Regional land-use initiative sets dates for community forums

The Mountain Landscape Initiative's (MLI) outreach team has developed a draft DVD documentary featuring a collection of interviews on regional attitudes towards growth and land-use planning.

Project outreach coordinator Gabriel Cumming presented the video, tentatively entitled "Balance in the Mountains," to the MLI advisory committee March 13 at the Southwestern Commission office in Sylva.

The MLI is a three-phase pilot project of the Southwestern Commission (the council of governments serving Region A, the seven westernmost counties of North Carolina) and an umbrella regional effort of the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina, to create guidelines for responsible growth.

As part of phase one, Cumming and fellow outreach coordinator Dr. Carla Norwood have conducted 40 open-ended interviews (some individual, some group), comprising a total of 70 stakeholders throughout Region A plus the Qualla Boundary.

The documentary shows excerpts from these interviews and aims to represent the core values and common themes expressed about growth challenges and planning issues facing the region.

Interviewees include developers, farmers, local officials, property rights advocates, realtors, environmental advocates, community development organizations, civic clubs, etc.

Not all people interviewed appear in the documentary, according to Cumming.

Advisory committee members viewed the draft video and offered feedback and editing suggestions for improving the final product.

Cumming called the DVD "a work in progress," and said that between now and April he would be refining the documentary and working to increase public knowledge and understanding of the project.

Norwood and the Southwestern Commission's Ryan Sherby have also been gathering landscape change data for the region and will be working to organize the data and put it in a more accessible form.

MLI community forum dates established

One way Cumming and MLI project leaders will communicate the project objectives to a wider audience is through a series of eight public forums.

Cumming announced that dates for the MLI community forums are set (except for the Qualla Boundary) for April.

The forums will take place in each Region A county (plus the Qualla Boundary) and will last all day. During the five weekday forums, they will hold a public drop-in from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. where citizens can ask project-related questions and provide feedback. Finger foods will be served from 6-6:30 p.m.

They will then host an evening meeting from 6:30-8:30 p.m. in which they will screen the MLI documentary.

For weekend forums (Clay and Graham), the drop-in would be 10 a.m.-2:30 p.m., finger foods will be served 2:30-3 p.m. and the meeting and screening of the documentary will be 3-4:30 p.m.

After the film, they will break the audience into small discussion groups so the public can share their own views, concerns and visions for the region.

They will use input from the meetings to identify central themes and issues to help shape the MLI charrette workshop agenda in May.

Cumming asked advisory committee members to get involved as facilitators in their respective county forums and also help create awareness of the project by contacting various groups and civic organizations and informing them of the initiative.

He also requested that members consider presenting to a local group in their county or making an announcement to an organization about the community forums.

Bob Wagner with the Community Foundation of Western North Carolina asked if they could have someone from the community introduce the MLI project during the forums.

Cumming said he hoped that local leaders would participate in the forum.

He encouraged committee members to impart ideas on effective ways to reach the most people possible.

For more information on the MLI, visit their website at www.mountainlandscapesnc.org.

Community forum dates and locations

County Time Location

Macon- Thursday, April 3 Community Facilities Building

Haywood- Tuesday, April 8 Waynesville Rec Center

Swain- Thursday, April 10 SCC Campus, Almond School

Clay- Saturday, April 19 Courthouse Multipurpose Room

Cherokee- Tuesday, April 22 Murphy Library

Graham- Saturday, April 26 Community Building

Jackson Tuesday, April 29 Community Services Building