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Blue-Light
on… HAMBURG
The community
of Hamburg has taken the FHLBank's Blueprint Communities concept
to new heights by creating an initiative that parallels the "point
plans" made famous by the Mainstreet and Elm Street programs.
Networking:
The process of connecting with individuals and organizations
that can help further a community's cause is crucial for building
a vibrant community.
In a true example
of networking, Hamburg's Blueprint team brought a developer to one
of the BC workshops. The Tamaqua team recommended to the developer
that he should contact the Alliance for Building Communities (ABC).
This networking opportunity has translated into ABC's newest project
to rehabilitate an abandoned knitting factory into 27 units of senior
housing, with a projected cost of $5.5 million.
Identity:
Each Blueprint team conceives its own identity and decides what
being a Blueprint Community means to them. This self-identification
is a launching point for all of the projects a Blueprint team will
undertake. Some of Pennsylvania's communities that have completed
the workshops have begun identifying themselves as Blueprint Communities,
an identity now being recognized by Pennsylvania's politicians and
community developers.
In Hamburg,
the Blueprint team wants to create a Blueprint Community Administrator
position, thus originating an entirely new planning program, the Blueprint
Planning Initiative. Hamburg is on the cusp of creating their own
unique identity for the Blueprint Communities initiative.
Comprehensive
Planning: The Blueprint Communities training emphasizes the
importance of creating a clear vision and comprehensive plan prior
to project initiation. All interested partners (i.e. residents,
business owners, local government officials, potential funding sources)
should play an active role at each step of the planning process.
In Hamburg,
the Blueprint team created its vision by holding public meetings with
residents as well as the Borough's Recreation Board, Blue Mountain
Wildlife Inc, and the Northern Berks County Recreation Commission,
among other organizations. In addition, the Blueprint team sifted
through the borough's archives, using goals and strategies from past
plans to incorporate into the new Blueprint Planning Strategy. All
of this has resulted in one comprehensive plan for the Borough of
Hamburg led by the Blueprint team.
Public-Private
Collaboration: To increase the likelihood for the successful
implementation of a neighborhood planning initiative, all vested
parties should be apprised of the community's progress during each
step. It cannot be stressed enough how important it is for each
Blueprint Community team to form strong partnerships with its local
and state government officials, as well as funding entities.
In Hamburg,
the Blueprint team has been working in conjunction with Hamburg's
Planning Commission to map out a revitalization area, as well as to
coordinate objectives and goals along the Schuylkill River. In addition
to leading the borough-wide initiative, the Blueprint team will act
as the lead consultant for the Planning Commission's river revitalization
project.
This
is the first in a series of Blue-Light columns
highlighting the recent successes of one Blueprint Community.
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