(HUDSON COUNTY, NJ) - The Hudson County Planning Board introduced the Hudson County Master Plan for review and adoption on October 17, 2001. The plan will be voted on after a 90-day public comment period in which the public is welcomed to review the plan and provide comments. Residents can download a copy of the Master plan by visiting the Hudson County Web Site at www.hudsoncountynj.org. This latest draft of the Master Plan represents the most significant revision to the document since it was last adopted by the County Planning Board in 1974. The public hearing on the master plan will be January 16, 2002. "Hudson County is experiencing an increase in population, new housing, job opportunities and educational progress; we need a plan that will help us address and manage this growth," said Sebastian "Chip" D'Amico, Chairperson of the Hudson County Planning Board. "The Hudson County Planning Board is encouraging every Hudson County resident to be a part of this process and provide us with additional constructive feedback on the plan."

The 2001 Hudson County Master Plan provides the technical analysis and basis for the Hudson County Urban Complex Strategic Revitalization Plan. The Master Plan's goals are to improve the overall quality of life in Hudson County; to provide for the economic revitalization of the County's commercial and industrial base; to preserve the character of existing well-established neighborhoods; to improve the transportation network; and to increase the tax base.

In addition, the Master Plan provides nine individual elements including a Land Use Plan, Circulation Plan, Economic Plan, Housing Plan, Community Facilities Plan, Utilities Plan, Social Services Plan, Conservation Plan and Historic Preservation. The elements lay out specific goals and objectives for each planning issue.

Essentially, a county master plan deals with those matters over which the county has jurisdiction, such as county roads, bridges, viaducts, parks and playgrounds, forest reservations, etc. County Planning Boards are encouraged to respectively cooperate with local municipalities within the county in any matters which may concern the integrity of the county master plan and to advise the board of chosen freeholders with respect to the formulation of the entire plan.

The 2001 Hudson County Master Plan is particularly noteworthy because it includes a Social Service Plan, which is not traditionally found in master plans, but was included because social services play an important role in Hudson County.

"Our Master Plan addresses an array of planning issues from traditional concerns of land use and economic development to the not so traditional issues of coordinating the County's social service programs with our revitalization efforts," said Stephen Marks, Deputy Director of the Office of Strategic Revitalization, who assists the Hudson County Planning Board. "This plan will help to complement our Strategic Revitalization Plan and provide the tactics and actions to implement Hudson County's future vision of revitalizing of communities."

The Urban Complex Strategic Revitalization Plan was adopted in 1999 and is the first and only regional plan to be endorsed by the New Jersey State Planning Commission. It outlines a coordinated approach to community and economic development to ensure the most effective utilization of State, County and municipal resources. The Plan, has also been selected as a recipient of the 2001 Joint Center Sustainable Community Award presented by the National Association of Counties (NACo).

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