COMPREHENSIVE PLAN
STEERING COMMITTEE MEETING
JUNE 15, 2010 MINUTES
POLICE DEPARTMENT TRAINING ROOM
519 NORTH GOOSE CREEK BLVD. GOOSE CREEK SC

I. Attendance:

Committee Members Present: Joel Arenson, Paul Connerty, Jerry Glass, Gayla McSwain, Doug Quinn, Jeffrey Smith, Tom Volkmar, Allen Wall
Committee Members Absent: Rick Buckner, Jerry Tekac, Barry Washington
BCD COG Staff Present: Jessica Gillis
City Staff Present: Daniel Ben-Yisrael and Sarah Hanson

Mr. Wall called the meeting to order at 5:37 p.m. He announced that Ms. Hellstrom had submitted her resignation from the ARB and thus her position with the Steering Committee.

II. Review of Minutes from April 20, 2010

Motion: Mr. Arenson made a motion to accept the minutes. Mr. Quinn seconded.
Discussion: There was none.
Vote: All in favor; none opposed.

III. Review of Previous Meeting

Ms. Gillis updated the Committee on the Sustainable Communities issue and reported that the Federal Government has yet to release the program, so until the COG knows what the government wants they can't go forward and make application for the program/funds.

IV. EDAC Update and Materials

Ms. Gillis asked if anyone had comments on the Community Facilities and Economic Development summaries. There was discussion about the wish to specifically list the places of worship within the area in order to be complete. Mr. Ben-Yisrael explained that he had forwarded the drafts to the respective department heads for their comments and was still awaiting additional information from them. The committee asked for clarification for some of the specific references within the draft. Mr. Connerty volunteered to create a summary of the job recruitment incentives currently available within the area for inclusion in the Economic Development draft.

Ms. Gillis requested that members return their checklists/surveys to her at their first convenience. She stated that the EDAC members are wishing to use the information as a sort of strategic plan for their committee.

Ms. McSwain questioned if there were plans for a 50th anniversary celebration, and Ms. Jesica Johnson indicated that Staff was working on this. Mr. Ben-Yisrael introduced Jesica Johnson, the City's new PIO.

V. Existing Land Use

Ms. Gillis discussed the fact that, other than Priority Investment, all of the Plan Elements have been studied in relation to current conditions and status, and she explained that the next step would be the land use planning discussion. She presented a presentation showing past growth patterns of the City and then comparing various land use scenarios and the resulting consequences of the scenarios in terms of traffic, infrastructure, and density. There was brief discussion about the pros and cons of concentrating the density via conservation development and the methods of creating a land use plan and zoning ordinances that will provide the basis for these types of development.

She discussed the concept of the neighborhood unit where housing, shopping, recreation, community centers, etc. are all within walking distance in a four mile radius, thereby creating neighborhoods rather than subdivisions. Streets are only as wide as necessary, and highways are on the outskirts of the unit. She illustrated the English garden concept where housing is built around isolated interior cul-de-sacs with very limited street connectivity.

She showed illustrations with amenities, shopping, and services within walking distance of the neighborhoods and asked the Committee to consider what they wished future development to look like and how they wished them to function.

In order to tie this together for a new land use plan, she introduced a software program that the Committee will be using where they can input a land use model, and the software will provide options and impacts for the model.

The Committee reviewed area maps designating current land use and the land use planning area. These will be used for the Committee's land use planning for the Plan. She suggested creating several scenarios to present to the public for their input.

Members requested a copy of the maps to familiarize themselves with them prior to the next meeting. Ms. Gillis also mentioned sending some of the considerations for parameters to them prior to the next meeting.

It was agreed that the Committee would meet from 3:00 - 6:00 on July 20 unless members notified Staff of conflicts.

VI. Upcoming Tasks

Ms. Gillis stated she will be sending out additional information concerning upcoming tasks for the Committee. She offered copies of the Population Element goals from other cities' Plans and said she would provide copies of the Commercial Center plan from City Council.

VII. Adjournment

Mr. Quinn made a motion to adjourn. Mr. Connerty seconded. All voted in favor. The meeting was adjourned at or about 7:05 p.m.