Districts of Critical Planning Concern
(DCPCs)

The Cape Cod Commission is charged with recommending the designation of Districts of Critical Planning Concern, or DCPCs. The districts are generally nominated by a town or several towns. After going through an extensive public hearing process, the Commission recommends or decides not to recommend the nominated districts for approval aby the Barnstable County Assembly of Delegates and the County Commissioners. If ultimately approved, the districts allow a town or a group of towns to adopt special rules and regulations to protect natural, coastal, scientific, cultural, architectural archaeological, historic, economic, or recreational resources or values of regional, statewide, or national significance. The rules that the nominating communities create and adopt (known as "implementing regulations") then govern development in the designated DCPC area.

To date, Barnstable County has designated seven Districts of Critical Planning Concern that were nominated by their respective towns. Two more were nominated for consideration in February 2008: one in the Craigville Beach/Centerville Village Center area of Barnstable, and one in Brewster.

For general information about DCPCs, download the Districts of Critical Planning Concern brochure (in PDF format; layout assumes back-to-back printing on 8.5x11-inch paper in landscape mode).