Whether for economic development, site development (residential or industrial), water/wastewater, or transportation-related projects, a key step in our due diligence process is reviewing the project community’s comprehensive plan. These plans not only guide a community’s direction, but the projects we develop. That said, we see so much benefit in communities utilizing and implementing comprehensive plans to direct this growth.
What is a comprehensive plan?
A comprehensive plan serves as a long-range planning tool for towns, cities, and counties. Comprehensive plans create a vision of future growth, enabling communities to focus on strategies and patterns of development. These planning documents include a future land use map to guide the community’s physical land growth and change. Key sections in many comprehensive plans include growth/annexation, infrastructure and capacity, housing and neighborhoods, parks/trails, economic development, public amenities, urban form and design, and sustainability. Zoning codes act as a legal tool to form the comprehensive plan’s vision and strategies. Comprehensive plans are living, breathing documents and are not created to be left on a shelf. We believe the best comprehensive plans are not only visionary but also have actionable and accomplishable strategies.
Why are comprehensive plans important?
Comprehensive plans focus on and guide growth, development, and change within communities, enabling planning jurisdictions to proactively shape their future. They also enable leaders to think strategically about various aspects of the community. Long-range land use planning assists with conserving agriculture areas, providing parks and trails, planning roads and utilities, and determining the appropriate locations for future housing developments, industrial parks, or wind/solar projects. As community leaders, it’s important for municipalities to understand how development can affect their communities. Being ready pays off. Combine this preparedness with implementable, realistic goals, and over time the community creates a desirable place for individuals to reside, do business, and enjoy.
Throughout the comprehensive planning process, elected officials, appointed officials, municipal staff, stakeholders, and the community work together to develop a plan that has widespread support. Not only do planning efforts build consensus and commitment, but comprehensive plans are valuable tools for municipal departments and can play a role in budget decisions. Comprehensive plans guide future studies as well as regulatory updates, such as zoning amendments. That said, a comprehensive plan is not a means for individual leaders or stakeholders to “get what they want.” Public input and community research are essential for creating comprehensive plans that reflect the future vision of your community while minimizing biases.
A comprehensive plan can drive community development and enhance quality of life by building upon and improving existing amenities within a community. Comprehensive plans also provide opportunities for funding. In some cases, having a comprehensive plan will land you some funds from the state government. Who doesn’t love a little extra money to reinvest in the community? From an economic standpoint, exploring incentive opportunities and incorporation them into a comprehensive plan can generate wealth and provide additional revenue sources.
Tips on creating an effective comprehensive plan.
As we mentioned, comprehensive plans should be living, breathing documents that you update as the character of the area evolves. Consider your own life: don’t you form new habits based on your life stage and aspirations? Just as we often step back and reassess, think about conducting an annual plan evaluation to ensure that the suggested action steps and direction align with the overall goals of the document/community. Additionally, as you continually work with the document, do not overlook any deficiencies you encounter; instead, update or address them. In a comprehensive planning process that we participated in, after the plan’s passage, we discovered that the land use selected for a particular area did not complement or align with the thoroughfare plan. As a result, the community amended that section of the document and updated the chosen land uses to better align with the modified plan. These changes occurred six months after approval.
Community boundaries inherently connect; whether it’s the town down the road or the county jurisdiction, your community is linked to another. As you launch the comprehensive planning process, partner with neighboring communities from the start. Identify key stakeholders and coordinate with them. We often see issues when dealing with utility capacity and annexation. Disagreements and/or misunderstands can limit your comprehensive plan’s success. Instead, encourage collaboration and partnerships among elected official, municipal leaders, utility companies, state agencies, community organizations, etc. This approach may unlock new assistance and ultimately create a stronger region and community for everyone.