HomeMy Public PortalAboutJuly_August_DistroEng_Plan_Outline
Draft Outline: potential options for July/August beach user engagement
June 21, 2016
• Raise awareness by distributing information (possibly soliciting feedback via a
small 4 question survey, pending capacity to tabulate and analyze the results):
o To visitors and residents who buy beach stickers, provide a sheet with
information about why coastal adaptation is important, what It means for
them as beach sticker buyers, and how they can get involved.
o To visitors at inns and bed and breakfasts. Similar to the above.
o To residents and visitors who are interested in environmental issues,
provide flyers to visitors of the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History.
Similar to the above.
o To visitors and residents at large
§ By posting flyers and leaving handouts at each landing, and by
dropping leaflets or flyers under car windshields parked at the
landings, or by attaching flyers to bike handle bars or dropping
them inside kayaks.
§ By posting announcements and information on select websites,
print media, and public television.
§ By posting flyers at ice cream shops, yacht clubs, marinas, the
library, coffee shops, churches, grocery stores, restaurants, the
town bulletin board, etc.
• Engage
o Residents and Visitors at the beach
§ AmeriCorps volunteers engaging people one-on-one while on the
beach, or as people enter and exit the beach/landing area. Some
may find this intrusive.
§ Set up a small sign at the entrance to the beach announcing “Free
water—look for this tent (and have picture of the tent).” Then,
when people find the tent, offer free iced water and have maps of
that particular beach on display to engage them in a quick
discussion about SLR, Storm Surge, and coastal adaptation
planning. Have them walk away with a flyer that tells them why
they should be engaged (if they haven’t just learned it), how to
get involved, and where to find more information.
§ Set up a table at the entrance to the landing with eye-catching
phrase or statement (In 20 years this parking lot and your car
might be underwater!), and (similar to above) engage the visitor
in a brief discussion about the issues and how to get involved.
§ Organize a public education event at the beach. Erect posts along
the approximate contour lines of the 2, 4, 8, and 12 feet of SLR,
with posts displaying information about what that means for the
landing, the public visiting the beach, and the town as a whole.
The placards could be progressive, leading them ultimately to a
“how to get involved placard.”
o Residents and visitors at other public events
§ Host another public workshop or open house at Town Hall or
another location (could be outdoor event, as suggested)
§ Set up booths or make announcements at farmer’s markets,
White Caps games, Brewster Conservation Day, or other events.
§ Dedicate time to coastal adaptation planning on the July 12
agenda of the Brewster Community Network
o Select stakeholder groups through programs they are already involved
with or required to participate in
§ Engage parents of young children through summer recreation
programs organized by the town and possibly by organizations
such as the YMCA (if there is one) or the Cape Cod Museum of
Natural History, or other.
§ Engage shellfishermen by chatting with them and distributing
information during mandatory compliance checks
§ Businesses, including hotels, inns, and bed and breakfasts
• Organizing up a meeting or workshop specifically for these
stakeholders
• Soliciting their input through the Chamber of Commerce