Thank you for your interest in Vision 2025 Goal 4 - Enhance Community Appeal.
Each Strategic Action below will form a workgroup. Please select as many Strategic Actions/Workgroups you wish to support and join. You will be contacted soon with information about upcoming meetings.
A. Strategic Action #10: Texas Innovation Corridor Futures Development Committee
1. Map existing and potential natural, passive, and active recreational property.
2. Commission a parcel inventory and existing land use analysis to assess all possible developable land near natural assets and prescribe priority use and re-use opportunities for these properties.
3. Map priority properties for conservation and identify potential funding mechanisms for acquisition of conservation easements or other mechanism to preserve critical natural lands.
4. Develop a memorandum of understanding between localities that outlines foundational zoning and land use controls for future developments that conserves the region’s natural resources, including the San Marcos River, other bodies of water in the region, the Hill Country, Black Land Prairies, parklands, and other areas.
5. Establish goals regarding the amount of available greenspace in the region and ensure that these goals are incorporated into the comprehensive planning efforts of the region’s localities.
Championed by Jeff Nydegger, Attorney at Winstead PC. GSMP liaison Jessica Inacio will assist.
This workgroup is already at capacity and is not accepting additional members at this time.
B. Strategic Action #1: Regional Asset Review and Community Score Card
(All data displayed in per capita basis)
1. Research best-practice communities what have developed a community scoreboard to track trends related to various aspects of quality of life and successfully communicate to stakeholders the improvements that have been achieved.
2. Track trends in education attainment, crime, residential building permits, commercial and industrial building permits, charitable giving, water and sewer permits, attendance at arts/cultural events, acres of parkland, etc. Other key indicators will be identified in the Metrics section of the Implementation Guidelines.
3. Publish the regional asset inventory and community scoreboard as a part of a marketing campaign that highlights the region as an ideal place to live for various demographics.
Championed by Pat Fernandez, Associate Broker at Hart Properties. GSMP liaison Katherine Terry will assist.
C. Strategic Action #7: Support Downtown Vibrancy
1. Investigate the Physical Downtown Experience
Identify the strengths and weaknesses of Downtown environments in GSMP communities through interactive, first-hand visits.
a. Define First Impressions: Conduct a windshield tour of each community to assess the curb appeal of both private / public spheres in the Downtown area, overall occupancy, as well as the ease and legibility of arrival via the primary road network. Consider multimodal access as available.
b. Assess Walkability & Safety: Conduct a walkability assessment in each community’s downtown area to more closely assess street, sidewalk, and building conditions that pertain to pedestrian comfort and safety. Relevant topics may include but are not exclusive to traffic conditions (speed), road directionality (one-way vs. two-way), intersection conditions (signaling, crosswalks), sidewalk and alley conditions (widths, furniture, lighting, signage), as well as beautification efforts and activation (landscape, cleanliness, shop fronts, public art, etc.).
c. Examine Maintenance Plans: Assess existing maintenance protocols and resources for both public and private domains in the Downtown area. Identify areas of strength and need as it relates to both short-term upkeep and long-term improvements.
d. Share the Findings: Host a workshop with the municipality and Downtown groups to share findings from the visit. Compile feedback with resources and recommendations to address concerns identified during the investigation. After all visits are complete, share the findings across GSMP communities to highlight different strengths and weaknesses within the network.
2. Connect Downtown Vitality to Policy
Following the in-person investigations outlined above, assess local policies and codes that may be directly or indirectly impacting the Downtown area.
a. Review City-wide Policies Impacting Vitality: Identify policy barriers, if any, to Downtown vitality. Determine if opening / operating a business and/or development in the Downtown area is more or less challenging than other areas of the community. Understand the role that the local Land Development Code, permitting processes, and imposed fees may play in high or low commercial and residential occupancy rates, as well as continued innovation and improvement.
b. Identify Local Policy Opportunities: Assess opportunities to prioritize and encourage Downtown vitality through strategic policy or programs, such as incentives (fee waivers, expedited permitting, waived parking requirements, etc.), grants (Room to Grow grants, BIG grants) that could be executed at the municipal level.
c. Identify Alternative Strategies: Determine alternative and/or supplemental paths to improve Downtown vitality alongside or in lieu of city-initiated policy. Identify possible partners (local Downtown organizations, real estate groups, property owners) or programs (regional, state, national) that could be tapped into to attract targeted industries / development and encourage private innovation for Downtown improvement.
d. Share the Findings: Host a follow-up workshop with the municipality and Downtown groups to share the findings from the policy investigation. Compile recommendations to address identified concerns. After all policy reviews are complete, share the findings across GSMP communities to highlight different policy approaches and strategies.
Championed by Jo Anna Gilland, Economic Development Representative at Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative, and Scott Burton, President of Benchmark Insurance. GSMP liaison Maggie Gillespie will assist.