Enhanced Outreach and Public Participation

In addition to the meetings held in the update process, there was also a statistically-valid open space and recreation survey distributed by mail to a random selection of households, with the option to complete the survey on paper, over the phone, or online. When the desired threshold of survey responses was reached, a secondary survey was shared online on the project webpage for anyone to complete. While these secondary responses were not included in the statistically-valid survey results, they represented an important opportunity to collect responses from the broader community and to reinforce the information collected from the random households selected. Chapter 6: Community Goals goes into greater detail regarding the public participation process, and responses collected from the survey, public forums and online contact form are shared in Appendix D.

E N H A N C E D O U T R E A C H A N D P U B L I C PA R T I CIPAT I O N

According to MassGIS and U.S. Census data, 9 census block groups out of a total of 22 census block groups in Lexington were identified as environmental justice (EJ) populations. These EJ populations are identified as blocks where either minority or foreign born populations exceed 25 percent of the total block group population. It should be noted that these populations exist throughout Lexington, both within and outside of the neighborhoods identified as EJ blocks. According to American Community Survey estimates, 29.2% of residents in Lexington are foreign-born, almost twice the State average. While English proficiency is high, above 90% in recent estimates, 35.9% of residents also report speaking a language other than English in the home. The statistically-valid survey was designed to reflect the demographics of the community in areas such as ethnic and racial identity, household makeup, and income levels. In an attempt to reach the broadest possible audience, a cover letter was disseminated with the survey including instructions to complete the survey in another language over the phone. The 2022 update process also sought to include other marginalized groups in conversation when developing the new goals and objectives. As part of the stakeholder outreach process, the Working Group engaged the Commission on Disability and the Chief Equity Officer to identify priorities for advancing access for people with disabilities and promoting safe and equal access regarding gender and sexuality. The Town has been dedicated to an inclusive and enhanced public outreach process to meaningfully engage all Lexington residents. The various public engagement strategies utilized throughout the planning process were designed to equally reach the broadest possible audience in Town.