• Do No Harm – Any proposal of change has to credibly address possible negative outcomes, unintended consequences, and results that are not easily reversed.
• Driven by the Community – Any proposals should either originate within the community or should be supported by the majority of the affected community members.
• Fact-based – Any proposals should be grounded in empirical reality with well-established data or research supporting critical assumptions.
• Success – Any proposal should be compliant with tactical neighborhood needs as well as any overarching City or County strategic objectives and should demonstrate the basic elements of disciplined project management commensurate with the scope of work.
PMG supports any proposals that meet these four easy criteria and opposes any proposal that does not meet these criteria.
What this boils down to is a pretty simple checklist. From the Park Pride Visioning process, we have a quantifiable measure of what outcomes are most important to neighbors. From the City of Atlanta we have the eleven key requirements they articulated in the 2009 Project Greenspace master plan (we don’t have a comparable document yet for the County of DeKalb). The basic elements of disciplined project management are available from any engineering or business book.
Project Management Norms
These are norms used for any major change project whether engineering, medical, public policy, commercial, etc. They are norms that, when adhered to, empirically reduce the percentage of occasions of failed projects, projects with bad outcomes and projects with unintended consequences. Any project not adhering to this bare minimum is likely to fail, miss its targets in a material way or have significant unintended consequences. Project management is usually couched in terms of problem solving but can easily be recast to address opportunities rather than problems.
• What problem are you solving? (alternative ex. What benefit are you seeking to create?)
• How will you know when it is solved (specific measurement)?
• What are the specific details of the plan (location of path, bridges, entrances, parking, security, maintenance, gardens, dog parks, etc.)
• What are the mechanisms by which your solution will solve the problem?
• Why is this set of actions the best answer to solving this problem versus any number of other approaches?
• What are the costs to your solution (financial and non-financial) and who will bear those costs?
• What are benefits to your solution (financial and non-financial) and who will enjoy those benefits?
• What is the timeline, resources required, roles defined, responsibilities designated, and forecasted outcomes?
• Are there any empirical examples where this solution has worked under similar circumstances?
• Is there any well grounded research and empirical evidence supporting the key assumptions underpinning your proposition?
City/County Standards
We don’t have the County standards but we do have those that the City put forward in their 2009 Project Greenspace (in which Park Pride was heavily involved among many others.) While other elements might be added and people might debate the ordering and priorities, it is not an unreasonable list and most likely the County version is somewhat similar.
• Goal 1: Significantly increase the acreage of greenspace with a goal of equal distribution throughout Atlanta.
• Goal 2: Establish connections between greenspaces as part of the greenspace system, including greenway corridors, multi-use trails, and complete streets.
• Goal 3: Provide the highest quality of recreational facilities and programs within the greenspace system to meet citizens’ needs. • Goal 4: Maintain parks and recreational facilities to “best-in-class” standards and ensure that parks and other greenspaces are safe and secure.
• Goal 5: Protect environmentally sensitive lands as part of the greenspace system.
• Goal 6: Protect and restore Atlanta’s tree canopy.
• Goal 7: Promote the use of greenspaces as community gathering places, including a major outdoor events site.
• Goal 8: Integrate Atlanta’s history, cultural heritage, and the arts into the greenspace system to express community identity.
• Goal 9: Establish sustainable sources of funding for greenspace acquisition, development, and management.
• Goal 10: Promote public and private partnerships to grow and manage the greenspace system.
• Goal 11: Promote and coordinate the dedication of greenspace within new development and redevelopment projects.
Neighborhood Priorities
From the first SFC Visioning public meeting SWOT analysis, participants generated a list of 166 concerns, issues, and desires. These items were grouped and organized around seven topic areas listed below with their frequency of mention.
• Quality-of-life issues – 25%
• Conservation, ecological preservation, wildlife protection – 20%
• Purpose and confidence in plan (will it deliver?) – 20%
• Security/Property Values – 10%
• Transportation – 10%
• Privacy/Property – 5%
• Miscellaneous – 10%
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