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REDAC Meeting - January 31, 2013
4 p.m. - 6:30 p.m.
Breakwater Market Place, 91 Camden Street, First Floor
Please join REDAC for its regular business meeting and a special presentation on "Reenvisioning the Highway Strip" with Lynne Seeley of GrowSmart Maine on Thursday, January 31, 2013.
REDAC will hold a regular committee meeting at 4 p.m. with the presentation at 5 p.m.
The meeting will be held in the Breakwater Marketplace, first floor meeting space. The agenda is as follows:
4 p.m. REDAC Business meeting
I. Minutes of Previous Meeting
II. Economic Development Director's Report: James Smith
III. Chamber of Commerce Report: Staci Coomer, Robin McIntosh
IV. Rockland Main Street Program: Lorain Francis
V. Education: George Terrien
VI. The Camden Street Project: Friends of Midcoast Maine and REDAC
VII Other business
5 p.m. Presentation -
"A New Vision for Maine's Highway Commercial Strips" with Lynne Seeley, GrowSmart Maine
6:30 p.m. Adjourn
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Request for Proposals (RFP) for
Commercial Corridor Design Study
Friends of Midcoast Maine, in collaboration with the Rockland Economic Development Advisory Committee, has released a Request for Proposals for design services for the Camden Street commercial strip in Rockland from Maverick Street to the City line, with possible extension to Warrenton Street in Rockport. The proposals are due on Monday, February 4, 2013.
For a copy of the RFP visit FMM-Rockland RFP for Design Services on the Friends of Midcoast Maine website.
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DRAFT Values Statements for Rockland
At the November 29, 2012 and January 3, 2013 REDAC meetings, REDAC members and others developed a set of Values Statements to be discussed over the coming months with community members. These were developed using the community input received over the past six months of public workshops and meetings. They are:
1) We value access to the harbor for our recreational, industrial, economic and cultural identity.
2) We recognize the benefit of serving as a strong and diverse economic and cultural center for the region.
3) We celebrate the vitality, historic character and diverse neighborhoods integrated into the downtown.
4) We embrace the hometown qualities of life that contribute to our comfort and safety including city-wide neighborliness, small town feel, feeling connected and part of the community and knowing our neighbors.
5) We appreciate the availability of comprehensive goods and services including commercial, retail, recreational, educational, religious and cultural.
6) We recognize the strong heritage and legacy of public service and volunteerism.
7) We treasure the beauty and natural resources immediately available for all including year round beauty that we provide, protect and enhance.
8) We benefit from our demographic, economic, social and cultural diversity.
9) We desire enhanced walkability, bicycling, and transit in order to promote personal health, safety, enjoyment and convenience.
Do these values resonate with you? Did the Committee get it right? What is missing? What would you add? Send your comments to info@friendsmidcoast.org or speak to any REDAC member so REDAC can consider your suggestions too.
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REDAC Camden Street Neighborhood Vision Project
REDAC members also reconfirmed the objectives of the Rockland Street Project. Here are the objectives they outlined on November 29, 2012 and edited on January 3, 2013.
Rockland Camden Street Project Objectives
The overall objective of the Camden Street initiative is to uphold the community's stated values while:
1) Changing perceptions of the area
2) Beautifying the area
3) Creating economic opportunity for redevelopment
4) Planning for the long term
5) Evaluating economic viability and feasibility for redevelopment
6) Enhancing the gateways to downtown and the City of Rockland
7) Enhancing real estate values to support the city services provided
8) Diluting highway focus without diminishing capacity by building a civilized street that enriches the experiences of all users of the corridor including pedestrians, vehicles, bicycles and transit
9) Reinforcing mixed use including residential, commercial and recreational uses
10) Enhancing all networks including wildlife, stormwater, transit, and pedestrian linkages, etc.
11) Planning for future generations
12) Increasing opportunities for the City, the property owners and the residents
13) Providing incentives to make things happen
14) Funding implementation by proposing phasing as well as funding sources and mechanisms, including public, private and public-private partnerships.
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REDAC Camden Street Neighborhood Vision Project
Workshop #4 Final Report
Walkability Audit Report
On Monday, October 29, fifteen or so community members braved Hurricane Sandy's winds and joined Dan Burden from the Walkable and Livable Communities Institute, Jane Lafleur from Friends of Midcoast Maine and Rockland Economic Development Advisory Committee members in a workshop to look at ways to make the Camden Street Strip in Rockland more walkable. Dan Burden is a renowned expert on walkability and has helped 3,500 communities nationwide to make communities more walk able and livable.
The Walkability Audit final report is now available at Rockland Walkability Audit. REDAC and community members will be taking this information into consideration as they jointly develop a community vision for the Camden Street area of the City, north of Maverick Street.
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Workshop #3 Recap
"The Smart Math of Mixed Use Development" 
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 Workshop #2 Recap Identifying Rockland's Community Values On September 27, almost 50 people attended a workshop to identify Rockland's Community Values as the first step toward developing a common vision for the Rockland Commercial Strip and surrounding areas. Community members identified features in Rockland that they personally love about Rockland and those places and features that the community as a whole values. Over the coming weeks, REDAC members will turn these ideas into value statements that can be tested with the whole community. By using values based planning, community agreement on commonly held values will lead to a stronger plan for the community. Read workshop summary here. Values statements coming soon! |
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New REDAC Member
The Rockland City Council has appointed Cynthia Powell to serve as a member of REDAC. Cynthia works and lives in Rockland.
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Camden Street Vision Project Funding
This project has been funded by numerous grants and support to the Friends of Midcoast Maine from the Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, the Maine Community Foundation, the Maine Environmental Funders Network and the Orton Family Foundation. In-kind assistance from the City of Rockland and the volunteer services of the Rockland Economic Development Advisory Committee (REDAC) also contribute to this six to twelve month project.
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Please forward this information to your friends, neighbors and colleagues who may be interested discussions about Rockland's Camden Street area and its future.
Sincerely,
The Rockland Economic Development Advisory Committee and
Friends of Midcoast Maine, Project Partners |
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REDAC
COMMITTEE MEMBERS
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Joanne Billington, Chair
George Terrien
John Jeffers
Tina Plummer
Warren Bodine
Cynthia Powell
Pinny Beebe-Center
Lorain Francis, Rockland Main Street Program
Robin McIntosh, Penobscot Bay Chamber of Commerce
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James Smith,
Rockland City Manager/Economic Development Director
In Partnership with
Friends of Midcoast Maine, Jane Lafleur, Executive Director
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