Complete Regional Transportation Plan 2012 - Cape Cod ...

Seashore on the Lower Cape not only preserves a great deal of land in that area, but alsorestricts additional growth on land already developed within its borders.In 1998, the Cape Cod Land Bank Act was passed, and in the first year nearly 800 acreswere approved for preservation across the region. Most of the parcels are forconservation or passive recreational use but some towns have purchased properties forother purposes such as future water supply well sites and trail links to the Cape CodPathways network.Generally, open space uses are common inland and on the outer Cape, while not ascommon on the south shore of the Cape. The Cape Cod Bay and Buzzards Bay shoresfalls somewhere in between. Both transportation and local land use decisions haveplayed a major role in the loss of open space. The one area that appears to suffer from alack of open space uses is the southern shore of the Cape from Hyannis to Harwich,where development pressures have been strong. On the rest of the Cape, "perceived"open space (undeveloped land as well as protected conservation land) is generally nothard to find, at present. Whether this condition will continue depends on thedevelopment and transportation policies adopted by the region and its towns in thefuture.Cape Cod Regional Transportation Plan | August 2011Chapter 1: Goals & ObjectivesPage 47