ECONOMIC GARDENING How sowing the seeds of civic engagement can push the boundaries

of economic development

ThursdayOctober 20, 2016 | 2:00-3:30

YES Who?

• Goal is to empower young people to create vibrant communities.

• Statewide steering committee works to create a pipeline between young people and local boards and commissions, while drawing attention to issues affecting millennials in CT.

Help to inspire great CT downtowns through education, advocacy and technical assistance.

Focus on healthy neighborhoods, creating more affordable housing and a mission to end homelessness.

• Dr. Jody Terranova, Deputy Mayor, Town of Windsor (CT)

• Bill Warner, AICP, Town Planner, Town of Farmington (CT)

• Hannah Gant, Civic Entrepreneur & Spark Makerspace Board Member, New London (CT)

• Alec Lopez, Owner, Armsby Abbey (MA)• Moderated by Jason Vincent, AICP, Director of

Planning, Town of Stonington

Our Panelists

Let’s Get Started

Our Moderator:Jason Vincent

Director of Planning, Town of Stonington

Owner, Epicure Brewing

Engaging the Community

Jody TerranovaWindsor Deputy Mayor

Why is this important?

• Many open seats on some boards and commissions

• Limited opportunities for new voices on other boards and commissions

• Diversity of board and commissions not representative of current demographics of the town

Goals

• Fill vacant seats with qualified applicants from a diverse pool

• Engage new members of the community

How can we accomplish this?

• Change the system• Update the process for

advertising and applying for openings on Boards & Commissions

Limitations of Old System

• Process directed all citizens, including unaffiliated, to go through Republican or Democratic Town Committees

• Traditionally drawing from small pool of citizens already engaged in the community

• Difficult to identify when current terms expiring and seats would be potentially open

• Current volunteers unaware someone else may be interested

New Process

• Subcommittee of Town Council formed

• Town website revamped– Online applications– Listing of open seats

and soon to expire terms

– Removal of party affiliation on website

Outcomes

• Change is slowly adopted• Very few vacancies now• Many new volunteers, especially unaffiliated,

wider ages ranges and improved socioeconomic and racial diversity

• Some long term volunteers ready to step down knowing there is someone willing to step up.

Creating Regulatory Opportunities

William Warner, AICPTown Planner, Farmington CTFormer Director of Planning, Conservation & Development Middletown CT

How do Planners support innovation and the will of the community?

• Out of the box thinking• Educate• Plan• Implement

Middletown Early 1990’s

• Severe downturn• Years of de-institutionalization at CVH• Proliferation of Social Services• Homeless problem• Tragedy at annual sidewalk sale• Mass closings Sears, Woolworth's, Food Mart and smaller stores • Over 60% vacancy rate on Main St.• No one downtown at night or weekends• Very low income census tract• No connection between college / downtown / river

Setting the Stage

• Established a Downtown Planning Sub-Committee

• Created Downtown Visions: 2000 and Beyond – the first Downtown Plan

Vision “A thriving college town on the

banks of the CT River”

Getting the Ball RollingSmall Victories

• Conducted a Slogan & Logo Contest and Main Street banners• Planted over 500 trees along the gateways into Middletown• Cleaned windows / sidewalks• Repaired Public Clocks• Required retail frontage on Main Street• Established maximum and minimum building heights and

setbacks, new signage regulations• Prohibited new curb cuts, free standing signs, drive thru’s, adult

uses, pawn shops, check cashing, tattoo and body piercing• Prohibited new social services and store front churches • Lots of flexibility in parking

Sidewalk and International Dining

Police Department andFirst & Last Tavern

Police Department andFirst & Last Tavern

• Award winning design reminiscent of Old City Hall• First Floor retail attracts pedestrian foot traffic

Kidcity Children’s Museum

The Inn at Middletown

Liberty Square

Remington Rand

Vision “A thriving college town on the banks of the CT River”

“We may be biased but we think downtown Middletown is the place to be. The city we affectionately refer to as “mini New Haven” has everything the bigger

cities have to offer – culture, dining, shopping, luxury accommodations, a high ranking university.”

Connecticut Magazine April 2009

Great Press & RecognitionMiddletown ranks #6 in the

“Top Ten of New England Main Streets”

-Boston Globe’s ExploreNewEngland.com

Main Street’s “Restaurant Row” “…the small City of Middletown, Connecticut, packs more international flavor on its Main Street than places four times its size.” - Yankee Magazine, November 2005

“Middletown boasts the most robust community arts programming I’ve seen in this state… there’s something about being within walking distance of 5 to 10 separate, simultaneous performances that makes you feel like you’re in the middle of something hot.”Dan Barry – Hartford AdvocateDecember 2007

“The comeback of Main Street is a victory of both good sense

and good planning.Good sense for emphasizing public safety first; good planning for picking a viable goal, sticking

with it and using a lot of imagination to make it

happen.” Tom Condon, Hartford

CourantOctober 2006

“Middletown continues to surprise as it evolves into an interesting restaurant town with a wide choice of cuisines,consistently better than average food and the only known Tibetan restaurantin the state.”

New York TimesJune 2006

Farmington, CT

• Affluent suburb of Hartford• Very conservative• Huge grand list• Lowest taxes outside of Fairfield County• More jobs than residents• West Farms Mall• UCONN / Jackson Lab BioScience• No sense of place, no downtown

Charles House Commons

Farmington Center

No Plan – Post DOT

Top 10 Reasons to Plan

1.Multiple small properties with multiple owners

2.Most properties not in the historic district

3.Hodgepodge of uses and zoning classifications

4.Area is underutilized

5.Area is highly susceptible to change

No Plan – Post DOT

Top 10 Reasons to Plan

6. Market is strong for new development after DOT

7. State Department of Transportation road project will permanently alter the character and functionality of the study area.

8. Future use of Parsons property

9. Most significant gateway into town

10. This gateway does not reflect Farmington’s image of charming historic buildings and high quality new development

SWOT, Urban Design Classroom, Model Building Workshop

Final Product

Conclusion

How do planners support innovation and the will of the community?

• Out of the box thinking!• Make it happen - Don’t just wait for it to happen• Think big - people will appreciate it

Growing InnovationHannah GantCivic Entrepreneur, Spark Makerspace Board Member

Spark Premise // Core Curiosity

People are naturally talented in specific ways

Most people are not doing what they are good at

Money and old rules / structures / boundary lines get in the way

What would happen if we created a context that helped people and organizations get into working roles that align talents, interests, and purpose?

Designing for the time of our lives

Spark is an all-ages playground

“Community-run workshop and learning center”

People showing up as community members (not just economically interested)

Cultivating a supportive context to make things and make things happen

Reintegrating learning and doing with peer-to-peer sharing set in a cooperative structure that optimizes multiple capitals and closed-loop / regenerative dynamics

Multiple classes of members so everything can be part of

Creating fertile grounds to increase the germination rate

Spark is a Commons // Spark is a Cultivator

Base: unlocking learning, deep generosity, & playfulness

Org structure: Individuals, Groups & Businesses, and Anchor Institutions all part of the same thing enabling breakdown of current ideas about private property

Dynamics: Sharing multi-capital resources with reciprocal relationships so that all needs can be met in real time ((indirect reciprocity))

Setting the stage for economic sovereignty by getting into economy with one another in a synergistic way

How does this build a local economy?

Generating fertility for a regenerative economy to take root by cultivating the essence of people with purposeful shared work set in unique context of place

Increasing the germination rate of new ideas

Helping residents step into direct responsibility for maintenance of their place

Evolving a new type of public by integrating government, private and 3rd sector (nonprofits) to all become part of the same entity that coordinates activities to flow resources where they need to go in real time

Thames River Innovation Place

CURE Innovation Commons & Spark Makerspace

Municipalities of New London & Groton, Southeastern CT Enterprise Region

Connecticut College, NL Public Schools, UCONN AP & School of Engineering

SECT Cultural Coalition, Hispanic Health Alliance

Pfizer, EB, and growing!

What is the potential of the Cultivator?

Not waiting to be saved by others, like major employers providing “jobs”

Developing internal capability and capacity to do work that is “uneconomic” because there is will, talent, and resources to make things happen

Real estate implications = alternative to Community Land Trust model that is self-financing

Cultivating a reinvigorated Commons

www.spark.coop // hello@hannahgant.com

Growing Innovation

Alec LopezOwner, The Armsby Abbey, Crust Bakery, The Dive Bar

A passion for local

Credit Sarah Connell

Credit John Dion

Credit Foodies of New England

Cultivating Talent & Connections

Discussion

Our Panelists:• Dr. Jody Terranova, Deputy Mayor, Town of Windsor (CT)• Bill Warner, AICP, Town Planner, Town of Farmington

(CT)• Hannah Gant, Civic Entrepreneur & Spark Makerspace

Board Member, New London (CT)• Alec Lopez, Owner, Armsby Abbey (MA)• Moderated by Jason Vincent, AICP, Director of Planning,

Town of Stonington

THANK YOU!!

Christine SchilkeCT Main Street Center & YES Co-Chair

Email: christine@ctmainstreet.org Phone: 860.280.2356

YES Website: www.yesct.org CMSC Website: www.ctmainstreet.org

Contact Info