The Center for Resilient Metro-Regions (CRM)believes that community engagement, climate resilience, sustainability, placemaking and livable cities, public health, equity, affordable housing, and economic development should be synergistic goals and support our communities and our most vulnerable populations. Working at a range of scales, from rural areas to metropolitan regions, CRM partners with communities to develop more resilient and sustainable planning and design solutions. CRM’s work is organized as consulting contracts, applied research, student service-learning, and exploration of new planning models to assist communities.
CRM was established in 1985 (then Center for Rural Massachusetts) to undertake applied research on planning, sustainability, and growth management. Measures proposed in Center publications and projects, including the concept of greenways, context based design, and advancing the practice of strategic planning, have been studied and adopted throughout the United States and the world.
CRM Services We work with municipalities, counties, regional planning agencies, metropolitan planning organizations, and non-profit organizations (NGOs).
Through CRM, faculty, faculty research programs, students, and affiliated programs, have drafted a variety of strategic, subject, and master plans (e.g., open space and recreation plans, downtown urban design, community participation, economic/facility re-use, trail feasibility assessments, and sustainability plans). As part of planning or as standalone projects, we coordinate community participation, which fits our commitment to, and skill with, engaging diverse communities, and project management.
As with all of our work, as a subdivision of state government municipal procurement from CRM is exempt from MGL Chapter 30B Procurement (Section 1 (3) and 1 (4)).