The last comprehensive plan helped guide the city to a more mixed-use, built-up downtown, and the city plans to use the new comprehensive plan in the future to improve other neighborhoods.
If approved, the comprehensive plan is the legal document that the city planning commission would point to when approving or denying projects.
“We really tried to hone in on land use here and what we need as an organization to defend the decisions that are made,” said Tony Kroeger, division manager of planning and land use for the city.
He said the city has already used the new comprehensive plan to apply for grants to improve streets.
Kroeger added the city plan board has already adopted the 2040 plan, and while there will be a gap between that and the city commission’s approval of plans, there won’t be any changes to the division of planning and land use or the plan board.
The principles of the updated city plan included:
- Ensuring equitable access to quality of life for all people.
- Meeting the city’s housing needs, including adding apartments and other types of homes so people have choices where to live in each neighborhood.
- Preserving the historic character of homes and neighborhoods.
- Reducing the need for cars in the city.
- Using land already built on in the city and revitalizing dilapidated homes where possible.
- Ensuring streets are safe and accessible for everyone.
- Using the natural land around the city, like the rivers and parks, to increase quality of life.
- Consuming resources around the city at a rate that means the city can exist far into the future.
Kroeger said the previous comprehensive plan is expiring at the end of 2022, and the planning department would have liked not to have a gap between the previous plan expiring and the new one coming in.
The plan is also expected to be hosted online, with paper copies available. Kroeger said the reason for that is so people could easily translate the plan into other languages and access it more easily.
City Commissioner Darryl Fairchild said he was concerned about the timeline, asking if people had enough time to give input on the updated plan. Commissioner Shenise Turner-Sloss expressed similar concerns.
Kroeger said the city has held extensive listening sessions and sent out surveys and used that feedback to shape the plan. He also noted that citizens concerned about the plan had the opportunity to speak at city commission meetings.
Kroeger noted the planning board can change the plan with written notification to the city council, and the shape of the plan may change as opportunities arise.
Both Fairchild and Turner-Sloss, along with commissioner Matt Joseph, commended the city planning office for their work on the plan.
“I wanted to end with comments because this is something I’ve advocated for, the comprehensive plan,” Fairchild said. “So I’m very excited about it.”
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