Linked below is a PDF of two action items brought before the Strafford Regional Planning Commission (SRPC).
Here is a list of acronyms to help you understand the content:
SMPO: Strafford Metropolitan planning organization: the SMPO is an area designated as a transportation planning region. It’s boundaries are set by population and are required by the Federal Highway Act.
GIS: Geographic Information System: This is the nomenclature given to a layered computer database of area infrastructure.
CMAQ: Congestion Mitigation Air Quality: this is a funding source from the federal government that is appropriated for transportation projects that reduce pollution.
TIP: Transportation Improvement Plan; Amendments are triggered when there is a change to an existing transportation project. Each must go through a public comment period of 30 days and be voted on by the Commissions policy committee.
NHDES: New Hampshire Environmental Services
Federal Highway Act: The congressional act that supports transportation infrastructure.
Title VI. Civil Rights Act: Added to the transportation act to incorporate social and environmental justice to aid in a fair and equitable inclusion of underserved populations regarding transportation project.
The public comments section on page 3 lists the comments received by the public. There were only two respondents. One is the NHDES representative on the SMPO and the other is a SRPC member town commissioner. We don’t consider this adequate public comment as required by the Federal Requirement for fairness and equity under the Federal Highway Act and Title 6.
This is not a ‘consensus’ of the people by any stretch.
And so it goes… same for the listening sessions and charettes, more often they are attended by the very members of the boards and commissions themselves or, their paid facilitators.