Development Hopes To Get The Community Involved

(NEWS CENTER) -- Most decisions about local issues like zoning or development get made by a handful of people. Projects in Damariscotta and Biddeford and trying to change that.

With the help of grants from the Orton Foundation in Vermont, the communities have started two-year planning efforts called "Heart and Soul." The idea is to gather opinions and ideas from a very large segment of the community, and get those same people involved in helping decide how their town or city should grow in the years ahead.

Orton gave $100,000 grants to both Biddeford and Damariscotta. Part of the grant is cash and part is staff assistance from the Foundation -- which is funding a similar effort in the Rocky Mountain area.

The two-year "Heart and Soul" effort will include public meetings, such as one happening Thursday night in Damariscotta. It will use technology to help reach out to residents in several ways.

While Foundation leaders say their primary goal is to stimulate citizen involvement in the planning process, Orton CEO Bill Roper says they also aspect the communities to develop plans and use those plans to guide future decisions.