02-05-2007 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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Item No: 1A Meeting Date: Feb 5, 2007 Type of Business: Worksession Administrator Review : ____ City of Mounds View Staff Report To: Honorable Mayor and City Council and Members of the Planning Commission From: James Ericson, Community Development Director Item Title/Subject: Discuss Process to Update the Comprehensive Plan Introduction: The City of Mounds View will need to update its Comprehensive Plan by the end of 2008. Given the magnitude of this task, staff feels it would be best to start planning the process as early as possible and establish a framework to guide us through the update. The Sun Focus recently ran a story which addresses this task and the steps some cities will be taking to accomplish the update; the article is attached for your reference. Discussion: There are many options to consider and discuss regarding the update of the Comprehensive Plan, such as who will be involved, should the City hire a consultant to assist with the preparation, should a steering committee be formed, should a community survey be conducted, etc. The newspaper article addresses many of these options. The last Comprehensive Plan update was initiated in 1998 and was concluded in 2001 with adoption by the City Council. The task was challenging due to the fact that the previous “official” Comprehensive Plan was from 1979—twenty year earlier. The update due in 2008 should be a relatively straightforward process given that the City is for the most part fully developed and given that the last update was adopted just five and a half years ago. Staff anticipates that it will be necessary to enlist the assistance of consultants to assist with demographic data analysis and GIS mapping, and funds have been budgeted ($2,500) to account for some of this in 2007. As discussed with the Planning Commission on January 24, staff will be coordinating the review process with the Planning Commission, the Parks Recreation and Forestry Commission, and the Economic Development Commission and will schedule at least one open house to gather input from residents and property owners. While there does not appear to be a need to hire an outside consultant to survey residents or otherwise assist with the preparation of the update, the Comprehensive Plan should represent the culmination of the community’s vision for the city, thus broad public participation will be key to the success and acceptance of the document. Staff will utilize all reasonable means of communication to alert property owners to the ongoing review process in an effort to engage and encourage public comment and feedback.