Valley Conservation Council hosts an annual Better Development Symposium on varying land use planning and development topics.
Better Development Symposium 2013
Conserving Natural Assets and Meeting Regulatory and Economic Goals 
May 8, 2013 from 9:30 am – 3:00 pm
Frontier Culture Museum (Dairy Barn), Staunton, VA
Led by Karen Firehock of the Green Infrastructure Center
Hot off the presses! Attendees received a copy of Karen’s new book, Evaluating and Conserving Green Infrastructure Across the Landscape: A Practitioner’s Guide. Order the book from Green Infrastructure Center.
For information, call VCC at 540.886.3541 or email sara@valleyconservation.org.
VCC’s 2013 Better Development Symposium on May 8 brought in Karen Firehock of the Green Infrastructure Center (GIC) to lead a day of green infrastructure planning. Local staff and officials, conservation partners, interested citizens, and development and design professionals came from across the region and enjoyed a very productive day. The program moved along from mapping and data pointers to practical experience in designing and implementing the plan. Speakers made the link between protecting natural systems and meeting regulatory and economic goals. Luray’s parks and recreation director described how much impact their greenway has had on town vitality and tourism. Richmond’s stormwater utility deputy director likewise showed how green infrastructure planning and environmental site design will help meet water quality requirements.
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The 2012 Better Development Symposium, “Planning for Farming, Farming for Planners,” was held May 15, 2012 in Staunton. Fifteen speakers, ranging from state agency heads to local farmers, brought out the complex challenges that affect the ability of farm and forest operations to stay in business. The program attracted the participation of land use planners, landowners, agency staff, and interested citizens and groups from across the region and state. Key sessions addressed agriculture and water quality and offered good local examples of planning for agriculture. View the flyer here; review the 2012 agenda here.
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The 2011 Better Development Symposium, Building Livable Communities: Planning for “Good Density,” was held on May 25th in downtown Harrisonburg. Below are materials from the workshops and awards ceremony.
Planning for Density
- “Good Density” (Sara Hollberg. Valley Conservation Council) View Presentation
- Crozet Developments under the Neighborhood Model (Vito Cetta, Developer) Contact VCC for Presentation
Local Applications
- New Market Annexation Area Plan (John Hutchinson, Consultant) View Presentation
- Walking, Biking and Transit in Harrisonburg (Thanh Dang) View Presentation
- Open Space Initiatives in Harrisonburg (Adam Fletcher) View Presentation
Better Models for Development Awards Ceremony View Program
