PLANNING OPPORTUNITIES

Communities recover after a disaster. The question is: How can a community use the resources brought to recovery in ways that maximize the recovery effort? Long-Term Community Recovery (LTCR) planning — typically defined as occurring over a three to five year period — helps answer that question. LTCR guides recovery decision-making and is critical to the best utilization of federal, state and local resources to achieve community recovery consistent with a community’s vision and goals. The planning process helps a community articulate its vision and define milestones for realizing it by setting vision-specific goals and objectives. It facilitates the identification of opportunities for collaboration and implementation of recovery projects that are in line with a community's recovery goals.

The process seeks comprehensive solutions to recovery problems that are often inter-related. LTCR planning differs significantly from immediate disaster response. Immediate disaster response is concerned with search and rescue and the restoration of order, establishing safety in a disaster area and ensuring the availability of shelter, food and water. LTCR takes a longer view and encourages people to think about how they want their communities rebuilt. For example, initial disaster response provides immediate but temporary housing. LTCR planning asks if, how and where a community should rebuild permanent housing. The process considers the long-term impact of the disaster on a community, ways to mitigate damage and engages in planning that reduces the risk of future disasters. LTCR planning helps a community to rebuild in ways that make it better, stronger and safer than before.

The LTCR process allows federal agencies to work alongside local, regional and state governing bodies to plan their recovery. A large disaster also requires a combination of local, regional and national architectural, engineering and planning expertise as well as economic development and other specialists to help a community plan for its recovery. This level of commitment ensures some of the best minds in the country help local communities identify and address critical infrastructure needs in the wake of a disaster. LTCR planning assists disaster areas in developing, funding and implementing recovery plans.

LTCR recognizes that the community is ultimately responsible for its recovery and recovery plans created during the LTCR planning process are used by the community long after recovery professionals leave. Recovery professionals work with community members to ensure they have the skills to continue their recovery process.