Community and Land Use Planning

Whether focused on a parcel of land, a watershed, a region, or a state, the best planning documents are informed by sound science and rigorous analysis. Downstream Strategies catalogs current conditions, links policy and management options with scientific data, performs economic benefits analyses, and writes detailed plans to arm our clients with the technical expertise needed to improve and protect vital resources.

At Downstream Strategies, we view planning as essential to building thriving, sustainable communities.

We offer wide-ranging planning services that support and promote resilient communities, vibrant economies, and sustainable environments. Our staff have led inclusive planning processes and authored planning documents for municipalities, counties, community organizations, and nonprofits across the country.

Our planning processes are carefully tailored to meet client and community needs. We believe that plans and reports should be useful for the communities they serve. As a result, we produce practical, accessible, and results-oriented deliverables with the end-user in mind.

We have over 20 years of experience delivering professional-quality reports and planning documents to our clients. Our work helps buoy researchers, developers, legislators, and community members alike as they work towards their shared goals.

Community revitalization planning

  • Downtown revitalization plans
  • Urban renewal plans
  • Riverfront redevelopment plans

Recreation and tourism planning

  • Market assessments
  • Trail planning, design, and construction

Land use planning

  • Comprehensive plans
  • Conservation plans
  • Tract management plans

Strategic planning

  • Visioning
  • Feasibility studies
  • Program and impact assessments

Community and Land Use Planning Contact

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Projects

Tourism Business Opportunity Studies

Downstream Strategies completed Tourism Business Opportunity Assessment reports for four West Virginia towns, including Richwood, Hinton, Matewan, and Whitesville. These assessments cataloged existing tourism attractions and support services in each town and analyzed the missing elements needed to enhance tourism in each area. These reports will be used by the West Virginia Community Development Hub and the Northern West Virginia Brownfields Center to incentivize development and business expansion in key economic sectors to support tourism growth.

Cumberland Blight Action Plan

Downstream Strategies worked with the WVU Land Use and Sustainable Development Law Clinic to produce a Blight Action Plan for the City of Cumberland, Maryland. Over the course of this project, the entire city was surveyed for blighted, abandoned, and dilapidated properties using an online survey app for smartphones created by our staff. Downstream Strategies staff designed the survey instrument, managed the geospatial data, and co-authored the Blight Action Plan, which outlines recommendations for the city’s redevelopment.