Envision Approach
Purpose of Envision Cache Valley
The purpose of Envision Cache Valley is to create a long-term vision that will ensure a high quality of life in Cache Valley for years to come. Envision Cache Valley will do this by engaging the citizens of Cache and Franklin Counties in a facilitated conversation about growth, gathering their ideas, employing sound data and scenario analysis, and outlining publicly supported principles to guide future land use and transportation decisions.
Workshops
Envision Cache Valley will host a series of workshops throughout both counties that are open to all interested parties. The steering committee hopes that a wide and diverse cross section of area citizens will participate in the workshops so the brainstorming sessions yield the best possible thinking about our future. Eight workshops have been scheduled in various locations throughout the valley in an effort to attract as much attendance as possible. Participants will be divided into small groups to express their preferences for future development and conservation through a facilitated mapping exercise. The workshops are "brainstorming" sessions that will generate ideas to be tested during the scenarios phase of the process. The workshops are not a public referendum or vote on any particular ideas.
Scenario Analysis
Envision Cache Valley will create a series of scenarios (alternative views of future Cache Valley growth) that can be analyzed to determine how they would impact quality of life. This approach fosters more informed decision making.
The scenarios will be built from workshop feedback and preferences identified by the public. They will reflect various planning strategies and a range of potential outcomes. Using sound analytical techniques, Envision Cache Valley will project the impact of each scenario on key measures of quality of life, such as critical lands, housing affordability, air quality, relative development densities, traffic congestion, etc.
Public Review of Scenario Results and Creation of Cache Valley Vision
The scenarios and results of the scenario analysis will be presented to the public at community meetings. With information regarding the effects of alternative development patterns, the public will have an opportunity to express their preferences.
Taking the best elements from the scenarios, and guided by public preferences, Envision Cache Valley will create a Cache Valley Vision. Envision Cache Valley will identify planning principles embodied in the publicly supported features of the scenarios. This Vision will include a valley-wide map suggesting preferred land use patterns and a set of guiding principles that can serve as a foundation for local implementation.