Ottawa County Receives National Achievement Award

Ottawa County is pleased to announce that it is the recipient of a 2016 Achievement Award from the National Association of Counties (NACo).  The award was given to the County for its work in helping to develop “Imagine Hudsonville 2030”, the new Citywide Master Plan for Hudsonville. 

The NACo Achievement Award Program, which started in 1970, recognizes innovative projects that enhance the level of citizen participation in government projects and promote intergovernmental cooperation and coordination in addressing shared problems.  The award for Imagine Hudsonville 2030 was given in the category of Planning.

Imagine Hudsonville 2030 was a collaborative effort between Ottawa County, the City of Hudsonville, and the project consultant, Nederveld Inc.  The Master Plan was created as part of the County Planning Commission’s Urban Smart Growth Demonstration Project in the City of Hudsonville.  One of the goals of the Project is to develop intuitive planning documents that will enhance the ability of community leaders to manage new growth and development.

Imagine Hudsonville 2030 is a highly-visual, action-oriented, and community-supported planning document.  The Plan contains a series of Implementation Strategis that provide short-, mid-, and long-term action steps for the City.  Each strategy is crafted to accomplish the City’s desire and its residents’ desire to be a distinctive, livable, vibrant, and connected community.  High-resolution photographs accompany each strategy to illustrate anticipated outcomes of over 60 targeted actions.

The creation of Imagine Hudsonville 2030 also employed one of the most robust public input strategies for a community master plan.  At the very onset of the master planning process, residents, business owners, students, and entire families converged to share their expectations of what the city should become in the future.  Multiple community meetings were held, visual preferences surveys were conducted, and extensive “on-the-ground” public input was solicited.

More information about the Urban Smart Growth Demonstration Project and the award-winning planning documents that have been created for the City of Hudsonville as part of the Project can be found on HERE.

 

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Media Contact: 

Paul Sachs, Director | Ottawa County Planning and Performance Improvement Department | 616-738-4852