Comprehensive plans are “essential feature[s] of long-term planning for cities and counties all over the United States.” In fact, the The Idaho Local Land Use Planning Act (ILLUPA) requires that every city and county government develops and adopts a Plan.
Developing a Comprehensive Plan
The process of developing a Comprehensive Plan leans heavily on local government staff and leadership engaging, listening and responding to the public. Identifying core community values, a community hones its future land use map and policy statements that reflect the community’s shared values.
For example– if members of the public voice their concern for riparian habitats and a desire to sustain river health, local government planning staff should draft policy statements in favor of methods that protect the natural floodplain. Without public input, the final Comprehensive Plan may not represent the community nor reflect shared community values. Public engagement is key to ensuring a democratic process.
The Role of the Comprehensive
Comprehensive plans guide planning decisions in the long-range, on a 10-20 year horizon. The role of a Comprehensive Plan is to “[lay] the foundation for zoning codes, the legal tool for implementing the vision of the future contained in the comprehensive plan.” Every proposed ordinance or Text Amendment Application to a local government’s Municipal Code is analyzed against the policy statements of its Comprehensive Plan. In other words, Comprehensive Plans frame and guide the land use regulations that shape community development, affecting land uses, natural resources, transportation mobility, community housing and quality of life in any given locale.
Local Comprehensive Plans
Check out the Comprehensive Plans in the Wood River Valley, as well as the current Comprehensive Plan update projects:
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