CPAC MINUTES 

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Comprehensive Plan Advisory Committee Minutes

- Meeting #6-

 

 

1/25/2023  6:30 P.M. Exeter Public Library

773 Ten Rod Road, Exeter, RI 02822

Approved: March 14, 2023

 

CPAC Members		Member Present Y – Yes N – No	PB Members	Member Present Y – Yes N – No	Other Staff/Consultant
Christopher	Ausura	N			Larissa Brown William DePasquale
Tom	McMillan	Y			M. Dixie Foisy, Clerk
			Scott Millar	Y	Olivia DeFrancesco, Council Liaison
Ben	Coerper	N	Michael P. DeFrancesco	N	Dan Patterson, TC President
Rachael	Slattery	N	Bill Haas	N	Cal Ellis, Town Council Member
Robert	Corriea	Y	Gina Thurn	Y
Jenna	Cragan	N	Donna DiDonato	Y
Jess	DeMartino	Y	Michael Viveiros	Y
Waverly	Findlay	N	Joseph St Lawrence	Y
Charles	Franklin	N
Tracy	Hartman	N
Maggie	LaPrise	N
Claudia	Massa	N
Ray	Morrissey	Y
Ted	Nataly	N
Noah	Thurn	N
Paul	Ward	N

 

1.      CPAC CALL TO ORDER – Bill DePasquale, Town Planner, called the meeting to order at 6:32 p.m. and roll call was taken by the Planning Board Clerk.  The Town Planner then turned the meeting over to Larissa Brown, Facilitator.

 

FACILITATOR – Ms. Brown introduced the Zoom presentation: A Framework for Preserving Rural Character and Economic Resilience: The WealthWorks Model, presented by Shanna Ratner, Principal, Yellow Wood Associates. WealthWorks is a proven model of integrated rural community and economic development that has been successfully applied in multiple communities.

 

Ms. Ratner has extensive experience in rural communities in New England and she was selected by the Ford Foundation to conceptualize and support implementation of a new approach to rural economic development. She is the author of Wealth Creation: A New Framework for Rural Economic and Community Development (2019) and lives in rural Vermont. The planning team provided a copy of her book to the Exeter Public Library; and you can also explore how the WealthWorks system works on the following website: www.wealthworks.org

 

Shanna Ratner explained the model, provided examples from other communities, and then opened a discussion about how Exeter might use this framework to strengthen community assets for greater prosperity. She explained the meeting goals and agenda.

 

Ms. Ratner reviewed WealthWorks six Guiding Principles:

1)      Demand oriented: Connect specific community assets to market demand to create sustainable livelihoods.

2)      Inclusive: Intentionally connect people and places that have been economically marginalized with mainstream economic opportunity.

3)      Multi-solving: Design for the present and the future by building and maintaining multiple forms of wealth while doing no harm.

4)      Systems change to achieve scale: Retool systems of consumption, production, investment, regulation and incentives using innovative and responsive approaches and technologies to achieve scale.

5)      Place-based: Tie regional wealth to place through place-based ownership and control.

6)      Adaptable for continuous learning: Strategically flexible; Adapt to unique place-based opportunities; Require measurement to support continuous learning and ongoing adaptation.

 

Her presentation included the Eight Forms of Capital equaling Wealth:

1)      Intellectual: Knowledge and innovation

2)      Individual: Skills and mental and physical health

3)      Social: Trust and relationships

4)      Natural: Natural resources

5)      Built: Infrastructure

6)      Political: Political influence

7)      Financial: Investment and savings

8)      Cultural: Traditions, customs and ways of doing

 

At one point during the presentation Ms. Ratner had those present, break out into groups and asked them to build on her ideas with regards to the eight forms of wealth. Planner DePasquale reviewed the first groups ideas

(The Chicken or the Egg Theory); Scott Millar reviewed the second groups ideas (Large Land Owners); and Robert Corriea reviewed the third groups ideas which included (Bike Paths). The groups went through this process a second time to discuss future possibilities for Exeter.    

 

2.       Discussion with public comment of WealthWorks approach for Exeter.

In person and Online groups discussed the following ideas: Investing in Open Space Bonds; Building a Community    Center; Town Hall updates/communication; Farmers’ Market; Hiking Groups; Theatre/music possibilities; Movie nights; Exeter Old Home Days; Memorial Day Parade.

 

3.      Staff/CPAC Comments, Updates and possible future meeting dates.

A recording of this meeting will be available on the CPAC website.

The next meeting of CPAC will take place on Thursday, February 16, 2023 at 6:30 pm.

 

4.      Public Comment: N/A

5.      ADJOURNMENT:

The CPAC meeting was adjourned at 8:45 pm.