The MetroFuture plan was developed in five distinct phases, described below with their major accomplishments, products, and milestones.

Phase 1. Initial Visioning Activities intended to define a vision for the region’s future and establish the scope of analysis and scenario evaluation.

• 30 Visioning Workshops and Leadership Dialogues.
• 1 Boston College Citizens Seminar.
• Review of 250 municipal planning documents and vision
• statements.
• Telephone poll of 400 people; 500 surveys administered through local papers, online, and in person.
• Final report outlining 52 Visioning Themes, based on 3,000 statements about the region’s strengths, weaknesses, and future.

Phase 2. Analysis of Current Trends, to create a picture of what Metro Boston would look like in 2030 if current trends continue. Results were summarized into an integrated scenario known as “Current Trends.”

• Baseline projections for demographics, employment, water demand, land use, municipal finance.
• Over 60 Briefings describing the Current Trends.

Phase 3. Development of Alternative Futures, based on public input at briefings and large scale meetings where participants used computer technology to see the impacts of different assumptions about future growth. Each of these scenarios (described on page 7) included the same amount of housing and employment growth, but comprised a different set of assumptions about the distribution of that growth across the region, the location of that growth within communities, and the types of development that will occur.

• 3 internally-consistent, feasible alternatives for growth and preservation in the region.
• 2 Working Sessions in Framingham and Boston.
• 20 Briefings.

Phase 4. Preference Selection, based on evaluation of the  alternative scenarios against the regional vision.  Participants at two working sessions used the Community Viz model at each table to adjust assumptions to see how the scenarios balance various concerns. “Winds of Change” emerged as the clear favorite but was also modified in response to participant concerns regarding resource conservation and suburban density.

• 2 Working Sessions in Danvers and Randolph.
• 16 Briefings.
• Preferred scenario (MetroFuture) ratified by 94% of the 400 people at a Boston College Citizen Seminar on May 1, 2007.
• 65 specific goals adopted by MAPC Council as the official regional plan on May 28, 2008.

Phase 5. Development of Implementation Strategies to make the plan a reality. Recommendations organized into 13 cross-cutting strategies, posted on the website with opportunities for comment, learning, and advocacy.

•  Policy Summit in October 2007 to address four key policy areas.
• Strategy Summit in May 2008 to review draft recommendations in key policy areas.
• 12 Briefings on implementation during Summer 2008.
• Implementation strategy adopted by Council in Fall 2008.