01-08-2025 Workshop Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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MA-12 NATURAL RESOURCE PROTECTION The State of Minnesota must contribute additional financial resources, particularly in the areas of transportation and transit, community reinvestment, affordable housing development, and the preservation of parks and open space. If funding for regional infrastructure is not adequate, cities should not be responsible for meeting the growth forecast set forth by the Metropolitan Council; •The Metropolitan Council and Legislature must work to pursue levels of state and federal transportation funding that are adequate to meet identified transportation and transit needs in the metropolitan area; •The Metropolitan Council must recognize the limitations of its authority and continue to work with cities in a collaborative, incentives-based manner; •The Metropolitan Council must recognize the various needs and capacities of its many partners, including but not limited to cities, counties, economic development authorities and nonprofit organizations, and its policies must be balanced and flexible in their approach; •Metropolitan counties, adjacent counties and school districts must be brought more thoroughly into the discussion due to the critical importance of facilities and services such as county roads and public schools in accommodating forecasted growth; and •Greater recognition must be given to the fact that the “true” metropolitan region extends beyond the traditional seven-county area and the need to work collaboratively with adjacent counties in Minnesota and Wisconsin, and the cities within those counties. The region faces environmental, transportation, and land use issues that cannot be solved by the seven-county metro area alone. Metro Cities supports an analysis to determine the impacts of Metropolitan Council’s growth management policies and infrastructure investments on the growth and development of the collar counties, and the impacts of growth in the collar counties on the metropolitan area. Metro Cities opposes statutory or other regulatory changes that interfere with established regional and local processes to manage growth in the metropolitan region, including regional systems plans, systems statements, and local comprehensive plans. Such changes erode local planning authority as well as the efficient provision of regional infrastructure, disregard established public processes and create different guidelines for communities that may result in financial, environmental, and other impacts on surrounding communities. Metro Cities recognizes the Metropolitan Council’s efforts to compile and maintain an inventory and assessment of regionally significant natural resources for providing local communities with additional information and technical assistance. The state and region play significant roles in the protection of natural resources. Any steps taken by the state or Metropolitan Council regarding the protection of natural resources must recognize that: 68