Community Outreach and Involvement – Above Green

(1-2 points)

Intent

To encourage responsiveness to community needs by involving the people who live or work in the community in project design and planning and in decisions about how it should be improved or how it should change over time.

Requirements

Option 1. Community outreach (1 point)

Engage the community in the following ways. Each activity must be led by the development team and be directly related to the LEED-ND project. Predesign Meet with adjacent property owners, residents, business owners, and workers; local planning and community development officials; and any current residents or workers at the project site to solicit and document their input on the proposed project before beginning design. Preliminary design Advertise and host at least one open community meeting other than an official public hearing or recurring citizen advisory meeting, to generate comments on the preliminary project design concept. Work directly with community associations and/or the local government to advertise the meeting(s). Collect and summarize comments generated at the meeting(s). Modify the project’s preliminary design as a direct result of community input, or if modifications are not made, explain why community input did not generate design modifications. Ongoing communication Establish ongoing means for communication between the developer and the community throughout the design and construction phases and, in cases where the developer maintains any control, after construction.

Option 2. Charrette (2 points)

Comply with Option 1 and conduct a design charrette or interactive workshop of at least two days that is open to the public and includes, at a minimum, participation by a representative group of nearby property owners, residents, business owners, and workers in the preparation of conceptual project plans and drawings.

Option 3. Endorsement program (2 points)

Comply with Option 1 and obtain an endorsement from an ongoing local or regional nongovernmental program that systematically reviews and endorses smart growth development projects under a rating or jury system.