Moore Planning Group Wins Louisiana APA Award

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Nathan Gaspard, (318) 445-2825
Date: October 16, 2009

MPG Honored for Outstanding Land Use Plan

Moore Planning Group (MPG) was awarded the 2009 Outstanding Planning Award for a Land Use Plan by the Louisiana Chapter of the American Planning Association during the organization’s annual meeting held October 14-16 in Natchitoches, La. The firm was honored for a land use plan created for Iberville Parish. MPG brought comprehensive planning techniques, including GIS Suitability Analysis, Market Feasibility Analysis, Smart Growth Initiatives and Smart Code concepts to a rural parish unaccustomed to land use planning.

The stakes were high: Iberville Parish is one of the only areas within the Baton Rouge metro area to have lost population in recent years, a condition resulting from a lack of new development in the area. The firm’s challenge in creating a land use plan was to preserve the area’s character and culture and to respect the vision of residents, while ensuring a positive growth environment. At the conclusion of the planning process, the community enthusiastically supported the plan, and the Iberville Parish Council adopted it unanimously.

“This plan has been a rousing success having already resulted in economic development and given us a pro-active stance towards our parish growth and development,” said Iberville Parish Land Use Commission Chair Barry Marionneaux. “Working with Moore Planning Group has allowed us to develop an implementation strategy for the ongoing needs of the Parish. All municipalities and parishes should have a plan such as we have. It lays the groundwork for many Smart Growth principles that are essential for cities and parishes to be progressive.”

MPG’s Director of Planning Nathan Gaspard says the new land use plan gives Iberville Parish the ability to chart a promising new course. “The plan will stimulate positive development because it eliminates a major growth deterrent: unpredictable development patterns, which can compromise the quality of life in the community, and challenge the ability of the parish to provide critical services.”

MPG worked within tight budget constraints to create a plan with targeted goals and carefully selected priorities. The plan’s features included: 3D animation showing the possible consequences of lack of planning; Development Suitability Mapping, which objectively merged the parish’s physical and cultural attributes and Smart Growth goals; a Housing and Commercial Development Feasibility Report, which helped the parish anticipate growth needs over 10 years; and more.

Moore Planning Group is a Louisiana-based full-service planning and landscape architecture firm with offices in Alexandria and Baton Rouge. For more information, please visit www.mooreplanninggroup.com or call (318) 445-2825.