Vibrant NEO 2040, A Vision and Framework for Our Future

Initiative and Goals

Vibrant NEO 2040 is a regional visioning and decision-making framework. This initiative is founded on the idea that a shared vision for the future, developed through a robust community and stakeholder engagement process, will lead us to a healthier, more economically and socially equitable future for the region. It is a new way of doing business for Northeast Ohio.

Vibrant NEO 2040 is an opportunity for Northeast Ohio communities to explore the region’s long-term development patterns and for Northeast Ohioans to think together about what we want for the future of our region. The goal of Vibrant NEO 2040 is to create a shared Framework for Our Future that reflects the values, voices and vision of Northeast Ohioans.

In short, Vibrant NEO 2040 will be a roadmap to a stronger Northeast Ohio, a roadmap that NEOSCC will be charting with YOU – the residents and organizations of this region.

And Vibrant NEO 2040 will be a roadmap that needs to be followed. It will be a plan that we all need to see implemented. So, to ensure Consortium members have bought into Vibrant NEO 2040 and carry forth its vision, NEOSCC will seek the approval of Vibrant NEO 2040 by its Governing Board in October 2013.

Throughout the development of Vibrant NEO 2040, NEOSCC will pursue the following goals and outcomes:

Goal 1: Enable Inclusive & Transparent Public Planning

The visioning process to create Vibrant NEO 2040 actively seeks increased participation and decision-making by populations that have been left out of such processes in the past.

Goal 2: Reflect Shared Values

By establishing a shared vision that all Consortium members support, inconsistent policies and investment decisions can more easily be refined to better effect change.

Goal 3: Respect Choice

Preserving our quality of life, expanding choices for Northeast Ohio’s citizens and respecting local government and individual property rights are essential principles for this process

Goal 4: Promote Informed Decision-Making

Currently, many decisions and practices are made in the absence of accurate and accessible region-wide or local data. Vibrant NEO 2040 aspires to provide this missing information and articulate the region’s choices clearly and unambiguously.

Goal 5: Coordinate Efforts & Investments

By relentlessly driving for improvements in how we do business and improving how we plan, Northeast Ohio will be able to eliminate waste of resources and leverage regional assets, investments, and opportunities to their fullest potential.

Goal 6: Enable & Promote Action

The Vibrant NEO 2040 process is intended to stimulate broad public participation, which will lead to development of a shared regional vision and strategic policy framework, a dashboard of metrics, and a set of tools, policies, and pilot programs that will be politically actionable at many levels of government.

Goal 7: Improve Quality of Life

Vibrant NEO 2040 will promote integrated regional land use, and housing, transportation, and capital investment planning to enhance the region’s economic competitiveness, increase its resilience, provide its citizens better access to decent, affordable housing, and offer more cost-effective transportation choices.

As a complement to the regional vision and framework, the Consortium will design and develop products to enable the public, agencies, and Northeast Ohio communities to inform, prioritize, align, and coordinate actions to advance sustainability in their areas of impact and interest. These products are:


Vibrant NEO 2040 Vision & Framework:

A shared vision and framework for the NEO future intended to inspire and guide actions and decisions on a regional and place-based basis.


Dashboard

The Vibrant NEO Dashboard will be the quick reference guide that will keep the region moving in the right direction. The dashboard will include metrics for the highest impact issue areas, prioritized by the public and Consortium members, in land use, housing, health, transportation, economic development and environmental protection.


Tool Kit & Best Practices

The Vibrant NEO 2040 process will produce a regional tool kit and a set of best practices that will empower the local and regional actions essential to transformation. Tools already identified include a Regional Analysis of Impediments to Fair Housing Choice. Additionally, two key planning tools, the first-ever 12-county region general land-use and zoning maps, were developed during the first phase of the project.


Policy Recommendations

Vibrant NEO 2040 will recommend policy changes that will have high impact on regional sustainability.


Pilots

Vibrant NEO 2040 will launch pilot projects for innovative, real-world solutions that have the potential for long-term impact and that will be replicable across the region. These pilot projects will assess, explore and/or execute on NEOSCC objectives and be both regional and place-based.