With the Comprehensive Plan completed and the Shale Guides all but wrapped up, the Committee was looking for a new project. Committee members decided to tackle one of the priority action items from the Comprehensive Plan, namely the issue of stormwater. The Indiana County Office of Planning and Development (ICOPD) had been tasked with implementing a countywide stormwater ordinance. After much research and discussion, the decision was made to hold an educational workshop dealing with all things stormwater. The group received $5,000 from the League’s Water Resource Education Network (WREN) to hold “a stormwater education and management workshop for municipal and county officials and engineers.”
The workshop was held in the Spring of 2015 under the leadership of Barbara Hauge. The outcome of the workshop was the formation of the Stormwater Education Partnership (SEP) that continues to meets the fourth Thursday of every monthly at 2:30 at Levity Brewery. The workshop also supported the ICOPD in the process of developing a stormwater ordinance. This is a key priority for the ICOPD which is tasked with presenting a comprehensive update to the County Commissioners in 2020.
To date, Phase 1 has been completed and Phase 2 has yet to be finalized. Assuming that the Commissioners endorse the proposed priorities, including the Stormwater Management Plan, the ICOPD will begin to build the foundation and framework for the project. This will include bringing the Watershed Planning Advisory Committee (WPAC) back together to work on the development of the Stormwater Plan and Model Ordinance.
The League of Women Voters, a nonpartisan political organization, encourages informed and active participation in government, works to increase understanding of major public policy issues, and influences public policy through education and advocacy.
