A water bank is a system of accounting and paying for measures that offset or mitigate water losses due to water withdrawals, sewering, and/or increased impervious areas that prevent aquifer recharge.  The purpose of a water bank is to provide a water supplier with the resources necessary to mitigate the demands of new development through conservation, leak detection, education, or infrastructure improvements.  For example, a water banking program might require that new connections or increased demands be mitigated through payment into a fund, proportional to the amount of water r

Around the country, state transportation agencies are exploring various types of innovative project delivery, including partnerships with private construction or asset management firms to promote cost savings and efficiencies, reduce risk, and/or leverage expertise and experience.

To be effective, Metro Boston’s regional transportation planning and land use planning should be fully integrated activities, conducted independent of state agency control.  Such integration would help ensure ensure that sustainable land use plans support efficient transportation investments, and vice versa.  

One key step to supporting small businesses is to acknowledge their importance in economic development plans.  Many economic development professionals are focused on attracting or retaining corporate employers, which provide economic benefits that are easy to define.  Support for small businesses and entrepreneurs is often harder to define, and it may be harder to measure the outcomes.  

The region’s “creative economy” will be a major driver for growth over the coming decades.  This category includes those industries that have their origin in individual creativity, skill, and talent, the primary products of which are ideas, products, and/or services.  Creative economy industries include architecture and design, business consulting, research, performing and visual arts, advertising, films and media, software development, and education.  

Regions across the United States are witnessing the emergence of structured, formal engagement between post-secondary institutions, municipalities, and civic and business interests.  There is an emerging and commonly-held recognition that the continued success of academic institutions is in the best interests of both the private and public sector.  Economic development partnerships between universities and the public sector have demonstrated the ability to leverage the unique capacities of each.  And perhaps most importantly, these partnerships may be able to engage universit

Marketing and information are critical to ensuring that the development community invests in areas consistent with MetroFuture.  Various public agencies, quasi-public organizations, and public/private partnerships provide statewide and national marketing to priority development sites and other designated locations.  Examples include the Massachusetts Office of Business Development, the Massachusetts Alliance for Economic Development, MassDevelopment, and municipal economic development departments.  

Productive relationships between municipalities and the development community attract economic investment and the opportunity for meaningful growth to Metro Boston.  These relationships should be encouraged. Long-term prosperity depends on it.  Where the permitting process brings satisfactory results, the applicants, the public, and the economy stand to benefit.  MetroFuture recommends that municipalities adopt a set of best practices that can make permitting more predictable, equitable, cost effective, and efficient.  

MetroFuture sees tremendous opportunities for increased density of use in many suburban employment centers.  Many suburban office parks and industrial parks are built with individual buildings separated by large areas of parking and landscaping.  Like suburban residential neighborhoods, these low density developments are difficult to serve with transit because large numbers of employees are dispersed across many buildings and many acres.  Floor area ratios of 0.25 or even 0.1 prevent the creation of additional density.  

Employers must adopt new practices to help retain older workers.  Flexible work arrangements may appeal to older adults who no longer wish to work traditional full-time schedules, either because of additional personal obligations (such as the need to care for aging parents or spouses or to help with grandchildren), worsening health, declining physical energy or stamina, or a preference to sacrifice some income for more control over their time without giving up paid employment entirely.