CR Planning

Framework Land Use Plans

To promote local land use decision-making based on scientific information, the Northern Counties Land Use Coordinating Board (NCLUCB) co-sponsored the development of framework land use plans for each of its ten member counties. As part of this project, CR Planning principals worked with four contiguous counties in Northern Minnesota (Koochiching, Itasca, Beltrami and Clearwater) to develop framework plans. The planning process included the collection and analysis of land use, natural resource, and economic data using Geographic Information Systems (GIS). A public input process was created for each county based on local needs and culture. Participants in the public process reviewed the data, created visions for the county, and developed planning goals. The resulting framework plans have been the basis for additional comprehensive planning in three of the four counties.

Planning Handbook

Based on the experience of all ten NCLUCB counties, CR Planning principals created a handbook to guide other local governments in creating framework plans. A Guidebook to Creating Framework Land Use Plans: Our Experience with Land Use Planning in Northern Minnesota uses the words of local residents, county officials and county staff to describe the framework process and its results. To complete the NCLUCB process, CR Planning principals organized and facilitated a workshop to discuss the land use planning process and outcomes. A Quiet Revolution: Land Use and Natural Resource Planning in Northern Minnesota involved representatives from the ten counties, other local governments and state and federal agencies. A dialogue session about the need for continuing communication between levels of government completed the program.

View the Guidebook to Creating Framework Land Use Plans
View the Clearwater County Framework Plan