Plans are underway for the second phase of community engagement on Village Center Zoning. On August 1, in the third meeting of the Community Engagement Network, Network members had an opportunity to review the finalized engagement material and get answers to questions regarding the community engagement plans. This next phase comes after the Zoning and Planning Committee took a series of straw votes in June on 12 proposals related to zoning redesign. Three workshops were held in June, and the information gathered will be used to provide Planning Staff and Utile, the City’s consultant, to begin drafting Village Center Zoning, which will be presented to the community between mid-August and early October. Presentations will be made through a library exhibit, interactive platforms, and opportunities for public discussion/meetings with the Community Engagement Network.
The network’s membership consists of Newton community members from all over the city who applied in March/April of this year. Applicants had to agree that, as Network members, they would each conduct outreach to a segment of the community they are part of, make sure that the residents in that segment are aware of the opportunity to engage in the planning process, and obtain feedback from those residents on the different development scenarios.
Information about the August 1 meeting can be found here and here: Slides; Zoom Recording. Other information about Village Center Zoning and the Community Engagement Process can be found here.