§ 25-372. Jefferson Greenprint Methodology.

In order to achieve the objective of a recreation and open space element and to create an "opportunity map" for an effective and sustainable system of recreation and open spaces, the Jefferson Parish Greenprint employed the following tasks:

• Assessing existing conditions by developing a comprehensive GIS database of community assets;

• Reviewing relevant plans and documents;

• Conducting stakeholder input and public outreach through a series of meetings, interviews, workshops and presentations;

• Developing an interactive GIS model that defines and prioritizes community recreation and conservation opportunities;

• Testing model results for validity; and

• Identifying key strategies for immediate and long-term action to implement the Greenprint.

(a)

Constituency building . To build the constituency for the Greenprint, a broad-based group of individuals representing a variety of interests, including neighborhoods, business, civic, environmental and recreational were convened to:

• Establish Greenprint goals

• Identify criteria to achieve goals

• Weigh goals and criteria in priority order for GIS modeling

• Represent their respective constituencies

• Communicate with the general public about the Greenprint

Three separate public stakeholder workshops were held to accomplish these tasks. Results of these meetings were presented to a technical advisory team to test assumptions, review and refine criteria, and to identify and provide best available data to build the greenprint model.

A steering committee provided additional input and quality control for the greenprint process.

Constituency building milestones .

July 31, 2007 Stakeholder Goal-Setting Workshop

November 26, 2007 Steering Committee Review of Draft GIS Model and Maps

December 3, 2007 Stakeholder Model Refinement Workshop

January 17, 2008 Steering Committee Input Session

February 21, 2008 Stakeholder Implementation Workshop

(b)

Goals and criteria . Through the constituency building process, the stakeholder committee set four (4) goals to achieve through the greenprint that would make parks and waterfronts more available to people for recreation, beautify commercial and residential areas, and improve the health of natural systems:

• Improve park equity and access

• Provide connectivity

• Identify access to waterfronts

• Protect and restore wetlands outside the levee

Criteria to meet these goals through mapping was identified by the technical committee.

(c)

Data gathering and analysis. The tables provide a more detailed explanation of the Jefferson Parish Greenprint Goals and Criteria, and data gathered for the GIS modeling, which provides the basis for the opportunity maps available from the Jefferson Parish Planning Department. The notes section of these tables explains the methodology for how the data was used in the GIS modeling. Each criteria was ranked, or weighted, in order of importance by the stakeholder committee (shown in the criteria weights column), which helped to establish the priorities shown in the maps.

(Ord. No. 23686, § 1, 11-4-09; Ord. No. 24734 , § VII, 4-30-14)