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regional planning inNew Jersey


In 1985, the State Legislature of New Jersey adopted the State Planning Act, which created a 17-member State Planning Commission to establish a Statewide planning process, prepare a State Development and Redevelopment Plan, provide technical assistance to local governments, review State and local planning procedures and make recommendations for improvement.

In 1992, the State Planning Commission adopted a State Development and Redevelopment Plan in response to legislative and public demand for organizing future growth and guiding decisions about the location of development and redevelopment efforts to maximize public investment and efficient use of infrastructure, environmental, natural, and economic systems.

Within the Plan, the Statewide Policy Structure presents planning goals, each accompanied by a strategy defining how these goals might be achieved by agencies at each level of government and by the private sector. This section also includes a series of Statewide Policies that cover 17 subject areas, including equity, comprehensive planning, economic development, housing, and public investment priorities.

Currently, private-sector development dictates and informs decisions about public investment in infrastructure that will be required, not state or local agencies. The Plan attempts to restore the role of government to plan where and how development and redevelopment takes place by providing a long-term perspective, quantitative analysis, and technical planning assistance. It seeks to reduce the state's vulnerability to short-term business cycles while increasing its competitiveness in the global economy. The Plan is a policy guide that is intended to coordinate state and local agencies, as well as encourage private entities, to engage in long-term, regional planning.

The Plan identifies "Centers" as the organizing principle for the form of growth that would allow New Jersey to grow and prosper on a sustained basis without eroding the State's quality of life. As an alternative to traditional sprawl, future growth and development would be organized in and around Urban and Regional Centers that would serve as a focal point for regional activities. These centers would include a mix of uses, accommodate alternative modes of transportation, achieve economies of scale and provide for economic, social and cultural interaction.

The Plan is still evolving. A series of public hearings in all 21 counties of New Jersey are being held to give local residents an opportunity to make recommendations and proposals for guiding New Jersey's growth. The State Planning Act required a monitoring and evaluation program for the Plan to keep a watchful eye on variables and indicators relating to economic growth, fiscal conditions, and environmental quality. The Plan's implementation relies upon the sense of responsibility of the public and private sectors to participate and collaborate in regional planning. It does not replace local master plans, but rather, provides a policy and strategic vision that is left up to local planning agencies to incorporate.

[Source: http://www.state.nj.us/osp/ospplan.htm]