City Planning

by Harley Noland
February 6, 2010

Growing up in Marietta, I did not give much thought to how our city was planned. It wasn’t until I was enrolled in architectural school that I came to appreciate Marietta’s rectangular block and street pattern; the common lands that edge our rivers; and the setting aside of land for parks. These were all planned before Rufus Putnam arrived here. This far-sighted planning laid the foundation that has served us well for centuries. Good planning involves practical matters – esthetics and respect for your land and your neighbors’ land. The founders of Marietta did not just pull their flatboats ashore and start a frontier town. They had a plan. They employed professional surveyors to help them lay out their vision of what would become Marietta. This commitment to good planning and visioning produced the wonderful city in which we have the pleasure to work and live.

On January 1, 2010, I was sworn in for my second term to serve the citizens of Marietta as councilman-at-large. With the new term of council, I was assigned the chairmanship of the Public Lands and Buildings Committee. In this capacity, I hope to follow our founders’ example by working to develop positive visioning and deliberate planning that will serve the citizens for many years to come. A comprehensive city plan should guide the decision-making process – not the politics of the day.

The world and our city are ever changing and we must plan for that evolution so Marietta can continue to be a profitable place to work, a pleasant place to live, and a good place to educate our citizens. By formulating long-range goals and then crafting plans to reach those goals, we will not get off track when distractions occur. A good example of progressive planning happened when the elm disease began to kill the city’s trees. The Tree Commission was formed to reforest our city. This long-term plan that our city leaders have supported through many administrations of lining our streets with trees is a passive way to cool our city as well as an attractive feature. Another example of good long-range planning is our city zoning code. Zoning is designed to protect neighborhoods and to guide development. You don’t have to travel far to find cities that have unplanned sprawls. Marietta has an entirely different appearance from those communities. Planning in Marietta is implemented by the administration and city council, but the most important part of the planning process is input from you, the citizens.

One of the best aspects of serving on city council is hearing from the citizens and visitors who share with me their dreams, hopes, and concerns for Marietta. It is wonderful to live in a town where so many of its citizens possess a strong passion for their hometown, whether home-grown or adopted. I welcome citizen input and as a member of city council, I will continue to seek out diverse opinions and viewpoints. Marietta has always been a town of dedicated volunteers not afraid to get involved. This is our city and we all must take part in improving Marietta’s future. With declining operation budgets and increasing expenses, to make progress, we all need to pitch in. Just look at what volunteers accomplished in repairing the old train bridge. There are other projects that need willing hands and you will be hearing from me to ask for your help. Please join your neighbors in the rewarding work of preserving our beautiful history and building for an even more bountiful future.

Harley Noland
Marietta City Councilman-at-large