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About the Southwest
Region Planning Commission
Directions to the SWRPC Offices
MISSION:
"To work in partnership with the communities of the Southwest
Region to promote sound decision-making for the conservation and
effective management of natural, cultural and economic resources."
The Southwest Region Planning Commission is one of New
Hampshire's nine regional planning agencies established by RSA 36.
The Commission covers a planning district made up of 35 towns and
covering approximately 1,000 square miles comprising the Southwest
Region of the State. The agency has a diverse work program made up
of six major program areas:
To implement its work program, the Commission is funded through
multiple sources which include local dues contributed by member
municipalities. For each dollar of local dues, the agency's
operating budget contains an additional six dollars to assist in
meeting the needs of the organization and its member municipalities.
These additional revenues are provided by way of various federal,
state and local grants and contracts. These resources provide the
Commission with the ability to assemble the tools and expertise to
which member municipalities have direct access.
The Southwest Region Planning Commission is a public planning
agency which responds to statutory requirements, contractual
obligations of several State agencies and the needs of member
communities. The diversity of the agency work program reflects the
Commission's dynamic nature and ability to accommodate new challenge
and opportunity.
Serving the Region's Communities:
The Southwest Region Planning Commission provides local
assistance on planning issues to member municipalities. This
assistance can come in the form of a wide range of activities
including community master planning, site plan review, capital
improvement planning, subdivision reviews, ordinance preparation,
interpretation of state and local planning requirements, grant
administration, cartographic support, and geographic information
system (GIS) applications.
The Planning Commission is able to provide additional services
through project-specific contracts with member towns, outside
funding support or some combination of these. Examples of such
activities include master plan preparation and updates, planning
board assistance, mapping and GIS services, economic development
planning, and community development block grant administration.
Regional Planning - Beyond Town Borders:
A primary charge of the Planning Commission is to represent
member towns on issues which have a larger-than-local focus. For
example, to effectively protect and manage the Region's rivers,
lakes, forests, and wetlands requires a multi-community effort. Many
of our transportation facilities are designed to link the Region's
towns to each other and to points beyond. The Commission's efforts
include working with the Region's municipalities to establish
priorities for transportation facility needs (roads, bridges, etc.)
and coordinating these priorities with the State of New Hampshire to
facilitate funding assistance. The Commission places an emphasis on
representing the Region to secure its fair share of federal and
state resources available for planning and infrastructure projects.
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