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The Regional Plan for Sustainable Development

The region's vision for sustainability is built on more than 10 years of planning efforts and input from literally thousands of residents on how the region should grow and develop. From Creating Quality Places in 1999 to the recently adopted Transportation Outlook 2040 plan, the region's citizens, local governments, businesses, and institutions are working toward a region that is more economically, socially, and environmentally sustainable.

The Regional Plan for Sustainable Development is a compilation of key regional plans and strategies with common goals and themes. This work is also found in a variety of local plans adopted by area communities over the last decade.

Taken together, these plans constitute our regional plan for sustainable development. While they cover many different elements and locations in our community, they blend into a single vision of a community that is economically prosperous, provides our residents and future generations with a high quality of life, values our natural and historic assets, and creates opportunities and choices for all of our residents.

Adapting and Integrating Plans

Through the Creating Sustainable Places initiative, we hope to sharpen our understanding of the best strategies to take significant steps towards sustainability, not just in model corridors and demonstration projects, but across the region. Case studies and best practices from specific projects implemented during the three-year grant period will help inform future plans, in an adaptive management cycle.

• PLAN: The Consortium Coordinating Committee will begin by developing plans for six key corridors and four to six demonstration projects. This work will be guided by sustainability principles, and will integrate the common themes and goals shared by existing regional plans (summarized in the appendix) and local government plans.
• ACT: The Creating Sustainable Places partners will not only help develop tools, increase capacities and identify policy changes that move the region towards its vision of sustainability, but also help put these new tools, capacities and policies into action in sustainable development and redevelopment projects in across the region.
• LEARN: As development and redevelopment occurs along key corridors and in activity centers, the Consortium Coordinating Committee will monitor data and indicators to measure progress and identify best practices. The lessons learned will be incorporated into future planning, continuing the adaptive cycle.

Working together in the coming months and years, we will address a broad agenda that incorporates sustainability principles — social equity, a thriving economy and a healthy environment — into all of our regional plans. The shared vision of sustainability will also help integrate plans in ways we have not achieved to date. The Regional Plan for Sustainable Development should not be seen as a finished product. As existing plans are updated and new ones developed within the framework of sustainability, this plan will continue to evolve.

Regional Vision:

"Greater Kansas City is a sustainable region that increases the vitality of our society, economy and environment for current residents and future generations."