Page 70 - Northville Township

With this fresh Master Plan, Northville Township and its various partner agencies and organizations will have an essential
new document that should be frequently referred to for guidance in community decision-making. The plan should be
a “living document” that is responsive to ongoing change. Its key planning considerations, goals, policies and action
strategies must also be revisited periodically to ensure that the plan is providing clear and reliable direction on a range of
matters, including land development issues and public investments in infrastructure and services.

Implementation goes well beyond just a list of action items. It is a challenging process that will require the commitment
of the Township’s elected and appointed officials, staff, residents, business owners, major institutions, other levels of
government and other organizations and individuals who will serve as champions of the plan and its particular direction
and strategies. Among its purposes, this final plan section highlights specific roles, responsibilities and methods of
implementaiton to execute priority plan recommendations. Equally important are formalized procedures for the
ongoing monitoring and reporting of successes achieved, difficulties encountered and new opportunities and challenges
that have emerged since plan adoption. This is in addition to any other change in circumstances, which may require
rethinking of plan priorities. Scheduled plan evaluations and updates, as described later in this section, will help maintain
its relevance and credibility as an overarching policy and action guide.

PLAN ADMINISTRATION
Why this Final Plan Section is
During the development of this plan, representatives Important to Northville Township
of government, business, community groups and
others came together to inform the planning process. • Emphasizes the importance of not only creating
These community leaders — and new ones who will a plan but translating it into real action and
emerge over the horizon of this plan — must maintain tangible, beneficial results.
their commitment to the ongoing implementation and • Adds a shorter-term strategic perspective
updating of the plan’s goals and action strategies. to what is otherwise intended as a guide to
Northville Township’s long-term enhancement
Leadership Alignment over the next 20 years.
• Includes a list of priority actions for the Township
Long-range plans such as Northville Township’s and other plan implementation partners to
Master Plan are relatively general in nature, but they focus on during the next several years after plan
are still complex policy documents that account for adoption.
interrelationships among various policy choices. As such, • Underscores the need to keep the plan fresh and
educating decision-makers and administrators about relevant through annual review and reporting
plan implementation is an important first step after plan procedures and periodic updates.
adoption. As the principal groups that will implement • Advocates for ongoing community engagement
the plan, Township management and department heads, as the plan is implemented.
the Board of Trustees and the Planning Commission
should all be “on the same page” with regard to priorities,
responsibilities and interpretations. – Facilitation of a mock meeting in which the use of
the plan and its policies and recommendations is
Consequently, Township management should arrange illustrated; and
to convene those listed above immediately after plan – An in-depth question-and-answer session, with
adoption, to include: support from the Township Attorney and other key
– A discussion of the respective roles and staff.
responsibilities of the Board of Trustees, Planning
Commission (and other Township advisory bodies) Definition of Roles
and individual staff members;

– A thorough overview of the entire Master Plan, with Board of Trustees
emphasis on the parts of the plan that relate most to The Board of Trustees should take the lead in the
each individual group; following general areas:

– Implementation tasking and priority setting, which – Adopting and amending the plan, when necessary
should lead to each group establishing one-year and and appropriate, after adoption by the Planning
three-year implementation agendas;

66 NORTHVILLE TOWNSHIP Master Plan