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. �. . <br /> PC Exhibit J <br /> Executive Summary <br /> Overview <br /> Throughout its history, the City of Orono has identified the protection and enhancement <br /> of the environmental health of Lake Minnetonka as its primary goal. Secondary, but <br /> closely related goals supported pioneering efforts to manage hard cover and maintain the <br /> rural character of the community. As the Twin Cities Metropolitan Area continues to <br /> grow, Orono has recognized the need to strategically intensify its efforts to protect these � <br /> values. Beginning in August 2004, the city initiated the "Rural Oasis Project." This <br /> project represents the city's innovative approach to maintain and enhance both its <br /> ecological health and rural aesthetic, while accommodating development. <br /> There are many good examples of communities who have successfully pursued studies to <br /> promote community aesthetics. There are a growing number of communities that have <br /> embraced conservation design principles and both of these important .community <br /> objectives have been implemented through ordinances, guidelines and other tools. The <br /> Orono approach is unique first in its recognition of the fact that these two objectives are <br /> inextricably linked, and second in the manner in which the implementation of its plan <br /> coordinates, ecological and aesthetic requirements. <br /> These guidelines encourage the use of Conservation Design to conserve and enhance <br /> aesthetic and ecological elements of the landscape. At the beginning of the project, a <br /> visual preference survey was conducted to identify the positive and negative effects of <br /> development in Orono. Simultaneously, Minnesota Land Cover Classification System <br /> (MLCCS) data and ecological fieldwork were compiled to produce a natural resources <br /> inventory for potential development sites within Orono. These aesthetic and ecological <br /> components were then combined to ensure that the resulting development guidelines <br /> would address both natural resource conservation and scenic value protection. <br /> At the end of the Rural Oasis process, the City of Orono determined that the approach <br /> used in the project would mitigate the impacts of growth, while improving the rural <br /> character and environmental health of the community and its environs. The purpose of <br /> this Comprehensive Plan Amendment(CPA) is to: <br /> (1) describe the Rural Oasis process and findings, <br /> (2) establish Goals and Guiding Principles, as official city policy to guide future <br /> development, <br /> (3) explain and illustrate the desired results of suggested design standards when <br /> applied to potential development sites, <br /> (4) provide procedures and ordinances to implement the Guiding Principles in the <br /> City of Orono. <br /> The adoption of this amendment will be the first step in establishing a set of Community <br /> Design Standards to achieve the desired outcomes of Orono's Rural Oasis initiative. <br /> City of Orono DSU, Inc <br /> Draft CPA 1 August, 2005 <br />