HomeMy WebLinkAbout43. 12-288
MAY 22, 2012 12-288 RESOLUTION
(CARRIED__7-0_____LOST_______LAID OVER_______WITHDRAWN_______)
PURPOSE: APPROVE CITY OF OSHKOSH SUSTAINABILITY PLAN
INITIATED BY: COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
PLAN COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: Approved
WHEREAS, a “Sustainability Plan” has been prepared with input and support
provided by a Steering Committee, Sustainability Advisory Board, Plan Commission,
Parks Advisory Board, Storm Water Utility Board, Transit Advisory Board, Traffic
Review Advisory Board, Landmarks Commission, the Common Council and the
community at large; and
WHEREAS, said Plan sets forth recommendations to improve the quality of life
in Oshkosh by incorporating sustainability practices to meet the environmental,
economic and social needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs; and
WHEREAS, the Steering Committee, Sustainability Advisory Board, Plan
Commission, Parks Advisory Board, Storm Water Utility Board, Transit Advisory Board,
Traffic Review Advisory Board, and Landmarks Commission recommend approval of
said Plan.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the Common Council of the City of
Oshkosh that the "Sustainability Plan”, on file at the City Clerk's Office, is hereby
approved and adopted.
OJHKOJH
ON THE WATER
TO: Honorable Mayor and Members of the Common Council
FROM: Robin Leslie, Principal Planner
DATE: May 16, 2012
RE: Resolution Adopting the City of Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
(Landmarks Commission, Parks Advisory Board, Storm Water Utility Board,
Sustainability Advisory Board, Traffic Review Advisory Board, Transit Advisory
Board and Plan Commission Recommend Approval)
BACKGROUND/ANALYSIS
In 2009, a steering committee was established to create a sustainability plan for Oshkosh. The Planning
Services Division assembled and chaired the committee with representatives from the community
(citizens, Chamber of Commerce, Oshkosh Area School District, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh,
and Wisconsin Public Service), city boards (Landmarks Commission, Plan Commission and
Sustainability Advisory Board), Common Council and city departments (Community Development,
Public Works, Administrative Services, Transportation, and Parks).
The committee modeled the organization of the plan on the City of Eau Claire's Comprehensive Plan
Sustainability Chapter. The chapters of the Oshkosh plan cover the following topics: Energy, Local Food,
Environmental Conservation, Atmosphere, Managed Waste, Safe and Healthy Community, Land Use and
Development, Transportation and Mobility, Economic Development and Government.
A draft of the document was reviewed by the Sustainability Advisory Board and by city staff.
Recommended changes made by those groups were then reviewed by the Steering Committee and
accepted, revised or declined to produce the August 2011 draft document. This draft was approved by
the Sustainability Advisory Board on June 6, 2011, and forwarded to the Common Council for a
workshop discussion with the Steering Committee, Sustainability Advisory Board and Plan
Commission on August 30, 2011. At that point, Council directed staff to solicit additional comments
from the public and other advisory boards and also to consider how this plan could be reconciled with
other City plans.
During the month of December 2011, a public open house was held and the plan was reviewed by the
Storm Water Utility Board, Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Committee, Advisory Parks
Board, Traffic Review Advisory Board, Board of Health, Landmarks Commission and the Transit
Advisory Board. Comments from those meetings and the public were reviewed by the Steering
Committee and were accepted, revised or declined to produce the February 2012 document. This draft
was then forwarded to the Council on March 13, 2012, for another workshop with the Steering
Committee and Sustainability Advisory Board. At that meeting, the Council determined the plan was
ready to be forwarded to the Plan Commission for a recommendation but stressed the importance of
the development of an implementation plan for the action items. On April 3, 2012, the Plan
Commission approved the plan as an independent document instead of as an amendment to the
Comprehensive Plan and also emphasized the importance of an implementation plan with a cost
analysis for the action items.
FISCAL IMPACT
Any additional costs will be calculated during the implementation plan process for the plan and will be
reviewed by Council.
It is important to note that the adoption of the plan does not obligate the Council to enact any of its
recommendations. Rather, adoption would give the Sustainability Advisory Board and staff direction
on how to manage/implement the plan according to resources that may or may not be available.
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends adoption of the City of Oshkosh Sustainability Plan. Upon Common Council vote
for adoption, the Sustainability Advisory Board will begin work on an implementation plan that
includes a cost analysis for all action items.
Approved,
City Manager
The full version of the City of Oshkosh Sustainability Plan can be
found at
http://vwvw.ci.oshkosh.wi.us/SustainableOshkosh/
Board Approval Date Conditions of
Recommendation
Sustainability Advisory Board June 6, 2011
Parks Advisory Board December 12, 2011
Plan Commission April 3, 2012 Approved as an independent
document instead of as an
amendment to the
Comprehensive Plan and also
emphasized the importance of
an implementation plan with a
cost analysis for the action
items.
Traffic Review Advisory April 10, 2012
Board
Landmarks Commission April 11, 2012
Transit Advisory Board April 25, 2012
Storm Water Utility Board April 26, 2012 Plan to include an analysis to
identify the costs to the City
of implementing the
recommendations contained
within the plan.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
How did Oshkosh come to the point of writing a sustainability plan? Even though Oshkosh
has been sustainable in some areas for years without labeling activities like infill
development, historic preservation,tree programs, floodplain management, etc., in 2007,
the Oshkosh Common Council signed the U.S. Mayors Climate Protection Agreement and
re-instituted the disbanded Energy & Environmental Advisory Board (currently named the
Sustainability Advisory Board)to advise the City Manager and Council on specific energy
and environmental issues. In 2008, this board held its first meeting,the city joined the
International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and plans began for the
city's first sustainability plan.
Planning Process
The Sustainability Plan Steering Committee was established in 2009 and the Planning
Services Division of the Community Development Department was directed to guide the
process. Planning Services assembled and chaired the Sustainability Plan Steering
Committee with representatives from the community (citizens, Chamber of Commerce,
Oshkosh Area School District, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, and Wisconsin Public
Service), city boards (Landmarks Commission, Plan Commission, and Sustainability
Advisory Board), Common Council and city departments (Community Development,
Public Works, Administrative Services, Transportation, and Parks).
The Sustainability Plan Steering Committee modeled the organization of this document
on the City of Eau Claire, Wisconsin's Comprehensive Plan Sustainability Chapter.
Members also reviewed plans from other Wisconsin municipalities, including La Crosse,
Green Bay, Middleton, Madison and Steven's Point, and were introduced to the Natural
Step process and the American Planning Association Policy Guide on Planning for
Sustainability. Ten chapters were drafted by one or more committee members and
discussed over one or more meetings. The chapters cover the following topics:
Energy Safe and Healthy Community
Local Food Land Use and Development
Environmental Conservation Transportation and Mobility
Atmosphere Economic Development
Managed Waste Government
A draft of the document was reviewed by the Sustainability Advisory Board and by city
staff. Recommended changes made by those groups were then reviewed by the Steering
Committee and accepted, revised or declined to produce the August 2011 draft
5 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
document. This draft was approved by the Sustainability Advisory Board on June 6, 2011,
and forwarded to the Common Council for a workshop discussion with the Steering
Committee, Sustainability Advisory Board and Plan Commission on August 30, 2011. At
that point, Council directed staff to solicit additional comments from the public and other
advisory boards and to also consider how this plan could be reconciled with other City
plans. During the month of December 2011, a public open house was held and the plan
was reviewed by the Storm Water Utility Board, Chamber of Commerce Government
Affairs Committee, Advisory Parks Board, Traffic Review Board, Board of Health,
Landmarks Commission and the Transit Advisory Board. Comments from those meetings
and the public were reviewed by the Steering Committee and accepted, revised or
declined to produce the February 2012 document. This draft was then forwarded to the
Council on March 13, 2012, for another workshop with the Steering Committee and
Sustainability Advisory Board. At that meeting, the Council was comfortable with
forwarding the document to the Plan Commission for a recommendation but stressed the
importance of the development of an implementation plan for the action items. On April
3, 2012,the Plan Commission approved the Plan as an independent document instead of
as an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan and also emphasized the importance of an
implementation plan with a cost analysis for the action items. And finally, on May 22,
2012, the Council approved the Oshkosh Sustainability Plan.
Plan Format
The format of each chapter begins with an introduction to provide definition for the issue
and to give local context. An objective is stated, followed by sets of policy
recommendations. Policies were chosen primarily for actions the city has within its power
to carry out. But because this is a community plan, the city is not necessarily the only or
best agent to carry out a recommended action. The committee tried to be clear when an
action or leadership was expected to be a responsibility of another particular entity (such
as the county, state, or an institution,) or group (such as individuals or businesses) and to
be open when the potential actors are to be determined.
Recommendations were phrased as action statements, with recognition that they cover
ranges of difficulty, expense,time required, and public concern. The recommendations
are meant to stimulate innovation and provide guidance to decision makers. They are not
precise prescriptions to solve problems, but as a group they do suggest priorities and
potentially fruitful directions for the city and citizens.
Action Plan
The last action of the Steering Committee was to work with City of Oshkosh staff to
identify items that could provide the city with an Action Plan of specific short-to medium-
term projects. Some of the projects were already planned or in progress, but clearly
address recommendations in the plan. Other Action Plan items were selected to give the
city some stretch goals to prove their ability to lead by example.
6 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
INTRODUCTION
The sustainability plan for San Francisco begins with a challenging but honest question:
"Sustainability is a word you have to spell to people over the phone. How can there
be a community plan based on a word that is not in common use?"
For the City of Oshkosh,the honest answer is not simple, and the path has not been
direct. The city has hosted nearly two years of education, debate, staff development, and
report drafting by a Sustainability Plan Steering Committee. City staff, citizens,
organizational representatives and civic leaders came to the table with a mix of
professional experience, common sense, questions, concerns, and enough goodwill to see
the job to completion. They were at it long enough to break in new city planning staff,
watch their founding board change its name, and most significantly, think about the
future of the city during a time of great uncertainty about the direction of our planet,
country, and state.
For the City of Oshkosh,the Comprehensive Plan is the place we list and integrate our
best ideas and vision for the future. An early decision by the committee was that a
community plan based on sustainability should make its first entry as an amendment to
the Comprehensive Plan. This decision recognizes that the people of Oshkosh will need
time to grasp ways that sustainable approaches will change their community, or in some
cases, conserve their community. Ideally, the best sustainability ideas should simply
become the way things are done in Oshkosh.
Defining Sustainability
A first step in defining sustainability for a city is to decide what we want to sustain into
the future. Here is the Steering Committee's list of which aspects of Oshkosh are worth
sustaining, or changing to become sustainable:
Energy production from renewable resources
Local food production, sales and consumption
The city's natural resources
A safe and healthy atmosphere
Responsibly managed waste facilities
' A safe, healthy, engaged, and diverse community
Safe, efficient and environmentally sound transportation
A local economy that attracts new businesses and encourages existing
businesses to balance profit, people, and planet
Development patterns and buildings that support these goals
Cost-effective, socially responsible and environmentally sound
governmental practices to meet community needs.
7 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
This list captures the two elements common to most definitions of sustainability: balance
and time. The balance is between three major elements of our world, especially cities.
One is the human population and society they create. Another is the economic system
that creates the wealth of goods and services to meet basic human needs, and can
provide for our desires for leisure, recreation, and inspiration. The third is the
environment supporting all life, providing goods and services that would burden our
economy and lives if we had to replace them with artificial systems. This trio goes by
many names: People-Profit-Planet, Triple Bottom Line or Societies-Economies-
Ecosystems. Finally, the time element of sustainability is to come up with ways that this
balance continues into the future for many generations. A short version combining
balance and time is commonly phrased as:
Sustainability is meeting the current environmental, social and economic needs
of our community while ensuring the ability of future generations to meet their
needs.
The Steering Committee does not claim any powers to see the future, but past and
current trends provide some guidance. Many recommendations of"sustainable" practices
are attempts to slow or halt unsustainable practices--those that lack balance and those
we don't believe can be continued long into the future. Some of the recommendations
we publish in 2012 may turn out not to be sustainable, but this plan was written with the
faith that a safe, healthy, diverse, educated population supported by a stable economy
and intact environment will find ways to fulfill our goals (and maybe find a simpler name
for sustainability).
8 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
GOAL AND OBJECTIVES
Goal: Improve the quality of life in Oshkosh by incorporating sustainability practices to
meet the environmental, economic and social needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Objectives
Energy: Foster energy conservation and local energy production from renewable
resources.
Local Food: Promote local food production, sales and consumption.
Environmental Conservation: Protect and enhance the city's natural resources.
Atmosphere: Provide a safe and healthy atmosphere for people, nature and the planet.
Managing Waste: Promote awareness, reduce initial consumption, promote reuse,
increase recycling and reduce the amount of substances entering landfills.
Safe and Healthy Community: Promote healthy living, civic engagement, cultural and
ethnic diversity; provide safety and protect citizens from disease.
Land Use and Development: Guide and promote sustainable city-wide development
patterns and incorporate sustainable features into buildings and grounds.
Transportation and Mobility: Enhance and promote mobility alternatives to the
automobile; design safe, efficient and environmentally sound transportation
infrastructure; and connect to other local and regional networks.
Economic Development: Bolster the local economy by attracting sustainable businesses
and green-collar jobs, and encouraging existing businesses to become more sustainable.
GovernThent: Lead by example and foster sustainability policies and actions for cost-
effective, socially responsible and environmentally sound governmental practices to meet
community needs.
9 ( Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
ACTION PLAN FOR 2012
An action plan provides direction for accomplishing the objectives of the Sustainability
Plan. For the 2012 Action Plan, the Sustainability Plan Steering Committee has selected
policies for each objective. These are intended to be implemented in the short, medium
and long term according to the order they are listed. The action items will be reviewed by
the city's Sustainability Advisory Board, who will set targets, assign responsibilities, and
prepare an annual report. The annual report will show progress not only of Action Plan
items, but of the many other policies in the Sustainability Plan that may be guiding day to
day activities. The Sustainability Advisory Board will also update the Action Plan annually
with input from staff, City Council and citizens.
Goal: Improve the quality of life in the city of Oshkosh by incorporating sustainability
practices to meet the environmental, economic and social needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Objectives and Policies
Energy: Foster energy conservation and local energy production from renewable
resources.
1. Complete ICLEI Milestone 1. '
2. Publicize accomplishments of the McKinstry Plan as they are
implemented.
3. Investigate funding sources for energy conservation projects. -'
4. Consider installation of a solar project or a small wind turbine at a
municipal facility.
Local Food: Promote local food production, sales and consumption.
1. Identify one school to serve as an example for a small community garden project
2. Provide educational signage for existing community gardens.
3. Draft changes to the zoning ordinance to address community gardens as permitted or
conditional land uses in all zoning districts.
4. Work with residents to identify and convert vacant or city-owned land for
neighborhood food plots and gardens.
10 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
Environmental Conservation: Protect and enhance the city's natural resources.
1. Continue to follow the Capital Improvement Program in
implementing stormwater management plans to meet
Clean Water Act standards.
&
2. Complete second phase of shoreland restoration project at
Millers Bay.
3. Convert city-owned areas with annual plantings to
perennial plants and plant native species when possible. • �
4. Create an ordinance regulating the application and sale of
sealcoat products containing coal tar.
Atmosphere: Provide a safe and healthy atmosphere for people, nature and the planet.
1. Work with the Council to approve a terrace tree ordinance.
2. Develop guidelines for citizens to petition for quiet zones, quiet seasons or quiet
times in their neighborhoods.
3. Take ENERGY STAR challenge for communities,join ENERGY STAR and develop
programs to engage community.
Managing Waste: Promote awareness, reduce initial consumption, promote reuse,
increase recycling rates and reduce the amount of substances entering landfills.
1. Create composting ordinance. 3
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2. Explore partnership with the EPA WasteWise program.
3. Create incentives to promote zero-waste events.
4. Develop a plan to reduce waste (e.g., paper bags, plastic bottles,
plastic bags, e-waste, Styrofoam) and encourage the use of
biodegradables.
5. Develop cloth bag program.
Safe and Healthy Community: Promote healthy living, civic engagement, cultural and
ethnic diversity;provide safety and protect citizens from disease.
1. Continue to monitor results of beach testing program.
2. Continue to support park and recreational facilities that promote an active lifestyle.
3. Encourage local employers to meet criteria for Well Workplace designation.
11 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
Land Use and Development: Guide and promote sustainable city-wide development
patterns and incorporate sustainable features into buildings.
1. Continue investing for long-range revitalization of neighborhoods.
2. Collaborate with NeighborWorks and neighborhood associations on neighborhood
clean-up days.
3. Design the new city garage to meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design
(LEED) standards or similar program.
4. Create a collaborative inventory of existing vacant buildings, promote adaptive reuse
and establish working committee for these items.
Transportation and Mobility: Enhance and promote mobility alternatives to the
automobile;design safe, efficient and environmentally sound transportation
infrastructure; and connect to other local and regional networks.
1. Place a high priority on completion of the Riverwalk.
2. Continue bicycle lane striping and installation of bike
�i route signs as recommended in the Bicycle and
,, , �� Pedestrian Circulation Plan.
_1 3. Support implementation of connector and evening
gE
transit service.
Economic Development: Bolster the local economy by attracting sustainable businesses
and green-collar jobs, and encouraging existing businesses to become more sustainable.
1. Create a sustainable best practices document to hand out to event planners.
2. Encourage adoption of green building practices for new construction and renovation
of existing businesses.
3. Create a "Buy Local" campaign to encourage residents to spend more locally and to
educate them about the benefits of keeping their money in the Oshkosh area.
Government: Lead by example and foster sustainability policies and actions for cost-
effective, socially responsible and environmentally sound governmental practices to
meet community needs.
1. Develop an environmentally-friendly and socially responsible purchasing policy.
2. Support a recommendation for a green or white roof for the proposed central garage
project.
12 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan
3. Create a demonstration site for a rainwater project and/or rain barrels at a city-
owned facility.
4. Form a Green Team representing departments, designate a sustainability coordinator,
and hire an intern to implement sustainability activities and promote public
awareness
5. Develop a signage program for stormwater projects
6. Adopt a green building rating system for new municipal buildings, additions and
renovations.
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13 I Oshkosh Sustainability Plan