Comprehensive Land Use Plan Revision

Last Updated: March 2008

Overview of Comprehensive Plan Revision Process

The Land Use Regulation Commission is updating its Comprehensive Land Use Plan, the agency’s primary policy and planning document.  The Comprehensive Plan provides information about the jurisdiction, evaluates land use and other trends, and establishes policies to guide the Commission's work.  The first Plan was adopted in 1976 and was comprehensively revised in 1983 and 1997. 

Periodic revision of the Plan is necessary to enable the Commission to plan for the future.  Through the Plan revision process, the Commission determines whether existing zoning and rules are adequate in the face of current trends.  Comprehensive planning is a time-consuming undertaking, involving data gathering and analysis, discussion of issues, and public participation, so the plan revision is typically a multi-year process. 

The Plan revision consists of three phases:

Stage of Comprehensive Plan Revision	Time Period
Preliminary Research and Drafting - The Commission conducted public forums on a variety of topics and gathered data on land use and other trends.  More information about this work is available through this link.	2005 - 2007
Public Workshops -  The Public Workshop phase is underway. More information about Public Workshops, including copies of the draft, schedule of workshops, and information on how to participate, is available through this link.	Winter/Spring 2008
Public Hearings –Public Hearings have not yet been scheduled.  They will provide the public with an opportunity to comment on a subsequent draft of the Plan in formal proceedings governed by administrative rules.	TBA

During the preliminary research phase, the Commission held over 20 public forums featuring individuals knowledgeable in a wide range of topics, and gathered data on land use and other trends.  Using this information, the staff developed a preliminary draft of the Plan (Public Workshop Draft) to serve as a starting point for discussion. 

The Commission approved release of the Public Workshop Draft for review and comment in November of 2008.  This release marked the beginning of a two-step public process that provides considerable opportunity for the public to shape the plan.  The Public Workshop phase is the first, less formal part of the process, intended to facilitate dialogue, the exchange of information, and revision of the first draft (Public Workshop Draft).  The Public Hearings are the second, more formal part of the public process.  They will provide an opportunity for the public to comment on a second draft (Public Hearing Draft) in a more structured process governed by formal administrative rules.

Following revision of the Public Hearing draft to the Commission’s satisfaction, the Commission will vote on whether to approve the Plan.  Once approved, the Plan will be sent to the Governor for review and approval. 

As noted above, the Comprehensive Plan is a policy document.  Adoption of the Plan would not, by itself, change the Commission’s zoning and land use regulations.  If the Plan recommends changes to zoning or land use regulations, these changes must be implemented through subsequent rulemaking proposals.  Any proposal to change the Commission’s rules and regulations must go through a public process similar to the Public Hearing process described above.  If proposed rules are approved by the Commission at the end of the public process, the rules are subsequently reviewed by the Legislature.

For more detailed information about the Commission’s current effort to revise its Comprehensive Plan, follow the links in the above text.