note is the recent education session delivered by CCRC at a NLAMA session in Clarenville. The session was very well attended and the feedback from that session will help the CCRC work with the Department of Municipal Affairs to determine some of the specifics of ICSP development for Newfoundland and Labrador.
The CCRC is committed to ensuring that the ICSP process focus on planning as opposed to just developing a plan that sits on a shelf!
Stay tuned for further details.
The intent of the message is not lost on those who have shelves of pans but no method to implement, monitor or revise them. Instead they sit, collecting dust and providing nothing but a distant reference point to a conversation that includes "Yeah we've got one of those plans.......somewhere around here." Municipal operations are no different. Many times legislation simply requires that you have a plan but nothing more. Enter the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan.
With the "new deal for cities and communities" the Federal Government has designed a program to flow gas tax monies back to local governments for infrastructure projects. One of the issues is the desire to enhance the sustainability of communities and also to ensure that funding is spent on sustainable projects in sustainable communities. One of the ways to accomplish this is through the development of long term sustainability plans or ICSPs by all municipalities in Canada.
While it is an obligation of gas tax funding to complete ICSPs the most important note is that it is an opportunity to improve the planning processes and possibly even enhance some planning capacity in the province. ICSPs must be integrated and must be "living" plans that are continuously consulted, maintained and revised. They must be flexible and useable and involve goals and directions as developed by the community. Obviously this is a different approach that requires more community engagement and simply more work up front. However the advantages are exponential to the amount of work required.
Recently the CCRC arranged a session for the senior administrators from the municipalities in the province with more then 4000 residents. This session was intended to give these administrators an opportunity to speak with senior staff within the Provincial Department of Municipal Affairs and Infrastructure Canada regarding their perspectives on ICSPs and the specific requirements involved. The main points that developed from this discussion included the need for ICSPs to be a living document, the importance of building on existing planning processes and the importance of identifying infrastructure needs.
Also of note is the recent education session delivered by CCRC at a NLAMA session in Clarenville. The session was very well attended and the feedback from that session will help the CCRC work with the Department of Municipal Affairs to determine some of the specifics of ICSP development for Newfoundland and Labrador.
The CCRC is committed to ensuring that the ICSP process focus on planning as opposed to just developing a plan that sits on a shelf!
Stay tuned for further details.
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
A Proactive Approach
This past Saturday the Town of Harbour Breton held it's second Community Capacity Building Forum. The purpose of this forum was to engage the residents and local and regional stakeholders in the process of developing a strategic economic plan.
In May 2000 they held a similar forum and it became the basis for their 5-year Strategic Economic Plan which guided the Town's economic development activities for the following five years. On May 24th they began the process again. With representation from the Town, residents, local businesses, the Regional Economic Development Board, the Department of Tourism and the CCRC discussions were fruitful and a new planning process has begun.
Discussing the issues around Aquaculture development and the switch from a fish plant that closed in 2004 and is now operating to process farmed fish is a great indication of what can be accomplished in rural areas of the province.
One of the points made by Harbour Breton Mayor Don Stewart in his welcoming remarks that was repeated throughout the day was that they needed to be cognizant of the fact that they cannot survive as one community and it is the entire Coast of Bays Regions that must work together on these kinds of issues. That's the kind of talk the CCRC is hearing all around the province.
This event displayed great work and proactive thinking by the Town of Harbour Breton in taking the initiative and planning for a prosperous future within a functional region.
In May 2000 they held a similar forum and it became the basis for their 5-year Strategic Economic Plan which guided the Town's economic development activities for the following five years. On May 24th they began the process again. With representation from the Town, residents, local businesses, the Regional Economic Development Board, the Department of Tourism and the CCRC discussions were fruitful and a new planning process has begun.
Discussing the issues around Aquaculture development and the switch from a fish plant that closed in 2004 and is now operating to process farmed fish is a great indication of what can be accomplished in rural areas of the province.
One of the points made by Harbour Breton Mayor Don Stewart in his welcoming remarks that was repeated throughout the day was that they needed to be cognizant of the fact that they cannot survive as one community and it is the entire Coast of Bays Regions that must work together on these kinds of issues. That's the kind of talk the CCRC is hearing all around the province.
This event displayed great work and proactive thinking by the Town of Harbour Breton in taking the initiative and planning for a prosperous future within a functional region.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Rural-Urban Interaction and what it might mean for NL
This weekend representatives from the Regional Economic Development Boards from around the province are meeting in Labrador West to discuss current topics and trends within economic development. MNL Small Town Director and Mayor of Bishops Falls is attending to discuss the MNL initiative titled Local Actions for Developing Regions(LADR) which is the MNL economic development venue.
To help set the stage for the weekend there will be a short session on the Rural - Urban Interaction project. This project involves research on regional governance organization and labour market flows around the province. There are 3 pilot regions where more detailed work will be happening and those areas are the Irish Loop, the Twillingate - New World Island area, and the Labrador Straits. The project is ongoing and will include regular feedback sessions in each of the pilot areas. This blurb is taken from an earlier press release on the project:
The website for the project is contained within the CCRC webpage and under the link Rural - Urban Research. The presentation provided by the CCRC and the Project Coordinator Pat Curran this weekend will be uploaded to the presentations page of the site early next week.
To help set the stage for the weekend there will be a short session on the Rural - Urban Interaction project. This project involves research on regional governance organization and labour market flows around the province. There are 3 pilot regions where more detailed work will be happening and those areas are the Irish Loop, the Twillingate - New World Island area, and the Labrador Straits. The project is ongoing and will include regular feedback sessions in each of the pilot areas. This blurb is taken from an earlier press release on the project:
Rural-Urban Interaction in Newfoundland and Labrador: Understanding and Managing Functional Regions.
The Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (CRRF) in association with Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador (MNL), the Department of Geography and Harris Centre, Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Department of Rural Studies, University of Kentucky, with funding support from the Canada/Newfoundland and Labrador Labour Market Development Agreement, have launched a 30-month project titled Rural-Urban Interaction in Newfoundland and Labrador: Understanding and Managing Functional Regions.
The website for the project is contained within the CCRC webpage and under the link Rural - Urban Research. The presentation provided by the CCRC and the Project Coordinator Pat Curran this weekend will be uploaded to the presentations page of the site early next week.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
We're looking for a few good people...
The CCRC is looking for people to help roll out the Municipal Sustainability Self-Assessment Tool Kit around the province. We need 1 project coordinator and 4 or 5 field staff facilitators to travel around the province and facilitate the tool kit delivery. Check out the job posting on the MNL website here.
The project will require between 4 and 5 months of work to meet with every municipality in the province with the exception of those 7 who already completed the Self-Assessment.
If you know someone who is an experienced facilitator or project coordinator and would enjoy working with the municipalities in NL then direct them to the job ads or have them send their resume to ccrc@nlfm.ca.
The project will require between 4 and 5 months of work to meet with every municipality in the province with the exception of those 7 who already completed the Self-Assessment.
If you know someone who is an experienced facilitator or project coordinator and would enjoy working with the municipalities in NL then direct them to the job ads or have them send their resume to ccrc@nlfm.ca.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Census Report now online
The 2007 Census report is now available online at the CCRC website or you can get a copy directly by clicking here. You can view it online or right click and select Download file to get a copy on your desktop.
Thanks again to all those who took the time to complete the census.
Thanks again to all those who took the time to complete the census.
Monday, May 12, 2008
Sustainable Symposium a Success!
This past weekend marked the annual MNL Symposium and this year the vast majority of sessions were related to the issue of sustainability. While there was considerable discussion around the real definition of sustainability everyone seemed to grasp the idea of long term survival of our rural municipalities.
The sessions on Waste Management and issues relating to ICSP development and the Gas Tax agreement were well attended. Questions to the panelists spurred great discussion on how municipalities can adapt to these new approaches. During the Waste Management session the audience was very adamant that enforcement must be a large part of the approach to prevent illegal dumping when the regional waste sites begin operation. The issue of site cleanup and transportation costs were also discussed as municipalities expressed concerns over rising costs and shrinking revenues.
The CCRC was involved in two sessions, the first of which was a report on the 2007 municipal census conducted by the CCRC and now available. It will be soon posted to the CCRC website and copies will be distributed to all municipalities in the province. The second session was dedicated to the launch of the Municipal Sustainability Self-Assessment Toll Kit (SSAK). This project has been in development for nearly 2 years and is tied very closely to the ICSP process as it provides a baseline for all municipalities to build upon in the planning process. The SSAK is now ready to roll out and the CCRC office will be putting a team in place to facilitate the tool kit over the coming 4-5 months. The CCRC office will be in touch with every municipality to make arrangements for these sessions that are expected to take 3-4 hours for each municipality. Once the process is complete each town will receive a short report outlining the results and a short list of recommendations in preparation for the ICSP process.
The CCRC is also working on a similar initiative to roll out next year for the completion of ICSPs for each municipality, or groups of municipalities in NL. Remember, the ICSP are a requirement of the Gas Tax agreement and a great opportunity to take advantage of additional planning capacity and expertise that may not exist in every municipality.
As Thomas Edison once said "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work"
Lets do the work and take advantage of the opportunity.
The sessions on Waste Management and issues relating to ICSP development and the Gas Tax agreement were well attended. Questions to the panelists spurred great discussion on how municipalities can adapt to these new approaches. During the Waste Management session the audience was very adamant that enforcement must be a large part of the approach to prevent illegal dumping when the regional waste sites begin operation. The issue of site cleanup and transportation costs were also discussed as municipalities expressed concerns over rising costs and shrinking revenues.
The CCRC was involved in two sessions, the first of which was a report on the 2007 municipal census conducted by the CCRC and now available. It will be soon posted to the CCRC website and copies will be distributed to all municipalities in the province. The second session was dedicated to the launch of the Municipal Sustainability Self-Assessment Toll Kit (SSAK). This project has been in development for nearly 2 years and is tied very closely to the ICSP process as it provides a baseline for all municipalities to build upon in the planning process. The SSAK is now ready to roll out and the CCRC office will be putting a team in place to facilitate the tool kit over the coming 4-5 months. The CCRC office will be in touch with every municipality to make arrangements for these sessions that are expected to take 3-4 hours for each municipality. Once the process is complete each town will receive a short report outlining the results and a short list of recommendations in preparation for the ICSP process.
The CCRC is also working on a similar initiative to roll out next year for the completion of ICSPs for each municipality, or groups of municipalities in NL. Remember, the ICSP are a requirement of the Gas Tax agreement and a great opportunity to take advantage of additional planning capacity and expertise that may not exist in every municipality.
As Thomas Edison once said "Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work"
Lets do the work and take advantage of the opportunity.
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