City Council Gets First Briefing on New City Comprehensive Plan Process

It’s the document that guides a municipalities growth, preservation, and developmental change for decades, and for the first time since 2004, the City of Spartanburg will craft a new comprehensive plan. A foundational policy document for local governments, unlike other plans such as the downtown or Northside master plans, covers both a broader geographic scope as well as a the concerns of the entire city.

Topics a city comprehensive plan seeks to address are as complicated as the city itself, such as population, economic development & resiliency, natural resources, cultural resources, community facilities, land use, transportation, housing, energy, infrastructure, racial and socioeconomic equity, public health, and recreation access.

The comprehensive plan, which will be crafted over the coming year with input from a variety of stakeholders including the city, major employers, nonprofit organizations, community leaders, and city residents is meant to allow officials to craft policy within a larger framework that allows them to better meet the needs and expectations of the many interests and residents in our city. A well-circulated and implemented comprehensive plan is also meant to provide a level of certainty to city landowners and developers, ensuring that all interests in Spartanburg are working towards the community’s goals in unison.

The overview City Council recently received is just the first step in the process, which city staff says should take 12-18 months. Staff recommended to council that an outside consultant be sought to craft the comprehensive plan, which will begin with extensive data gathering and public input in early 2019.

For more from the recent Spartanburg City Council meeting, see the full video below.

Prepared by the City of Spartanburg.