Frequently Asked Questions
How long will the project take?
How large an area is being studied?
What is the role of the Study Oversight Committee?
What is our community vision/vision statement?
How can the public get involved?
What is this project about?
This study will take a detailed look at the state of the existing environment, land use and transportation system within and around the study area and prepare a plan to guide development of the land along Route 44 into the future. The end result of this project will be a conceptual Bolton/Route 44 Vision Strategic Plan that depicts the community’s preferred long-term development scheme for this area of Bolton. It will include recommended actions and an implementation plan. The planning process will apply ‘smart growth’ principles to developing the future land use scheme. back to top
Who is paying for this study?
A Small Town Economic Assistance Program (STEAP) grant provided through the Connecticut Office of Policy and Management (OPM) is funding this study. back to top
How long will the project take?
The study will be carried out over a 9-month period concluding in early 2008. See Project Schedule for more details. back to top
How large an area is being studied?
The study will be conducted giving attention to all of Route 44 in Bolton, the 3-mile segment from the Manchester town line to the Coventry town line. The width of the study corridor along this Route will vary but will generally include all of the land within the proposed Bolton Lakes sewer service area, excluding the northern extremity of residential development at Bolton Lake and abutting the Vernon town line. To view a map, please visit Study Area. back to top
What is the role of the Study Oversight Committee?
Throughout the study process, a Study Oversight Committee (SOC) has been meeting to advise the project consultant team. It includes representatives from Town boards and Commissions with a special interest and responsibility for guiding future development in the Bolton/Route 44 area. See Team Members for a list of the SOC membership. back to top
What is our community vision/vision statement?
A community vision is a description of how the community as a whole would picture itself in the future. It is comparable to asking every person in Bolton to describe what they would hope to see as they drove down Route 44 through town 20 or 30 years from today. The community vision for Route 44 has been written based on a community survey, discussion at SOC meetings and a community workshop for a consensus of views. To read the Vision Statement go to the documents page. back to top
What is “smart growth”?
During the past decade or so it has become apparent that the traditional approach to managing land use and community growth has not had, in all cases, the most desirable results. That traditional approach meant separating land uses from one another with the expectation that it would protect activities from being at odds with one another such as an industrial plant next to a neighborhood of homes. The effect has been to make our communities spread, become auto-dependent, encourage sprawl (the spreading of new development onto undeveloped open spaces), and to see decline in many of our downtowns and village centers. In response, community planners and managers nation-wide have been discussing alternative approaches to managing growth. The collective body of ideas has been called Smart Growth. Smart growth has been defined many ways over the years. Among all of the ideas generated, there are some common themes. At its core it is about the following ideals. Smart Growth is growth that:
- Preserves valued community and natural resources while growing the economy
- Places development where there is or will be infrastructure (water, sewer, roads, and schools) and optimizes infrastructure use before expanding
- Encourages and prioritizes re-use of previously developed sites or new development in targeted growth areas
- Takes steps to preserve and safeguard land identified for preservation
- Pursues a compact, mixed-use pattern of development for key areas that preserves or creates walkable neighborhoods and village character
- Provides a range of type and style of housing so that households from young adults to seniors can choose to live in town
- Promotes a transportation system that encourages travel by a variety of means (walking, bicycling, and transit in addition to the automobile)
- Works with the community to learn about these principles and how they are implemented and to then prepare a vision of where and how it wants to grow
How can the public get involved?
There have been many ways the public provided input to the study team so far. There were two community workshops that provided everyone with opportunities to review study activities and offer their thoughts and ideas. These workshops were held at key project mileposts during the study. (see Meetings)
There will also be a joint meeting of the Bolton Board of Selectmen and Planning and Zoning Commission, to which members of the Economic Development, Conservation, and Inland Wetlands Commissions, as well as the Bolton Lakes Regional Water Pollution Control Authority will be invited, towards the end of the study to review the draft plan with them and gain their input. As always, meetings of these bodies are open to the public.
This interactive website helps the community monitor the progress of the study and offers another way for you to comment on the process. Meeting dates and minutes are available on this website as well as contact information and a comment form to provide feedback to the project. back to top
How soon will we see change?
The end result of the study will be a Final Bolton/Route 44 Vision Strategic Plan documenting the study findings. The centerpiece of this report will be the community’s preferred development scenario for the study area along with recommended actions and an implementation plan. This will be a plan that will serve the community for the next 10-20 years.
While it is impossible at this point to specify a schedule for changes that might result from the plan, CRCOG and Town of Bolton staff are committed to the development and implementation of the plan’s ideals with real solutions to future land use and traffic issues in the Bolton/Route 44 area. back to top