GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE RESOURCE GUIDE | 33 BEST PRACTICES: SITE CONSTRUCTION BEST PRACTICE: KEEP THE PUBLIC INFORMED AND INVOLVED DURING CONSTRUCTION DESCRIPTION: Community engagement during construction is important to keep communities informed of the construction timeline, notify neighbors of any changes to construction, and acknowledge and address any concerns. Engaging community members in the design process and explaining the stages of construction ahead of time will help reduce concerns. Volunteers can be engaged throughout the construction process with tasks such as tree plantings, cleanups, or educational visits to the site. This can help interested community members gain an in-depth understanding of the project and appreciate its form and function. STRATEGIES: • Ensure a community liaison is available to community members and can answer questions related to the project’s construction. • Hold a pre-construction meeting with community residents, and hold regular meetings throughout the construction process.106 • Provide outreach materials that emphasize the community benefits, the project’s needs, what to expect during construction, and the construction timeline. Notify community members of any schedule changes. • Address concerns quickly, and provide regular progress updates. • Select contractors with the ability to engage stakeholders. • Provide temporary signage, listing all partner organizations, that notifies community members where the project is in the construction process (such as ‘project coming soon’, or ‘almost complete: plantings coming soon’). EXAMPLES: • The Clean Water Partnership in Prince George’s County, Maryland has outreach staff assigned to different project types, including projects occurring on parkland, schools, municipally-owned properties, and private properties. Community outreach staff establish a regular meetings schedule with affected stakeholders to keep them informed. The Clean Water Partnership also provides informative and educational temporary signage at project sites so park users and others are aware of the project’s progress. RESOURCES: • EPA: How to Ensure Effective Community Engagement at Construction Projects: Lessons Learned from Two CARE Communities in Connecticut • International Finance Corporation: Stakeholder Engagement: A Good Practice Handbook for Companies Doing Business in Emerging Markets Clean Water Partnership Green stormwater infrastructure installation at a public school in Prince George’s County, MD
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