8/3/2019 Pioneer Valley Planning Commission 2012 Resolves

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Members & Staff Resolve to:

PIONEER VALLEY

PLANNING COMMISSION

RESOLVES

102012 TOP

1. Pursue competitive state unds or several new and promising regionalization projects in the Pioneer Valley with the

potential to save scarce public dollars and/or signifcantly enhance the efciency and overall quality o municipal servicesdelivered through a shared-services approach. Pursue these opportunities in 2012 using a new $4 million Regionalization

Incentive Fund created by the Governor and state Legislature as part o the current state budget.

2. Prepare and release, in concert with a broad array o partnering organizations, an updated and revised 2012 version o

PVPCs State o the People Report using data compiled rom the 2010 U.S. Census and other reliable sources in an eort tocreate a portrait o the human conditions specifc to our regions 620,000-plus residents.

3. Adopt as a new component o the Plan or Progress the eight action strategies that have been recommended in order to

leverage and maximize both the local and regional economic development and jobs potential o the $100 millionMassachusetts Green High Perormance Computing Center currently under construction in downtown Holyoke.Concurrently, play a lead role in advancing the implementation o these action strategies beginning in 2012.

4. In collaboration with the Capitol Region Council o Governments, plus numerous other partners, complete and issue a series

o frst-year work products linked to the cross-border New England Sustainable Knowledge Corridor Project, including a

Regional Housing Plan, a Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Market Analysis, and a Food Security Plan, among others.

5. Assist and support the Massachusetts Department o Transportation and Pan Am Railways as they jointly undertake the

initial phase o a $73 million reconstruction and major upgrading o our regions main north-south rail corridor beginningin Spring 2012. Simultaneously, continue to lend assistance to the cities o Springfeld, Holyoke, and Northampton as theyadvance plans to design and implement train stops within their respective communities.

6. Organize and launch a multiaceted celebration o the Planning Commissions 50th anniversary starting in April 2012

through a varied menu o events, products, orums, and collaborations that highlight PVPCs past priorities and presentactivities and accomplishments, along with current eorts to address uture regional needs and interests, thereby helping to

shape a successul and competitive 21st century region.

7. Support and contribute to a series o important statewide MassDOT planning projects that are now underway, including the

new strategic transportation plan WeMove Massachusetts, a detailed assessment o and recommendations or public transitservices oered through the commonwealths 13 regional transit authorities (e.g., the PVTA) titled Beyond Boston, and a

detailed rail corridor and passenger easibility analysis o the east-west Inland Route interconnecting Boston, Worcester,and Springfeld and ultimately linking with New York City to the south and Montreal to the north.

8. Working with the Massachusetts Broadband Institute (MBI), Western MA Connect, local governments, Internet serviceproviders, and others, address a number o critical planning issues tied to the objective o bringing aordable high-speed

broadband services to more than 120 communities mostly concentrated in western Massachusetts in order to strengthenthe regional economy, improve educational opportunities, and enhance the delivery o a broad array o government

services by leveraging MBIs $72 million MassBroadband 123 investment initiative.

9. Strive to enhance the saety, security, and overall resilience o our region by improving communication and coordination

between and among frst responders or both natural and man-made disaster planning eorts and by acilitating thedevelopment o tornado recovery and local hazard mitigation plans in several PVPC communities that have recently

received ederal or state assistance unds.

10. Work with both the Congressional delegation in Washington, as well as the Massachusetts Legislature and Governor Patrick,to shape and advance legislative initiatives at the ederal or state level that support and beneft the Pioneer Valley and its

member communities and people. Key 2012 emphasis areas include zoning reorms, supplemental community develop-ment unding, a multi-year state transportation bond bill, economic development/workorce initiatives, implementation othe commonwealths recently enacted casino gaming law, refnements to the Community Preservation Act (CPA), enactment

o a new ederal transportation law, and reauthorization o the Federal Economic Development Administration, amongmany others.