Title
Olympia Northeast Neighborhoods Alliance (ONNA) Subarea Plan
Recommended Action
City Manager Recommendation:
Recommend that City Council accept the ONNA Subarea Plan.
Report
Issue:
Whether to recommend that City Council accept the ONNA Subarea Plan.
Staff Contact:
Linda Bentley, Senior Planner, Community Planning & Development, 360.570.3746
Presenter(s):
Linda Bentley, Senior Planner, Community Planning & Development
Mike Dexel, Chair, ONNA
Background and Analysis:
The City of Olympia 2014 Comprehensive Plan allows for and encourages a grassroots process whereby local residents, businesses, and community organizations work together in partnership with the City to help shape how neighborhoods grow and develop. This process, known as subarea planning, gives neighborhoods the chance to collaborate with the city to help shape their future development in alignment with neighborhood priorities while remaining consistent with the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Subarea A is the first subarea in Olympia to organize and write a subarea plan.
Subarea A (ONNA) Plan
Subarea A, now named ONNA, includes all of the residents and businesses within the subarea boundary. The planning team is composed of representatives from five of the seven recognized neighborhood associations in northeast Olympia - Bigelow Neighborhood Association (BNA), Bigelow Highlands NA (BHNA), East Bay Drive NA (EBDNA), Northeast NA (NENA), and the Upper Eastside NA (UENA). The planning team has been meeting regularly since 2014 to discuss how subarea planning could be an effective tool to shape the Northeast community and to develop the subarea plan.
ONNA’s draft subarea plan was presented to the Land Use and Environment Committee in May. Tonight we are presenting the “draft final” plan, attached. Interested residents were sent notice of the plan availability on the ONNA website and they were asked for their comments. The plan and the five (to date) resident comments were presented to the Planning Commission August 1. The Planning Commission unanimously voted to recommend that City Council accept the ONNA Subarea Plan.
If the City Council accepts the ONNA Subarea Plan, ONNA has identified several
issues for its continuing discussion internally and with identified partners to carry out the actions in the Subarea Plan:
1. How do we see the City and the subarea using the plan in current and future planning, i.e., implementing the action steps?
2. What are ways to meaningfully engage a broad range of community members and businesses in a subarea planning effort?
3. How do we ensure continuity of leadership and engagement after the completed plan has been accepted by City Council?
4. What is the relationship amongst the neighborhood associations, subarea plans and the Coalition of Neighborhood Associations (CNA)?
Neighborhood/Community Interests (if known):
In addition to the interest from residents in the subject area, other potential subareas in the city are also interested in this process and will benefit from ONNA’s experience.
Options:
Briefing only.
Financial Impact:
None at this time. Staff time and miscellaneous expenses are covered in CP&D’s 2016 budget. Future budgets may be impacted depending on level of City involvement.
Attachments:
ONNA Subarea Plan (w/o Appendices)
ONNA Website (Plan Appendices)