The Commonwealth then screened the regional priority areas in order to identify the locations that would constitute the state PDA and PPA lists. The purpose of selecting state priority areas is to highlight those areas where local desires, regional priorities and statewide goals are best aligned.

In selecting the state priority development areas, the Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development placed weight on whether development at a site would further statewide goals, such as the Sustainable Development Principles, MassDOT’s Mode-shift Goal or the Administration’s Multi-family Housing Production Goal. To determine consistency with these policies, the state incorporated quantitative (GIS) and qualitative (feedback gathered at public forums, or via comment cards submitted online) analysis. In selecting the state priority preservation areas, the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs did not see a need to trim the list down, based on the importance that local and regional stakeholders placed on preserving the region’s natural heritage. Instead, utilizing an updated GIS tool developed by state agencies in cooperation with nonprofit land conservation groups, EOEEA identified areas that communities may have neglected to designate as PPAs earlier in the process. EOEEA presented these areas, which often formed critical connections between PPAs, to the municipalities as well as CMRPC. As long as all parties agreed, the newly identified areas became PPAs at the local, regional and state levels.

In the end, the state selected a total of 15 priority development areas from the Blackstone Valley, Central 13 and Rural 11 Prioritization Projects, bringing the total number of state PDAs from the CMRPC region to 23. The state also selected 220 priority preservation areas from the three Prioritization Projects mentioned above. A complete list of CMRPC state PDAs is attached, as is a demonstrative list of state PPAs from the CMRPC region.

Conclusion

This report serves as a first step in identifying the locations where development and preservation efforts should be targeted in the future to maximize returns on public and private investment and to grow the region while ensuring that residents and employees in Central Massachusetts continue to experience a high quality of life. While this report does highlight regional and state priority locations, it represents a snapshot in time and other local sites that were not elevated to regional or state significance still may present important opportunities for growth and preservation. As circumstances change over time, these sites should be re-evaluated to determine if they can also assist in furthering the goals of local municipalities, the region, and the Commonwealth.