The City of Summit needed to take a fresh look at their Master Plan but wasn’t ready to undertake a brand new planning effort from scratch. The Planning Board wanted an updated strategy that was community driven, actionable and flexible.

Topology reevaluated community goals and objectives by leveraging the planning work that had already been done and by supercharging the community engagement process using technology and demonstration projects. The Plan was developed as part of a robust public process that reached a broad spectrum of residents, with a priority on ensuring full transparency in all decision making processes.

Taking  public engagement beyond the confines of workshops and committee meetings,  citizens were engaged to share their community vision with us and each other throughout the process online and on the streets.  The team collaborated with an on-line tech platform —CoUrbanize— and gathered over two thousand responses in the form of comments, texts, and survey responses. To bring objectives to life right away, the Topology team worked with the City’s Public Works Department to install a parklet (small park/public space in a parking spot) for the duration of the Master Plan re:Vision process.

Type

Master Plan Re-Examination

Role

Planning Consultant

Location

Summit, NJ

Project Team

Nora G, Radest,  Mayor

Michael Rogers, City Administrator

Jeffrey B. Wagenbach, Esq, Board Chair

Amy Cairns, Public Information Officer

Jin Blades, DCS Manager

Outreach

Storefront Planning Studio

CoUrbanize Online Engagement

“Charrette Week” and Master Plan Expo

Neighborhood Living Room Meetings

Approach

Community Driven Goal Prioritization

Status

Adopted November 2016

Implementation Ongoing