Planning = Remodeling

Ms. Dover Planner and I have been trying to figure out how to make our kitchen more functional and useful for us. This weekend we did some investigation - looking at cabinets and light fixtures, thinking about flooring, marveling at costs. In the end I realized that community planning and home remodeling are very similar activities.

How you ask? Well, for one thing with planning you are working with an environment you most likely didn't create. Dover has had many planners before me. I certainly wasn't here in 1623 (birth), 1855 (adolescence), 1973 (post college), nor will I be here in middle age (2123)? That said, others were here and did what they thought was good planning for the community. They reacted to the world around them, trends, ideas, functions, and they made changes to Dover as they saw fit.

My house was born in 1928. It has been lived in ever since, and has grown and evolved beyond the depression era it was constructed. The kitchen has changed somewhat (apparently a lot in the 80s - according to the style of cabinets we have), as flooring styles have come and gone (we have hard wood covered by linoleum, covered by plywood, covered again by linoleum). By pealing back the levels of flooring, paint and wall paper, my wife and I are learning about our house.

This effort of learning about our house is similar to the work I do with the City. I love to peal back the layers and learn about why traffic flows where it does. Why setbacks were developed the way they were and why lot sizes are what they are. These things are like learning about my house. The roadways locations are analogous to where the stairways and halls are in my house. Home improvement show's always talk about the way rooms flow together. The same thing happens in planning discussions. The utilities are obviously the utilities in my house. The setbacks and clearances are analogous to safety requirements in a house. Certainly both home projects and community planning projects have plans.

Just as we need to make changes in Dover from time to time, so do we need to make changes in our homes from time to time. Who hasn't wanted to see the garden in their back yard move or put a workshop in their garage or basement. This is the same as promoting agriculture and industry in the community. We learn from what the previous owner of our house did, just as we learn from the previous stewards of planning have accomplished.

We even have public participation in our home remodeling efforts. Who hasn't talk with friends and family about changes to their house? We run ideas by them, and we seek advice. We ask our children how they want to grow in the house. This is similar to how we seek input from the community in our Master Planning.

We seek experts in both realms as well. I am by no means an expert on economic analysis or traffic generation. So, from time to time I need to contact a consultant to get advice at work. Same thing at home. I understand plumbing, but for many reasons, I'll hire a plumber to relocate pipes. I'll ask an electrician to help with a new ceiling fan. We need these experts to help us make the right improvements to the house (did some say there might be another analogy between home remodeling and the capital improvement's program?).

It was a fun moment to come up with this analogy, because I find that 90 percent of the time people can't relate to city planning as a function. Most people can relate or appreciate what a police function is or what a public works function is, but planning? That seems weird. I like this home remodeling analogy because it helps make planning tangible.

Interactive time: does this analogy make sense to you? If not what's a better analogy? Also, first person to ID the significance, for the City of Dover, of the three years I mentioned above wins a prize.

New EPA Nitrogen Restrictions

On February 9, 2012, the City hosted a public hearing for the US Environmental Protection Agency, regarding the upcoming pollution discharge permit renewal that it will receive for our Waste Water Treatment Facility. This permit is required for the City to operate the facility, which is part of our sanitary sewer system. In basic terms, if we don't have a permit to operate the facility, we will have a major problem.

In general there aren't concerns about the permit being issued. What is a concern is that the EPA wishes to increase the restrictions being placed on the amount of nitrogen allowed in the Great Bay Estuary. Currently, the plant discharges approximately 22 mg/l (milligrams per liter). The EPA has proposed allowing 3 mg/l as the acceptable threshold. The City is requesting that the threshold be 8 mg/l, still a significant adjustment.

Putting aside the direct cost of this difference, one thing that jumps out to me is the impact this can have on Smart Growth based planning. For over a decade, we have been looking to make it easier for growth in Dover to be centered around infrastructure, and away from rural areas. Even before the form based code changes to the downtown area, I think that we were moving in the direction of concentrating our development downtown, building off the successes we have and the strength of our core. 

I believe Dover is very progressive and responsible when it comes to the environment. We have made huge investments in conservation and preservation of open space. The City has expended over 5 million dollars, which has been leveraged with an additional 6 million dollars to protect 792 acres, over the past decade. This property limits the amount of developable land in Dover and has the added benefit of protecting habitats and the waterways that exist in Dover.

In addition to this work, the City has also implemented various aspects of low impact development guidelines, and also made improvements in the way we review site and subdivision plans. These changes and improvements have helped guide us to be more mindful and ultimately respectful of the environment and to consider development in a more holistic fashion. I believe that we are making smart and responsible choices in regards to the impact man has on the land.

So, if we do have this requirement presented and that is the only option is it the end of the world? Not hardly. It is a blow to urbanism, I believe. It appears to double the effective sewer rate in Dover. This makes it hardly a welcoming place to tie into the sewer system. I believe it will encourage people to want to investigate and ultimately utilize a septic system for their sanitary sewer needs. This can lead to sprawl and to other unintended consequences. There is plenty of disheartening information about the havoc that septic systems have raised in the Chesapeake Bay area. Dover has worked very long and hard to protect its natural rsources and will continue to do so in the future.

If you missed the EPA public hearing and want more information, please check the webpage we have set up for it.

CDBG Grant Funds Applications Available

The City of Dover Department of Planning and Community Development is accepting applications from Public Service Agencies, qualified individuals or eligible organizations for grants from the FFY12 Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Program. This grant from the Federal Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is intended to meet the needs of low and moderate income persons in a variety of ways.

Eligible activities include: acquisition of property, public facilities and improvements, clearance or demolition, public services, water & sewer lines, historic preservation and special economic development activities.

Each activity planned by the City must meet one of HUD's three national objectives:

1. Benefit to low and moderate income people.

2. Elimination of slums and blight.

3. Urgent needs.

For more information about project eligibility or to learn more about Dover’s Community Development Block Grant program, go to http://www.dover.nh.gov/plancomdev.htm

The City of Dover has been a CDBG entitlement community for over twenty years. The HUD program provides annual grants on a formula basis to entitled cities and counties to develop viable urban communities by providing decent housing and a suitable living environment, and by expanding economic opportunities, principally for low and moderate income persons. HUD awards grants to entitlement community grantees to carry out a wide range of community development activities directed toward revitalizing neighborhoods, economic development, and providing improved community facilities and services. Entitlement communities develop their own programs and funding priorities. The entitlement grant is expected to be available July 1st, 2012. The amount to be received by the City of Dover has yet to be determined by Congress.

Groups wishing to receive funds, anyone with question, or groups needing technical assistance with an application should contact Rick Jones, 516-6034 between 7 AM and 5 PM Monday through Thursday. Applications are also available on the City of Dover website. All applications for funding requests are due back in the Dover Planning Office no later than February 9, 2012 at 5:30 PM.

Winter Sign Sweep

The Dover Department of Planning and Community Development announces that it will be conducting a clean-up of illegal and unpermitted temporary advertising signs throughout the City of Dover during the week of January 9th as part of a review of zoning compliances around the community.  Illegal and unpermitted signs include those on utility poles, or in the right of way. This clean up will be the fourth one conducted by planning staff in the past year.

The illegal sign removal action is warranted because the placement of these temporary signs in public right-of-ways and medians of streets, on utility poles and attached to trees is not permitted by the Dover Sign Ordinance and may cause a safety hazard for traveling motorists or create a visual blight that is unsightly for residents.  These signs detract from legitimate business signs that have gone through the proper permitting process.

 “I am confident that we will continue to see less signs than we have in the past,” Christopher Parker, Director of Planning and Community Development said. “I am always happy to see that the sweeps take less and less time to complete as we have more and more compliance from business and property owners. We have seen dramatic reductions in these illegal signs. I hope that this trend continues and we have only a handful of illegal signs at the end of the day.”

Parker continued to explain that the goal of the sweep is to reward those business owners that have properly placed and permitted their signs. “We hope to both remove the safety hazard, improve aesthetics and also ensure that those that follow the rules the community has established for signs are followed.”

This will be the first sign sweep conducted with the City’s recently hired Zoning Administrator, Tim Corwin. Corwin joins the City staff on January 3, and will be learning the nuances of Dover’s code. “This sweep is a good way for Tim to see how seriously we take zoning and code violations in Dover.” Parker explained.

Business owners that have placed these signs are advised to remove the illegal signs in advance of this clean-up effort.  Any sign that is confiscated will only be held for thirty days prior to being recycled or destroyed, unless the sign is claimed by the owner after paying a reclamation fee based on the actual cost of man-hours and equipment use.  Repeat offenders may be subject to prosecution and fines. 

The Planning Department has a facebook fan page in which residents can learn more about projects and applications. Additionally, the Department has a twitter feed @DoverNHPlanning.

For more information please call the Planning Department at 516-6008.

Tracking Success

As we celebrate ten years of revived passenger rail service in Dover, here's what I remember the day the Downeaster came to town. I remember that on December 15, 2001, I had lunch at the pizza place next door to the transportation center, and watched the festivities from there, as opposed to being part of the mob, with a fellow employee of the Community Services Department.

I remember that I felt bad for Bruce. Bruce was the planner (who recently retired) who had championed the City's efforts to secure the train stopping in Dover. I felt bad because Bruce was in the Air National Guard and he had been called up as part of the massive call up post 9/11. So as people were celebrating the arrival of something he had worked so hard to help secure, Bruce was in the Middle East defending the rest of us.

Beyond that specific day, what I think about the Downeaster falls into two categories. The first is emotional and the second is rational. The emotional is the connection the Downeaster has to parental memories. My son was 3 in 2001. He and I would drive downtown, get a coffee and a pastry, run to the post office for the mail (we had a PO Box), and then head to the transportation center to watch the train come through every Saturday. We rode it for the first time together in December of 2002, when we went to Exeter and back.

My son's reaction to seeing the train, and (in my experience) general every child's reaction is that of elation. Kids love to see the train come into town, and they love to ride trains when they can. This feeling I think is second only to planners love of the idea of a train, or mass transit for that matter. Not sure where the emotional connection comes from (that's why its emotional, right?), but it is a visceral response. Eyes light up, we start swaying to a fro, get nervous; the whole nine yards. You'd think the prom was coming up and we are taking a model.

This flows into the rational connection I have with the Downeaster. We are very lucky as a community to have not only the Downeaster stop through Dover, but to have our station downtown. The ability for travelers to step off the train, cross the street (admittedly not the safest crossing), and shop, eat, stroll, etc, is a true bonus for us. I won't go into ridership numbers or the statistical info, but will say they are excellent and continue to grow each year.

The Downeaster was Amtrak's fastest-growing service in fiscal years 2006 and 2008, and continues to be a route that brings in necessary revenue for the Amtrak system. Are there things that could be improved upon? Sure, there are in every aspect of life. That said, on a birthday, let's focus on the great thing it is to be located on this line, to be able to experience that feeling of giddy joy riding the train and celebrate ten years of success.

Were You There?

Saturday, December 10th, saw the launch of the gundalow Piscataqua in Portsmouth. This was an historic event, and I was happy to participate. For those readers, who aren't aware, I am on the Board of Director's for the Gundalow Company. The company has a mission of preserving and enhancing the maritime history and environment of the Piscataqua region.

The Piscataqua (gundalow, not river or region), was born out the hard work of many people. I joined the Board in 2009, and remember the first meeting I attended was spent looking at a the drawings and blueprints for the new boat, which at the time was still a desire, and not a reality. The Board had been working on this dream for some time already, and looking back it is impressive to see the Piscataqua in the Piscataqua.

Countless hours have been put into the creation and fundraising of and for this vessel. It is amazing to have been a small part of it, and there are many people who are due a great deal of thanks for their efforts and resources. 

I have enjoyed being on the Board, as it really allows myself the opportunity to interact in different ways with different people in the Seacoast. It also allows me to be a part of the launch of something that hasn't been launched since the 1980s, and really hasn't been common since the 1880s. I am taking some liberties here, but really, two centuries ago gundalows were common transportation features, today only two working ones exists, and they are located down the road here in New Hampshire.

In the industrial revolution gundalows were common. They were riding up and down the Cochoecho, the Piscataqua and most other rivers in the new world. These vessels are flat bottomed and convey goods from port to port and offered a similar function to the tractor trailer trucks might today. The transportation of these goods has evolved, or in some cases devolved.

One reason I love being on the Board is the sense that we are educating people to this alternative mode of transit. Anyone that has read this blog will know that I am a supporter of the idea that we are ruining out of oil, and I believe we need to reawaken ourselves to the reality of other modes of transit. Modes other than automobiles. I think, beyond the awareness we are building about the fragility of the Piscarqua River's ecosystem, we are also going to be building awareness of the value of wind powered transit.

Overall for me the best part of Saturday's launch was not the pleasure of riding the Piscataqua on her first tour, nor was it the thrill of being with 1,000 people celebrating the launch. The best part was sharing it with my 13 year old son. He fussed about going, and he flittered about the cold when we got to Pierce Island. That said, when we saw the Piscataqua sitting in its cradle and poised for launch he started to change When we were able to join the crew and other board members onboard he really got excited.

It is great to see a child get excited about a wooden boat. A vessel that is built for education and not for excitement or thrill riding. That was pretty cool. I can't wait to see school kids riding, and learning aboard the Piscataqua . It will be a very good addition to the region.

When you get a chance to visit the Piscataqua at Prescott Park, enjoy her majesty and celebrate her mission.

Summertime Goings On

So, here we are deep into Summer 2011. If we were in elementary or secondary school we might argue it just began, but I think for adults more and more the lines of summertime blur and extend. So, in my mind we are deep in the summer. It is the All Star Break for the baseball season, so it must be the middle of summer.

I was thinking last night about summer projects. One I really want to tackle this summer is scanning documents and cleaning up some files and paperwork in the office. I know this has been on the back burner for what feels like eons. It is an ongoing battle to review and reduce the amount of paper we have in the office. Even better if we can weed out extraneous stuff and then scan it and make it available to the public via the internet and save us all time.

Another project is the Capital Improvements Program. There are two elements to this, one regrouping and redefining the 2013-2018 plan for presentation to the Planning Board and City Council in the fall. The second element is using the web to track progress on the FY 2012 projects as they get underway this year. I need to pin down some specifics on how we will do this.

A third project is the ever present review of zoning and land use regulations. A month ago we had a meeting with consultants from the Environmental Protection Agency, and their consultants who were retained to perform an audit of our regulations. They suggested areas we can look to make changes to encourage sustainability. I will be looking over these recommendations and bring them forward to the Planning Board towards the end of the summer.

Catching up is another "always on the list" task. In this case I need to catch up on some reading of journals and trends. Additionally, we need to review some procedures for the CDBG program and for the way we investigate code complaints.

A summer project is to determine where some of the sustainability programs we started in the winter will go now that we no longer have a Sustainability Coordinator. As I mentioned last month, we did not have funding in the, now, current budget to keep that position in play. I will be reviewing the tasks and programming started and evaluating how we can maintain some if not all of them.

So, that's my summer to be. Oh, that and one more project. To use this blog to answer some questions about why areas are zoned, and to also update people on existing programs, such as the Fast Trans, and Pay N Display parking program. For that last item, I will be bringing Bill Simmons from the Police Department in for an interview, as Bill is the Parking Manager for the City.

The 2011 Commute Green New Hampshire Challenge

Beginning today, May 16, the City of Dover is taking part in the 2011 Commute Green New Hampshire Challenge. This challenge looks to push us to walk, bike, carpool, take transit (bus, train, FasTrans), basically do whatever we can not to commute in a single occupancy vehicle.

The City has formed a team, and has invited volunteers and staff to participate in our team, as we look to lower our carbon footprint, and encourage multi-modal transit in the City. As part of the challenge we are encouraging participants to come to the Dover Transportation Center on Friday, May 20th, to partake in free coffee and breakfast. The coffee has been donated by NH Coffee Roasters and the breakfast by Holy Rosary Credit Union.

C & J Bus lines is participating at both their Dover and Portsmouth locations. They will have coffee and donuts for commuters every day this week to celebrate and encourage commuting.

That's great that we are doing all this, but what is Commute Green New Hampshire?

Commute Green New Hampshire is the annual promotion which encourages commuters to choose healthier and more environmentally-friendly transportation options. It doesn't matter if you are commuting to work, school, shopping or run of the mill trips. If you make the trip, make it green.

According to Commute Green's web site:
· U.S. families spend about $9,000 a year on transportation costs.
· More than 22 percent of all motor vehicle trips Americans take are less than one mile in length, and 50 percent of the working population commutes five miles or less to work.
· One car emits about 20 pounds of carbon dioxide per gallon of gasoline it uses, but each New Hampshire resident can reduce the equivalent of about taking two cars a year off the road just by carpooling, bicycling, walking or using public transportation three days a week.

That is all impressive, but what is more impressive is how simple it is to make an effort to be more green and to commute with someone else, or using a healthier mode of transportation. It just takes a bit of pre-planning. I know not everyone can walk to work. I know some of you have a longer commute than my one mile (it is uphill both ways), and might not live near your co-workers, but maybe you can make a pact to meet at a park n ride in the middle with a coworker, and figure out a way to commute green part of the trip.

All I ask, and all that the project asks, is that you give it a try this week. Figure out a small way to be part of the challenge and we all will be better off for it.

Activated Planning

What... two blog posts in one week? Wow, something must be up!

That's right folks, I've been inspired. Yesterday (Tuesday), was a day of active planning. Not to imply that regular day to day activities don't include planning, nor to imply that the day to day activities aren't important, but we all get bogged down in the day to day, and when something out of the ordinary comes along, you can get inspired by it.

Yesterday was one of those days. On the face of it, a day of 4 meetings, and some administrative work, might seem day to day. Bonus was the two main meetings. The first was a session with residents, business owners, transit providers and civic leaders to discuss ways to improve our wayfinding in downtown Dover.

What is wayfinding? It can be signage, but it is a much larger concept. Think about the tools we use to get around town. It isn't just signs - in the literal sense. We use clues such as activity and street furniture and lighting styles to be aware that we are in the downtown area.

The meeting was a great kick off to what I see as a project to highlight Dover's assets, our waterfall, our river, our shops and restaurants, and our museums. The meeting was geared to generate excitement among the stakeholders, and I think it did just that. It was fun to discuss Dover as a resident and as a tourist trying to get around.

The second meeting of note was a workshop the Sustainable Dover program hosted on permaculture. What the heck is permaculture? It is designing development with nature in mind. It is the idea that we are part of nature and need to design our homes, neighborhoods and communities to be part of nature and not fight nature.

Steve Whitman, a planner from Plymouth, who in my estimation is one of the most visionary and proactive planners in New Hampshire, came and taught 12 of us the basic philosophy and framework of this concept. It is not new, and Steve isn't the innovator, but it is new to many peoples conscious, and Steve has immersed himself and family into the idea. He has developed a sideshow that demonstrates the philosophy and framework using examples from his home and life.

I am not going to try and summarize the 12 points involved, or even try to explain the overall concept more than I have. Instead I am going to dwell on it, and review my own activities and make lifestyle changes to embrace the philosophy and I hope to continue to be inspired by the workshop, and its companion workshop in 2 weeks.It was great to see a concept that is complicated, but makes so much sense, and is obtainable with some minor changes to your life (composting etc).

I went home at 9:30 last night and didn't mind a bit that I had last stepped foot in the house 15 hours earlier. I didn't mind, because I was so jazzed about the great work we had completed during the day. It was rewarding to be encouraged by the stakeholders involved with the wayfinding project, and then to be inspired by learning something new and adoptable, was that much more energizing.

So, how do we replicate that energy today? We'll see and I'll let you know.

It's Florida....

Looking out on a rainy Wednesday, I figure it is a perfect time to reflect on an annual trip I take. Like many New Englanders, come mid winter I desire some warmth. So, I like to visit Florida for some spring training baseball.

Now, I could recount the five baseball games I saw (in five days no less), but that isn't really planning related. Instead, I want to pass on some observations, which are planning in nature. As a quick aside, Amy, I didn't take any photographs of catch basins or manholes - sorry (enjoy the one from Seattle).

Transportation

Air Travel
One thing about Florida from a transportation planning POV is that they have the airports/air travel aspect down. You'd expect this from an area with such a strong tourism industry. You can easily reach the airports, the means to get in and out are clear and the flow at the airport seems to work well. No issues with rental cars either.

Car Travel
Every road seems to be a major arterial. It is amazing to me what auto travel on roads that were not originally cow paths that were eventually paved can be like. I am not just writing about interstates here, nor the limited access state highways. Typically we have three types of roads, local roads (residential in nature), collectors (think Whittier Street, or Sixth Street), and then arterial (Central Avenue). Well, my experience in Florida is that the local roads might be the same, but the next step seems to be an arterial. These roads are designed to be four lane roads, with a very wide Right of Way - even if not all used - that are flat and straight. They are designed with limited access built in and are not to be traveled at a slow 30 miles an hour.

Bike, Train etc
Famously, now, the State of Florida has turned down the federal stimulus moneys to be used to expand train systems. The Governor has said he does not favor high speed rail, and does not see the value in linking Tampa and Miami via trains.

I found it odd, then, that there is a very strong bicycle ethic in Florida. Everywhere you turn there is a bike path, and I am not just talking about sidewalks that double as bike paths, though sidewalks are everywhere. It helps that so much of the terrain is flat, and it is impressive to see people using the bike paths. There were some along the highway, and you could see that people use them and enjoy them. I do wonder if it is an affordability aspect. Bikes cost less to purchase and operate than cars, and with a temperate climate, can be used year round for many trips. Florida things nothing of bike racks, stands as common place - from what I saw.

Development
The development pattern seems to be very proactive. I am not sure who puts the infrastructure in, whether it is the government (County is very strong), or if developers put it in, but there is a long view horizon used in placing infrastructure in the ground. The roads are designed for future use, with curb cuts and water/sanitary and storm water infrastructure put in the ground for the build out, as opposed to incrementally upgraded. Roads that I drove in 2007 had the four lanes etc, and cow pastures on either side. Now they have commercial nodes or golf course subdivisions where the cow pastures were. They built it (infrastructure) and development came.

Speaking of development, it is very much its own animal in Florida, and for that matter maybe other locales. Being a tourism based place, much of the development seems to be national chains and familiar names. Looking for someplace to eat, you'll feel at home with the Applebees, Friday's, Denny's etc. I didn't see much local, though I am sure it exists, just not in the commercial nodes off the major roads. I suspect this comes to a cost of rent/lease rate issue.

One interesting thing to me, coming from an urban center (didn't say vast or large), is the suburban feel to it all. Sure you have great urban centers like Sarasota, parts of Ft. Myers, or nice downtown areas like Venice, but the majority of what I saw was suburban strip. The community I stayed in had a new town center, off a major thoroughfare, with a new City Hall and new post office. You have residential enclaves that have access to the arterial, which have commercial nodes off them. I saw very little integration of uses. There are few if any neighborhood stores. Sure the residential enclave might have a gas station/convenience store at the entrance, but beyond that I did not experience a mixed use center outside of the established downtowns, such as Sarasota.

I didn't get to experience it, and certainly I was a tourist, but I always wonder in scenarios like that how the community aspect is. Do people feel part of the "municipality" or are they more rooted in their residential development? Do they say they are from Sarasota, or from Sarasota County? What is community living like? It is so automobile centric, that I wonder if it is that much harder to develop that community - place - driven feeling we enjoy in Dover.

Weather
Obviously it doesn't snow in Florida - at least Southwest Florida, and if it does, it is not snow like we have in New Hampshire. This allows for much different infrastructure development. Not just more bike paths, and roads, that treat storm water run off differently, (scuppers instead of catch basins), and certainly the consideration for plowing is not present. But there is a different year round use of the commercial nodes and roads.

The weather, climate and terrain, allows for a much different street scape consideration. Beyond palm trees and the like, vegetation is very different. It has a different flow to it. It certainly is more tropical, and has a different hue to it. I also noticed that there is a lot more sand or grit in places I wouldn't have expected either element.

Overall, Florida is certainly not New Hampshire. Nothing bad here, just different. I think it is a important to see different communities and places, and am happy to have had the opportunity. Experiences frame our thinking and make us better planners. It is always good to research and learn from our neighbors and partners no matter how close or far away they are.

Speaking of learning, I'd like to remind you (presuming you've read this far), that this Saturday is TuttleFest. You can come and learn about the work we are doing to promote sustainability in Dover, and learn about local farming and agricultural needs.

Energy Investments Update

In October, I had a post about the energy infrastructure improvements that have been completed here in Dover. My office has overseen the improvements and has worked continuously with Johnson Controls, the vendor to install, test and ultimately commission the infrastructure.

The improvements have included retrofitting lighting, toilet retrofits weatherization and installing air conditioning units in City Hall. Lighting in the Mast Road public works facility, McConnell Center and various recreation facilities has also been installed. Included in the recreation facilities has been improvements to the pools, and vending machines. Finally, improvements will be made to the Waste Water Treatment Facility's aeration blower and upgrades to transformers in various buildings.

As of January 19, 2011, we know that there has been a lowering of consumption and of emissions of green house gases. These emissions amount to:

Electricity:
reduced GHGs 81.8 tons CO2

Natural Gas:
reduced GHGs 339.8 tons CO2

Fuel Oil:
reduced GHGs 117.8 tons CO2

A good comparison is that we have lowered the CO2 equivalent to planting 13,830 tree seedlings, if they grew for 10 years, or 123 acres of pine or fir trees. This also equals the emissions of 99 cars (reduced that amount), or saved 1,254 barrels of oil from being consumed.

In regards to consumption savings, overall we have seen:

Electricity:
reduced 24kW
Cut 215,485 kWh
Saved over $23,000

Natural Gas:
reduced 7,997 Therms
Saved over $102,000

Water:
reduced 1,012 gallon
Saved over $11,000

In total there has been over $137,500 saved because of the improvements.

I will continue to include these stats from time to time to bring people up to speed. For now though, take a look at some of the improvements, and compare how far we've come since October. Better yet, take a minute to think about how you can meet or beat the City at the savings/sustainability game.

Dover's FastTrans

One of the project that the Planning Department has championed is the high frequency inner city bus service, known as the FastTrans. This project is providing regular, hourly bus service from downtown to homes, businesses, and remote parking in the city. There are three FastTrans routes, numbered 33, 34, and 35, which run every hour, from about 7AM until 7PM, Monday through Friday. Also as part of the FastTrans project, service on COAST Route 1, which serves downtown as well as the Dover Housing Authority, has been increased to hourly frequency.

This project was begun at the direction of the City of Dover to provide fast and affordable transportation throughout the greater downtown area. The project is funded through a "CMAQ" (Congestion Mitigation Air Quality) grant submitted by the Planning Department and approved (a federal grant for projects that will improve air quality and reduce traffic congestion) by the state and Federal Highway Administration. Funding for the local match of 20% come from the City of Dover out of registration fees and from Strafford County.

The goal in designing these routes for the City was to connect dense residential areas, remote parking lots, and transportation centers, with the core downtown area. These routes were each designed to make a full round-trip every hour. Users can get where they need to go in town as fast as they would in a car, and they can get back within an hour. Besides the high frequency of service, we've set the fare for these routes at just 50 cents. Whether you're a visitor coming in on the train or C&J, a resident with a car, or an employee of a Dover business, there's no better way to get around town.

The success of this project has been very rewarding. Dover has continuously worked towards reducing congestion downtown through offering transportation alternatives, but at the same time we do not want to totally discourage those that want the independence of driving. The Planners in Dover recognize that while we need to address our automobile dependencies we also need to be realistic about transportation limitations.

FastTrans is just one more way we can work to reflect the public's needs and desires. This project was developed as part of the City's Transportation Improvement Program, which is contained within the Capital Improvements Plan. This plan is about to come up for review again, and contains continuations of the FastTrans project as well as other new and exciting opportunities.

Plan, Plan, Plan

A few weeks ago, I wrote about the Master Plan process. The MP, lest you forgot, is a guiding document for a communities growth and development. This week I was thinking about strategic plans. In this regard I am not looking to the community but to the make up and direction the department I oversee.

I am a systems thinker. I like to know how things evolve and operate. I wonder why processes are in place and who developed them. Who thought it was a good idea to do this or that. Some elements are out of my control. State RSA or local Ordinance dictate certain things, and that is all well and good. My thoughts are more closely tied to operational and practical areas.

In that regard I am going to take the task of developing a strategic plan for the department. This involves many of the same elements of a Master Plan, but on a more local level. Instead of looking from a high level at the City, I want to know where the City Manager views the department in the grand scheme of things, I want to know how the Planning Board views us, how the staff views the department and how the regular citizen views, or more likely does not view us.

Part of this will be a plan for improved communications and outreach as well as reviewing all document development and flow through. One tool will be this blog, and I hope to look for questions and answers out there in the wide world.

Part of this will flow from the presentation of the upcoming Capital Improvements Program. I want to redirect how we interpret, present and work through the CIP. THE CIp is am important part of our planning and I want to make it more citizen focused and interpretive. We'll see how that goes.

Capital Improvements

Last week I took some time off and went camping. Truth be told it was a cabin in the woods, no electricity or indoor plumbing, but a hard roof, so if it rained it wasn't that big a deal. I was in the "wilds" of Maine with just my dog. No cell phone coverage (yeah), no one to interact with. So what did I do? I read. 5 days = 5 books.

One of those 5 was On The Grid, by Scott Huler. Mr. Huler lives in North Carolina, and after experiencing some household issues, wonders about the infrastructure that surrounds him. He is curious about where the water that comes out of his faucet originate.

Basically the book is public works for a laymen. It describes water, sanitary and storm water sewer systems survey work, road building and other aspects of the built world that most people take for granted. At just over 200 pages, it is a quick read and is very informative and enjoyable.

This book was perfect for me to read last week, because at work, I am in the early to middle stages of putting together the City's Capital Improvements Program (CIP). This program is a fundamental step in reviewing the City's infrastructure needs as well as effectuating the City's Master Plan - specifically the Community Facilities and Utilities section.

The process for the CIP involves reviewing projects currently in the plan/program, looking at capacity for new projects, looking at funding availability and the relationship those programs have to the Master Plan. Infrastructure is an interesting concept. We know it is the structure below the surface, and we know that we use it everyday. As Mr. Huler describes in his book, we all turn on the water faucet and we all walk the sidewalks or ride a bike or drive on streets everyday, but no one knows how they appear.

One interesting idea from the book that relates to the CIP is the idea that cities don't actually build roads, they rebuild them. If you think about it, very few roads in Dover were "built" by the City of Dover - Venture Drive is one I can think of. The majority were built by private landowners who wished to make their land available to others, and needed to create a way to access that land. In many cases the road is then "turned over" to the City and becomes a public road. The City then repairs and maintains the roadway. This is the largest component of the CIP, road reconstruction; Dover has over 130 miles of roadway to maintain.

Other areas we see in the CIP are related to utilities, culture and recreation, public safety, education and transportation elements. These areas are important and round out the capital needs the community has.

Beginning in October, the Planning Board and City Council will discuss the CIP. Departments will make presentation and explain their needs, and I hope to develop a easy to follow guide for residents to follow along with and be part of the process. Watch this blog, our twitter, face book and the City's web site for more information, times and dates for meetings. You need to be involved with this important, if overlooked area of government.