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CMP Part 3B. General Land Use Plan City of Orono Community Management Plan 2020-2040 Part 3B, Page 3 SCOPE The time framework of the Land Use Plan is intended to be consistent with the regional planning period of 2020 through 2040 and with the City's permanent planning policy for rural Orono. Orono's long range land use plans call for permanent maintenance of the existing low density rural residential areas. There is to be no staged growth plan and no expansion of the existing urban service area. This commitment is particularly important to the many Orono citizens who are making private investments based upon this concept. BASIC LAND USE CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES Orono's planning programs have long recognized the development paradox, or urbanization spiral, which often results from arbitrary planning assumptions or from incomplete analysis of planning alternatives. The most striking example in Orono's situation is the documented evidence that over- extension of sanitary sewers, ostensibly to solve a pollution problem, can easily in itself cause irretrievable water quality degradation of Lake Minnetonka. Chapter 1 of this Plan outlines the “urbanization spiral”. Nutrient management technologies such as NURP ponds, alum treatments, and a wide variety of Best Management Practices provide added tools to manage runoff from rural densities. However, Orono cannot and will not rely solely on man- made systems for preserving water quality, and will not increase density to pay for stormwater management infrastructure. A principal goal of Orono's planning program is the protection of natural resources and environmental amenities, particularly the water quality of Lake Minnetonka. The Environmental Protection Plan emphasizes Orono's unique environmental position in relation to the long-term health of Lake Minnetonka. Retention of natural vegetation, light, air, and open space will be promoted. Shorelines will be protected from erosion and alteration. Water quality preservation is dependent upon effective sewage treatment programs. Urbanized areas, shoreland areas and remaining existing higher-density housing clusters within the Rural area have been or will be provided with municipal sanitary sewer to prevent discharge of untreated or insufficiently treated sewage effluent into the Lake. In the rural areas, low density land use can be safely served long- term by individual on-site sewage treatment systems. Historic development patterns have resulted in a city which is partially urban and partially rural. These two development patterns offer a variety of housing to meet residents’ lifestyle and service desires. The citizens of Orono have determined that a long range planning objective of the City is the permanent retention of the rural community. This objective is in line with the existing developed density of the area, and with the similar plans of other cities abutting the rural area. Orono is partly in the Metropolitan Urban Service Area (MUSA) and partly outside the current MUSA. The MUSA was established by Metropolitan Council to define the extent of areas where urban services will be provided and urban scale development will occur. Urban and rural neighborhoods require differing levels of public services and facilities. The urban areas of Orono have sufficient density to require, and to financially support, municipal sewer and water