MEMORANDUM

TO: City Council

FROM: David J. Deutsch, City Manager

RE: Green Infrastructure Strategy Plan

DATE: 8/28/03

In April, Council held a public hearing, at which time, the City’s Green Infrastructure (GI) Inventory Map was adopted. In a 4/16/03 memo to Council, there was detailed background information as to how the GI Inventory Map was prepared by input from the City’s Environmental and Wildlife Habitat Advisory Group (EWHAG) and two public forums (see Attachment 1). The Background section of the memo explains staff’s intention to prepare a corresponding “guidance” document or strategy plan to implement the elements on the GI Inventory Map. The Strategy Plan has been written and is in final draft form (see Attachment 2). The EWHAG worked with staff over this past summer to finalize the Strategy Plan so that it would, after Council adoption, be used as a tool to create a Citywide interconnected GI system.

Since the Council adopted the GI Inventory Map in April, an overlay to it has been prepared. The overlay was initially a piece of clear plastic that had elements of GI hand drawn on it (e.g. hubs, nodes and linkages). The City’s Information Technology (IT) Geographic Information Systems (GIS) staff put the elements from the overlay into layers within the GI Inventory Map. As a result, this information shows how the GI system could be interconnected through existing and future hubs, nodes and linkages (see Attachment 3).

In preparation of Council’s review of the GI Strategy Plan, during the week of 8/18/03, a total of 181 letters were mailed to Stakeholders, including area homeowner association boards/civic associations, the Chamber of Commerce, and the development community as to the availability of the draft Strategy Plan for their review and comment. Stakeholders were encouraged to obtain a copy of the Plan at the Planning Department. Input from Stakeholders was also solicited, either by written and electronic mail comment, in the event a person could not attend the Council meeting. No written or electronic comments have been received at this time.

Analysis

The GI Strategy Plan is intended to be a working document. The Plan addresses all aspects of GI toward a whole, interconnected Citywide system. Several of the programs mentioned in the Plan are State-funded. The Maryland Green Print Program was budgeted last fiscal year at $35 million. Information as to the amount of funding in the current fiscal year is not available. It is likely this Program will experience a reduction in funding due to budgetary constraints at the State level.

Nine recommendations have resulted from the preparation of the Plan. Council adoption of these recommendations will be the initial steps in the direction toward the interconnected GI system. Of the nine recommendations, the first one is most important. An overlay to the GI Inventory Map adds the connections and linkages to the initial Map that was adopted by Council in April.

Recommendation

The GI Strategy Plan has been completed to implement the GI Inventory Map. Both of these two processes are consistent with goals in the City’s Wildlife Habitat Management Guidelines. The GI Strategy Plan is the working document that will enable the GI Inventory Map to guide the establishment of a whole, interconnected GI system. Staff recommends the GI Strategy Plan be APPROVED.

Green Infrastructure Map
Green Infrastructure Strategy Plan

DJD:LJS