Comprehensive Planning

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Next meeting:

  • Tue, Sep 26 at 6:00 PM -- Leverett Safety Complex meeting room

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The Leverett Comprehensive Plan is an initiative undertaken by the Planning Board

And you're invited!

Also known as Master Planning, Comprehensive Planning began in Summer 2021 and is expected to be completed by Fall 2023.

Purpose

Leverett has never had a Comprehensive Plan. Its zoning bylaws reflect a time when the threat was overdevelopment, decades ago. Today, the Town struggles with affordability, the school budget, and resources for municipal services. These are social justice issues that affect our Town livability.

Process

The planning process includes Massachusetts state grants, planning and land use consultants, working and steering groups composed of residents who are not on the Planning Board, collaboration among boards and commissions of town government, and community vision meetings to discuss our future as a town.

The final deliverable will be a Comprehensive Plan with evidence-based and community-driven goals and guidelines to inform Leverett policy-making for years to come. The Comprehensive Plan will establish goals and guidance for evidence-based, community-driven development options that aim to broaden our tax base and create shared prosperity.

The two most important qualities of a successful Comprehensive Plan are that it be evidence-based and community-driven:

  1. Evidence-based: the Planning Board and the Town Administrator have developed State funding in order to work with planning consultants who will use their land use and economic development expertise to gather, evaluate, and communicate the evidence of Leverett's policy needs and economic needs, past, present, and future.
  2. Community-driven: public meetings, with meaningful participation, will be critical to the success of this work. At those meetings, all Leverett residents will be invited to identify, learn about and discuss problems, to envision our values as a community, and to learn about the costs, benefits, and tradeoffs of different economic scenarios devised from the evidence of existing conditions.

For the detail-oriented, please review our project timeline subpage: https://leverett.ma.us/p/2105/Leverett-Comprehensive-Plan-project-timeline

Outcomes

The immediate outcome of the Comprehensive Plan will be a systematic review of our zoning regulations to explore development pathways that are suitable for our local economic goals while reinforcing our long-standing commitment to environmental protection.

The long-term outcome of the Comprehensive Plan will be a common point of reference for collective decisions about zoning, municipal investments, environmental conservation, livability, and social equity.

Our Commitment

Creation of a Comprehensive Plan falls under the responsibility of the Planning Board, as required by Section 81D. The Leverett Planning Board has seven members, each elected to five-year terms. Planning Board members have a diverse range of direct experience overseeing town zoning and deliberating over plans proposed by community members and developers, designing amendments to zoning bylaws, and communicating and collaborating with civic leaders and community members.

All Planning Board members have a personal and professional commitment to local town government and development policy-making that is evidence-based and community-driven.

Your feedback is welcome at any time. If you have questions, ideas, or concerns, we want to hear from you.

If you have questions about this web page, it is maintained by two members of the Planning Board:

If you have questions about the Comprehensive Planning project or process, you may reach out to any member of the Planning Board. You are also welcome to attend monthly Planning Board meetings. These public meetings are typically scheduled on the second Wednesday of the month at 7:30 PM. You will find the Zoom link in the Town Calendar event for each meeting.

Previous meetings:

Comprehensive Plan Files

Name Uploaded Date
   Comprehensive Plan Phase 2 - One Stop grant application submitted by Margie June 2022.pdf 2022-06-21 13:21:45
   Comprehensive Plan Phase 2 RFP.pdf 2023-03-10 09:24:32
   Comprehensive Plan update to the Leverett Selectboard April 11 2023.pdf 2023-04-12 21:12:32
   CP Phase 2 - Steering Group Letter to Town Meeting.pdf 2023-04-26 21:06:44
   CP Phase 2 - Steering Group Meeting 1 Presentation.pdf 2023-04-18 17:57:05
   FY23 Community One Stop for Growth Comprehensive Plan Award Letter - Leverett.pdf 2023-03-10 09:15:44
   Innes Associates 20230107 Leverett Proposal l-r.pdf 2023-03-10 09:31:03
   Innes Associates Price Proposal 202301171250.pdf 2023-03-10 09:31:04
   Innes proposal for Leverett Master Plan RFP.pdf 2022-06-21 13:00:05
   Innes Sample - Scituate 2040 Master Plan.pdf 2022-06-21 13:42:25
   Innes Sample - Scituate 2040 Master Plan Appendices.pdf 2022-06-21 13:36:09
   Leverett Comp Plan Steering Group Flyer.pdf 2023-03-10 09:40:47
   Leverett Comprehensive Plan Logic Model - March 2023.pdf 2023-04-10 08:56:53
   Leverett Comprehensive Plan Phase 1 Report - Final June 27 2022.pdf 2022-07-22 08:15:36
   MA One Stop Grant Application for Leverett Master Plan AWARDED.pdf 2022-06-21 13:00:09
   Master Plan RFP phase 1 PUBLIC COPY revision January 2022-docx.pdf 2022-06-21 13:00:13
   SG Steering Group Meeting 1 Agenda - 20230417 Agenda - Committee 1.pdf 2023-04-11 09:21:27
   SG Steering Group Meeting 2 Agenda - 20230503 Agenda - Committee 2.pdf 2023-05-03 20:27:19
   SG Steering Group Minutes - 20230417 April 17 Meeting 1.pdf 2023-06-28 18:26:38
   SG Steering Group Minutes - 20230510 May 10 Meeting 2.pdf 2023-09-21 13:47:56
   SG Steering Group Minutes - 20230627 June 27 Meeting 3.pdf 2023-09-21 13:47:58
   SG Steering Group Minutes - 20230725 July 25 Meeting 4.pdf 2023-09-21 13:47:59
   Town of Leverett Comprehensive Plan Volunteer Application and Survey Results.pdf 2022-06-21 13:00:20
   VHB proposal for Leverett Master Plan RFP.pdf 2022-06-21 13:03:06
   WG Meeting 1 Minutes - Leverett Comprehensive Plan Phase I.pdf 2022-06-21 13:47:40
   WG Meeting 2 Minutes - Leverett Comprehensive Plan Phase I.pdf 2022-06-21 13:47:36
   WG Meeting 3 Minutes - Leverett Comprehensive Plan Phase 1 Working Group.pdf 2022-06-21 13:50:47
   WG Meeting 4 Minutes - Leverett Comprehensive Plan Phase 1 Working Group.pdf 2022-06-21 13:50:49
Additional Info
Calendar of Events
COA -- POSTED
Fri, Sep 22, 2023, 10:00 am - 11:30 am
Town Hall
Posted to: Council on Aging
Mon, Sep 25, 2023, 7:00 pm - 9:30 pm
Zoom
Tue, Sep 26, 2023, 6:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Leverett Safety Complex meeting room
Posted to: Planning Board
Select Board -- SCHEDULED
Tue, Sep 26, 2023, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Town Hall
Posted to: Select Board
Board of Health -- SCHEDULED
Mon, Oct 2, 2023, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Town Hall and ZOOM
Posted to: Board of Health
Board of Health -- DRAFT AGENDA
Mon, Oct 2, 2023, 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
Town Hall and ZOOM
Posted to: Board of Health
Latest News
The Friends of Leverett Pond have rescheduled an Eco-Harvester ™ to be on Leverett Pond for September 12-14 to help control invasive aquatic plants.
The Town of Leverett is looking for a Custodian and an Animal Control Officer
Interested, please call the Town Hall at 413-548-9150 or email selectboard@leverett.ma.us or the Leverett Police Department at 413-549-4994.
The Library is closed this week to allow a new energy efficient heating system to be installed. Project funded by Mass DOER Green Communities Program. More details on the Energy Committee webpage