A Master Plan helps to identify what sorts of development and in what locations will shape the Town the way the residents wish.
Shall the Town of Hampton vote to raise and appropriate the sum of $18,000 for the purpose of contracting professional planning services for the completion of a series of Phase I tasks intended to provide the foundation for a future update of the Hampton Master Plan. Per RSA 674:1, it is the duty of the Planning Board to prepare and amend from time to time a master plan to guide the development of the municipality. Further, RSA 674:3.11 states that revisions to the plan are recommended every 5 to 10 years. Most chapters of the existing Town of Hampton Master Plan are considerably older than ten years, and the Plan as a whole is not in a user-friendly format.
This Article is for Phase I only, and the proposed tasks to be completed during this initial phase of work include establishing and facilitating a Master Plan Steering Committee, facilitating intermunicipal coordination, initiating a visioning process resulting in a draft Vision Chapter, and preparing (with Steering Committee guidance) a Master Plan Template outlining anticipated chapters and general content areas. It is also anticipated that technology will be utilized to engage with the residents of Hampton. The deliverables from Phase I will provide the Town of Hampton Planning Board with options for pursuing Phase II of the project, which would involve the full update of the Town’s Master Plan. This shall be a non-lapsing appropriation per RSA 32:7, VI and shall not lapse until the purpose of this Article is completed or by December 31, 2021, whichever is sooner? (Majority vote required)
What it means: This warrant article would fund a professional planning service to complete Phase I tasks associated with a future update of the Town of Hampton Master Plan. The deliverables from Phase I will provide the Planning Board with a framework and options for pursuing Phase II, which would involve a full update of the Town’s Master Plan. Phase I work is expected to take about 15 months, and will consist of the following steps, as presented at Deliberative Session.
| Steering Committee Facilitation | Convene up to 8 Steering Committee meetings, facilitate discussions, provide technical and guidance information | $4,500 | March to
Dec 2019 |
| Inter-municipal
Coordination |
Coordinate input and review of documents etc. with Departments and staff, and land use boards and commissions | ||
| Vision Session and Chapter | Conduct 1-2 public Visioning Session and prepare a draft Vision Chapter including up to 6 Steering Committee meetings and 2 presentations to the Planning Board | $5,500 | Apr 2019 to
June 2020 |
| Outreach | Coordination with boards and commissions; implement a public outreach campaign for the Vision Chapter and Master Plan Template | $3,500 | Mar 2019 to
June 2020 |
| Master Plan Template | Draft template outlining chapters and general content areas, and appendices (with Steering Committee guidance) | $4,500 |
Aug 2019 to June 2020 |
| Cost | $18,000 | 15 months | |
Those in favor say: A Master Plan is required by statute. Revisions to the plan are recommended every 5 to 10 years. The current Master Plan was adopted in 1985, with some subsequent chapter amendments since that time. It has been 34 years since the last comprehensive update. Having a current Master Plan will allow the Town to be more competitive for grant funding.
Lots of decisions are made with reference to a Master Plan, which was last updated when our population was about 8,000 people – roughly half what it is today. The process of establishing a revised Master Plan will encourage better relationships between the various departments because everyone will be referring to the same roadmap. It’s for the future, and it’s by the people – what do we want our community to look like? We need something to guide development.
Those against say: Phase II will be expensive. Phase I is not detailed enough to indicate what work will be accomplished. There were questions about the usefulness of the document.
Fiscal impact: The $18,000 cost in 2019 will create an additional tax cost for the average Hampton home valued at $405,000 of $2.04.