Kalkaska, Leelanau Weigh-In on The Grand Vision
LINKS TO THE MAPS ARE AT BOTTOM OF PAGE!
(Traverse City, Michigan) – Over 350 people participated last week at the Kalkaska and Leelanau county workshops conducted as part of the expanded scope of The Grand Vision. Later this month, three more citizen workshops will be conducted in Antrim (May 27), Benzie (May 28) and Wexford Counties (May 27).
"Based upon all accounts, the workshop (in Kalkaska) was a smashing success," said Jack Kelly, Kalkaska County Zoning Administrator. "Residents …understand that the county's health and prosperity is linked to that of the Grand Traverse Region as a whole, and they are committed to using this workshop as a springboard for continuing community dialogue in the months and years to come."
Kristin Smith, Senior Planner with Leelanau County said, "Workshop participants enthusiastically shared what they believed were key elements for the preservation and enjoyment of (Leelanau) county for many generations to come."
According to The Grand Vision team, the new six-county area for the land use and transportation study now encompasses some 109 governmental units. "Our hope is to have these units of government recognize what the people in this area really desire," added Marsha Smith, chair of the Public Involvement Committee for The Grand Vision.
The county workshops, which will supplement the work done by about 1,500 participants at previous workshops in Grand Traverse County, offer local residents the chance to mark-up maps and show how they would like their counties to grow over the next 20 to 50 years.
Findings from the county-specific workshops will be combined with results from the earlier sessions, in-depth research by the Grand Vision consulting team, and surveys to create unique, computerized "scenario planning" graphics. All citizens of the six-county region will be able to view those scenarios online and in print, and then choose their favorites during a "Grand Vision Decision" process that occurs in September.
