Leveraging Private Sector

Investments and Public

Funds to Support Smart

Growth Through the Lens of Greenprinting

Wolfe Tone, Maine State Director wolfe.tone@tpl.org; (207) 772-7424

Looking Back: GrowSmart’s 2005 Summit and

Charting Maine’s Future

•Protect and enhance Maine’s Quality of

Place: promote the revitalization of Maine’s

towns and cities; augment land and farm

conservation; protect traditional access to

Maine forests, farms and lakes

•Provide substantial new visioning and

planning resources to help towns reach

consensus on how they wish to grow, and then

implement their vision.

Brookings Institute Recommendations:

Combine Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and

facilitated conversations to make informed, strategic

decisions about land conservation and resource

protection priorities - regionally

Central Penobscot Valley and the Lake Region

Community Greenprints

Conservation

Finance

Analysis

Greenprinting /

GIS Analysis Action Planning

Regional Goal

Setting and

Constituency

Building

Greenprinting in Maine

Lake Region Central Penobscot Valley

The Greenprinting Model

Assign relative weightings that reflect community or regional priorities.

Create alternative scenarios by adding additional criteria or modifying relative importance of existing criteria.

Combine the building blocks into a composite conservation priority map.

50%

10%

10%

30%

Composite

Wildlife Protection

Park Equity

Water Quality

Trail Connections

Articulation of Six Conservation Goals (CPVGP)

Protect Habitat and

Unfragmented Natural Areas

Maintain Scenic Values

and Protect Scenic Vistas

Protect Working

Landscapes

Protect Water Quality

Establish Areas for

Public Access and

Recreation

Create Trails

CPVGP – 6 Action Items

Pursue land conservation

implementation strategies

that utilize Greenprint maps

Integrate regional

coordination and planning.

Bring communities together

for problem solving: • Economic

• Transit

• Demographic

• Environmental

Action Planning Outcomes

LRGP – 5 Action Items

Promote Conservation of

Natural Resources and

Recreation to Support the

Economy/Tourism

Discuss and Determine

Appropriate Methods for

Financing Open Space

Protection Projects in Mapped

Priority Area

Schedule, Budgets, and Sources

Schedule:

• CPV: 3/2007-6/2009

• LR: 2/2010-4/2011

Budgets: ~$185,000

Sources:

• Public: Municipal & State

• Private

- State Foundations

- Individual Philanthropy

Regional Municipalities

23% State Planning

Grant 8%

Foundations 29%

Individual Philanthropy

40%

Central Penobscot Valley

Regional Municipalities

11%

Foundations 89%

Lake Region

• Stronger partnerships between conservation non-profits and

municipalities

• Genesis of new Conservation Commissions in Harrison and

Conservation Committee in Otisfield

• Integrating/Training of GP maps with Selectboards, Planning

Boards, and Code Enforcement Officers

• Regional Trail Mapping: Lake Region Tourism and Heart of

Penobscot Regional Trails

• Strategic Acquisitions: Hackers Hill, Perley Mill Community

Forest, Raymond Community Forest; Case for Holden

Community Forest

- Including, Local votes for local conservation dollars

Sample of Tangible Outcomes

Challenges

• 2008 - 2010

• Loss of two local champions (CPV)

• Planning vs. jobs and the economy

• Constricting program funding

• Internal staff capacity

Take-aways

• Tough to maintain regional momentum

• Local leadership was fundamental to success

• Success demands a returning focus on

outcomes

Lessons Learned

Engagement Thru Time

Trust for Public Land

Regional Partners

Central Penobscot Valley Greenprint

• http://tplgis.org/Penobscot_Greenprint/

• www.tpl.org/penobscot-valley-community-greenprint-report

• Heart of Penobscot Trails (watch this space)

Lake Region Greenprint

• http://tplgis.org/lakeregiongreenprint/ (pass. prot.)

• www.tpl.org/sebago-lake-region-greenprint

Conservation Vision and GIS

• www.tpl.org/services/conservation-vision-and-gis

Resources