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� <br /> Ecolog�ical connections: Natural and semi-natural corridors that can provide wildlife <br /> habitat connections for animal travel and seed dispersal, <br /> natural stormwater conveyance and management services, and <br /> opportunities for trails and other passive recreation. <br /> Aesthetic character: Elements of the Orono landscape affiliated with natural areas, <br /> rural land uses, and historic landmarks. <br /> � Corridor enclosure: The nature, appearance and relative degrees of screening <br /> provided by roadside vegetation. <br /> ' Rural Oasis Project <br /> Background <br /> The City of Orono is blessed with more Lake Minnetonka lakeshore than any other <br /> community. The residents and elected officials of Orono have long recognized this <br /> � important asset, and have a history of working to maintain lake quality through, . <br /> primarily, the strict control of"hardcover." Hardcover, is considered to be all impervious� � <br /> surfaces (driveways, sport courts,rooftops), which rush water toward the lake without the <br /> benefits of infiltration. Historically, Orono has regulated hardcover by preserving most of <br /> its land axea in large-lot 2- and 5-acre zoning districts. More recently, however, the city <br /> has guided certain areas toward higher densities, opening the door for a variety of new <br /> possibilities—both positive and negative. . <br /> On the positive side, Orono can now consider working with developers toward <br /> "conservation development," which can have benefits for Lake Minnetonka beyond <br /> merely the reduction of hardcover. On the negative side, higher densities can be a threat <br /> to both the ecological (large wetlands, Lake Minnetonka water quality) and aesthetic <br /> (pastureland, landmarks, views) character of the city as a whole. With proper planning <br /> however, the negative effects can be successfully mitigated and the ecological health of <br /> the community can actually be improved. <br /> In late 2004, the City of Orono placed a moratorium on development within the city, and <br /> hired Dalhgren, Shardlow, and Uban, Inc. (DSU), to lead a process to determine and <br /> develop strategies to protect the aesthetic and ecological character of Orono in the face of <br /> new development pressures. DSU's planners and landscape architects, along with <br /> ecologists from Applied Ecological Services, Inc. (AES), facilitated two evening <br /> meetings with city staff and elected and appointed officials, evaluated specific "rural <br /> corridors" to discover, analyze, and define aspects of rural character in the city, <br /> performed ecological assessments, and produced generalized concept development <br /> schemes for three pilot sites. Through this process, Orono city leaders were challenged to <br /> carefully examine what makes their city special, and the DSU team provided guidance on <br /> City of Orono DSU, Inc <br /> Draft CPA 3 August, 2005 <br />