Community Planning
The Montgomery County, Maryland Experience
As Montgomery County continues to attract an increasingly diverse, technologically savvy, well-educated population, the Planning Department focuses its skills and talents to bring high-quality design in both form and function to all areas, from central business districts to rural villages and improve quality of life by conserving and enhancing the natural and built environment for current and future generations.
Community Planning great communities are created by developingmaster plans, reviewing applications for developmentand analyzing information to help public officials plan the future. Multi-disciplinary geographic teams with regulatory as well as community planning functions lead to better integration and more balanced decision-making. Staff also provide recommendations, information, analysis and services to the Planning Board, the County Council, the County Executive, other government agencies and the general public.
The Environment sustainability and a reduced carbon footprint contribute to healthier communities by
o assisting property owners to improve or develop their properties
o analyzing natural resources for community planning
o reviewing development applications, and
o participating in efforts to promote environmental sustainability for residents and visitors.
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Travel Plans Intercity & Local Transport
Sustainable communities are created by addressing resource protection, climate change, air quality, water quality and availability, human health and well-being.
Historic Preservation is supported by providing identification, designation, and regulation of historic sites in Montgomery County. Staff maintains an archive and library of documentation on historic resources and provides preservation outreach and guidance on best-practices to the public.
Transportation Planning entails detailed analyses of transportation issues and improvements needed to support expected growth during master plan preparation as well as planned improvements. A biennial Mobility Assessment report plays an integral role in developing recommendations for growth policies matching transport services with new development.
Urban Designers establish guidelines, blend architecture, landscape architecture, and environmental stewardship, resulting in:
o Street Character improving the character of the street system, promoting walking, providing easy access to transit, creating inviting connections to services
o Open Spaces establishing open space systems designed to serve people of all ages and needs, providing a variety of urban spaces – plazas, urban parks and town commons – connected by a system of greenways and sidewalks
o Building Form and Character fostering the design of buildings that shape public streets and open spaces, density, building heights, setbacks from the curb, and parking locations
o Landmarks and Gateways preserving and highlighting the elements that make a community unique and increasing access to historic resources.
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Harrisburg, the Capital of Pennsylvania, was inhabited by Native Americans as early as 3000 BC. Known as Peixtin, the area was an important trading post for Native American traders, as trails leading from the Delaware to the Ohio Rivers, and from the Potomac to the Upper Susquehanna intersected there.
Preserving America’s Antique Automobiles
Food Wine and Craft Beer
US Mid-Atlantic Travel an eight-day program for Families Schools and Groups
Lafayette lies along the Vermilion River in southwestern Louisiana and is nicknamed The Hub City
Local Cultural Organizations include the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra and Conservatory of Music, Chorale Acadienne, Lafayette Ballet Theatre and Dance Conservatory, The Lafayette Concert Band, and Performing Arts Society of Acadiana; as well as the Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum and the Acadiana Center for the Arts.
Amtrak’s Sunset Limited offers service three days a week from New Orleans and Los Angeles with selected stops in Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona and California. Intercity passenger bus service is via Greyhound that operates a Station Downtown and Lafayette Transit System provides bus service within Lafayette City Limits.
Connect for Your Travel to Lafayette and Louisiana
Origins built in 1794 by General Anthony Wayne as the last in a series of forts built near the Miami village of Kekionga, this European-American settlement developed at the confluence of the St. Joseph, St. Mary and Maumee rivers and later underwent growth with the Wabash and Erie Canal and the railroad. The term Summit City refers to the city’s position at the highest elevation along the canal’s route.
Geography the most important feature of the area is the short distance overland between the Three Rivers system, which flows to the Atlantic, and the Wabash system, which flows to the Gulf of Mexico; hence, the portage over which passengers and cargoes moved from one system to the next. This natural crossroads attracted the Native Americans for thousands of years. Chief Little Turtle of the Miami Nation called it “that glorious gate through which all the words of our chiefs had to pass through from north to south and from east to west.” It later attracted explorers, traders and pioneer settlers who continued to develop the area as a transportation and communications center.
Architecture during the 19th century, Fort Wayne was dominated by Greek and Gothic Revival as well as Italianate architecture. Popular early-20thcentury architectural styles found in the city include Queen Anne, Romanesque, Neoclassical, Dutch Colonial Revival, Prairie, Tudor Revival and Art Deco.
Arts and Culture since its establishment in 2010, the Cultural District has been home to several of the city’s cultural institutions, including the Auer Center for Arts and Culture, the Arts United Center, and Hall Community Arts Center. The Embassy Theatre hosts over 200,000 patrons annually and Foellinger Theatre hosts seasonal acts and outdoor concerts during warmer months. Located west of downtown, Arena Dinner Theatre is a nonprofit community arts corporation with a focus on live theater production, annually hosting seven full-length theatrical productions. Established in 1921, the Fort Wayne Museum of Art specializes in the collection and exhibition of American art.
River Greenway is a system of recreational trails along the riverbanks designed to beautify the riverfronts and promote an active lifestyle for Fort Wayne residents. It comprises 180 miles (290 km) in the city and county and has about 550,000 annual users. With the expansion of trails, cycling has also become an emerging mode of transportation for residents.
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The Rockpile Museum documents life in early Gillette. After the railroad moved to Sheridan, Gillette survived in order to serve the ranchers, cowboys, and homesteaders who were trying to make a life in the countryside surrounding the town. Cattlemen drove their herds into the livestock yards at Gillette for sale and transportation to the markets back east. Industrious citizens set up businesses to cater to these people and any who passed through. Livery barns, stables, and blacksmiths popped up to house travelers’ horses and haulers’ draft teams. Bars and brothels catered to those who pursued that lifestyle.
Tourism Gillette’s inclusion on the Black and Yellow Trail in 1912, a highway extending from the Black Hills to Yellowstone, brought many different travelers and tourists into town via automobile resulting in construction of tourist camps, cottages, and motels along with cafes and eateries.
Geography Gillette is situated between the Bighorn Mountains and the Black Hills in the Powder River Basin. Devils Tower rises 1,267 feet – 386 m – above the Belle Fourche River; the summit is 5,112 feet – 1,559 m – above sea level.
Ardmore is the word for Hills or High Grounds in Irish
Geography Ardmore is located south of the Arbuckle Mountains, an ancient, eroded range spanning some 62 mi – 100 km – across southern Oklahoma. The geology includes uplifted and folded ridges visible within the shoreline of some of the surrounding lakes. The city of Ardmore is part of the Washita and Red River watersheds, just north of Lake Murray which flows into the western reaches of Lake Texoma.
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Sustainable Communities are created by addressing resource protection climate change air and water quality human health and well-being
urbanization, traffic gridlock, population increases, community migrations
Governments at all levels are engineering political solutions:
At the dawn of the 20th Century only 14 percent of the world’s population lived in cities; by 2025, 75 percent will be in urban settings. There are already 468 cities with over a million in population; 40 of these cities have more than 10 million residents.
Adaptable Rice is the basic food for nearly half of the world’s population, it can be kept for a very long time and in the case of famine, can be a lifesaving food source. In some cultures, it is as valuable as money or gold and is an essential commodity for those living in tropical and sub-tropical climates.
Fruits and Vegetables contain a large variety of plants with different shapes, scents and colors. Fruits and legumes have been consumed for centuries and are the symbols of myths, legends and traditions in many cultures. Cultivation began in the Mediterranean region, mainly due to it having the best climate to grow and cultivate fruits; the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans were knowledgeable of these foods but it was only from the medieval period that improvements in fruit cultivation took hold. Later, immigrants brought fruit and legumes to the American continent, resulting in their widespread cultivation. Soya and beans were found in Central and Southern Asia and in Central America respectively.
Spice Routes have guided explorers in their search for these precious commodities; a journey through cultures and a unique sensorial experience. Their cultivation, preparation and use is also tied to medicine and for socio-cultural rituals, including magic. Spices and aromatic herbs have always inspired long journeys; emperors, kings, aristocrats and merchants considered them into the most luxurious product of the ancient commercial routes. In our time, spice production and trade have increased thanks to a trend in healthier eating habits.
Food without Water the arid zones are quite different from one another. They differ in soil types, flora and fauna, water balance and levels of human activity. Another misconception is that these places are uninhabited when in fact a fifth of the world’s population live in arid zones and suffer from a distinct lack of water. What makes then similar is dryness, measured by weather temperature and rainfall. This index consists of three main categories: super dry, dry and semi-dry. For centuries, man has tried to promote and utilize different techniques in order to find one system for managing hydric sources, such as rainwater collection or water retention. Research has enabled farmers to measure their levels of rainfall locally and either use innovations suited to their conditions, or adapt their own traditional methods to ensure better water utilization levels. Still, the lack of water and the impact of climate change remain a matter of urgency.
Logistics the success of a business trip or vacation rests largely on the proper management of logistical issues; how to get to a place and how to get around once you are there are the keys to staying within budget while visiting all the places planned along your route.
the less time in transit the more time on your vacation the less stressful your trip
Solutions the travel expert who is tasked with planning, implementing and managing your trip is intimately familiar with the places you are visiting and, by definition, is also able to make adjustments and changes to your travel program even when you are on location. A successful trip is defined as:
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