2000-06-12 Managing Growth Development and Open Space Working Group.pdf

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NARRATIVE Preface The "Managing Growth: Development and Open Space" Work Group was formed by the Lexington Vision 2020 Steering Committee in December 1999 for the task of developing a vision and action plan for the physical character of Lexington in the Year 2020. The group is comprised of 18 members and has met biweekly from January to June 2000. In addition to discussion, our group conducted research and public outreach and produced the documents included in this report. We began the process of developing a vision statement and goals by researching recent Planning Board documents on existing conditions and recent development issues and by considering other studies which reported the core values and desires of town residents regarding the physical environment. This research is documented in the Environmental Scan. Upon completing the Environmental Scan, a Vision Statement, and a Goals/Objectives / Actions/Measures Matrix (Matrix) were drafted. The ideas in these documents were then presented to the Planning Board and to the Vision 2020 Core Participants Group. In addition, a Managing Growth Questionnaire was prepared and distributed to Town Meeting members and to a small sample of other town residents. In light of the feedback received from these various sources, further discussions occurred and final changes were made to the documents. This Narrative summarizes our group's vision and goals and describes the important issues and considerations addressed. The Appendix includes a copy of the questionnaire and a summary of the responses to it. Goals for the Town of Lexington for the Year 2020 Lexington has a strong sense of tradition, historic preservation and land conservation. Despite undergoing a period of rapid growth and suburban development in the post-war decades, the town has maintained much of its historic character and small town scale. Its buildings and public spaces vary in character and age, representing the civic aspirations of generations over three centuries. This continuity with the past and ability to adapt to the present is part of the town's rich legacy and is a starting point for envisioning the future. Lexington has grown from its agricultural past to its position as a suburban center in the Greater Boston metropolis. Relatively little undeveloped land remains for new construction, but the overheated real estate market continues to provide economic incentive for a process of succession favoring more intensive land uses. But while unconstrained growth and development in Lexington is neither possible nor desirable, continued change is inevitable. The needs of Lexington residents, the use of technology in our lives, the economic activities we engage in —all of these may change and we must adapt to those changes. We are now in the midst of a time of rapid technological change and a period of unprecedented economic growth, which may have significant implications for our physical landscape in the Year 2020. At the same time, continued metropolitan growth has exacerbated problems related Managing Growth-3