[StBernard] LA Speaks: Where the Rubber Meets the Road

[Westley Annis]

Where the Rubber Meets the Road
Friday, September 7, 2007

Now that South Louisiana has a clear plan for the future of its coast,
communities and economies, it's time to get moving. The Louisiana Speaks
Regional Plan <http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/static.html?id=161>  was
released last May, and is the result of 18 months of work by some of the top
planners in Louisiana and the U.S., built upon and validated by the voices
of 27,000 Louisiana residents. Since then, the Louisiana Speaks team
(Champions <http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/static.html?id=44>  and staff
from both the Louisiana Recovery Authority <http://www.lra.louisiana.gov>
and Center for Planning Excellence <http://www.planningexcellence.org> ) has
been working hard to prioritize the 100-plus action items identified in the
Regional Plan. 

Click here <http://www.louisianaspeaks.org/showdoc.html?id=16651>  to see
what the Louisiana Speaks team is already rolling on, which action items
were accomplished in the 2007 Session of the Legislature, and details on our
top ten next steps:

1.	Establish an Office of State Planning & an independent Louisiana
Speaks leadership group to monitor and support its activities 
2.	Fund and build recovery-critical transportation infrastructure
(focusing immediate attention on funding projects with vital
economic-recovery value and/or critical evacuation importance) 
3.	Create a "Louisiana Location Index" (a database-driven, publicly
accessible map that categorizes land in Louisiana based on its development
suitability)
	
4.	Create Model Development and Zoning Codes (a state specific body of
zoning and development regulation statutes offered as a free resource to
local jurisdictions) 
5.	Use the Louisiana Speaks Plan to Guide the Road Home Corporation (so
the acquired lands are managed in coordination with Louisiana Speaks
principles) 
6.	Focus public investment into developed areas and centers 
7.	Establish a State Trust Fund to Revitalize Communities 
8.	Establish a State Trust Fund to Acquire High-Risk or Environmentally
Sensitive Land 
9.	Locate and Design Schools and Medical Facilities to Create Better
Neighborhoods and Spur Community Development 
10.	Build Greener 

The entire Regional Plan is online at www.louisianaspeaks.org
<http://www.louisianaspeaks.org> .