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RICE CREEK NORTH REGIONAL TRAIL MASTER PLAN | 2 <br />Stewardship <br />Stewardship advances the Council’s longstanding mission of orderly and economical development by responsibly <br />managing the region’s natural and financial resources, and main strategic investments in our region’s future. <br />Stewardship means: <br />• Responsibly managing our region’s finite resources, including natural resources - such as lakes, rivers, <br />streams, wetlands, groundwater, high quality natural habitats, and agricultural soils - financial resources, <br />and our existing investments in infrastructure. <br />• Pivoting from expanding to maintaining our region’s wastewater and highway infrastructure <br />• Leveraging transit investments with high expectations of land use <br />Prosperity <br />Prosperity is fostered by investments in infrastructure and amenities that make our region competitive in <br />attracting and retaining successful businesses, a talented workforce, and strong economic opportunities. <br />Regional economic competitiveness results from our strategic, long-term public and private decisions that build <br />on and grow our region’s economic strengths relative to other regions. Advancing prosperity includes: <br />• Fostering conditions for shared economic vitality by balancing major investments across the region <br />• Protecting natural resources that are the foundation of prosperity <br />• Planning for and investing in infrastructure, amenities, and quality of life needed for economic <br />competitiveness <br />• Encouraging redevelopment and infill development <br />Equity <br />Equity means connecting all residents to opportunity and creates viable housing, transportation, and recreation <br />options for people of all races, ethnicities, incomes, and abilities so that all communities share the opportunities <br />and challenges of growth and change. For our region to reach its full economic potential, all our residents <br />must be able to access opportunity. Our region is stronger when all people live in communities that provide <br />opportunities for success, prosperity, and quality of life. Promoting equity includes: <br />• Using the Council’s influence and investments to build a more equitable region <br />• Creating real choices in where we live, how we travel, and where we recreate for all residents, across race, <br />ethnicity, economic means, and ability <br />• Investing in a mix of housing affordability along the region’s transit corridors <br />• Engaging a full cross-section of the community in decision-making <br />Livability <br />Livability focuses on the quality of our residents’ lives and experiences in the region, and how places and <br />infrastructure create and enhance the quality of life that makes our region a great place to live. With abundant <br />and beautiful open space, an active arts community, a range of housing options, and a reasonable cost of living, <br />the Twin Cities region is widely recognized for its high quality of life. Enhancing livability means: