Planning Commission sets out to update comprehensive plan

Thursday, August 14, 2008

Over the next few months the Nevada Planning Commission will be working to update the city's comprehensive plan, which sets out in print the city's overall development plan that provides guidance for the physical development of the city as well as how that is to be carried out.

Tuesday afternoon, Ron Clow, community development director, told the planning commission that the city is now intending to have the planning commission take a large role in updating the current plan that was adopted in 1984 and given a minor update in 2001, rather than hiring an outside consulting firm to do most of the work.

The city manager had originally proposed that city spend $50,000 this year to hire a consultant to update the comprehensive plan and then an additional $10,000 in future years to continue with the process.

He told the planning commissioners that before their September meeting, commissioners should read the copy of the 1984 comprehensive they were given.

Clow told the commission that these types of plans usually have a 10-year life, at which time they should be brought up to date.

"We're looking to have a couple of constants come in to help, but the planning commission will be more hands-on," Clow said.

Clow also said he is planning to have one of the consultants working on the I-49 Corridor project talk to them during their September meeting.

"We spent a good part of last year doing this and there were notes taken of what we recommended. Shouldn't we have those notes e-mailed to us so we know what was done and what you want us to do," John Flynn, planning commissioner, said.

Clow said that he would have the notes sent to them before the September meeting, however this will be more detailed update than what the commission did last year.

"We have reviewed the document page-by-page and made recommendations for each page," Flynn said of what the planning commission did relating to the plan during 2007.

Clow said that this time he intends to have groups of Nevada residents come to the planning commission meetings to provide input on what they want to see in the updated plan.

In the past there have been many such meetings that were not attended by anyone other than the commissioners and the city staff.

"It was always a problem. We wanted citizen participation and we got virtually none as I remember," Flynn said.

Clow said that this time he is planning to target some specific areas, like retail in the area of Austin Boulevard and U.S. Highway 71, an access road for the Frank E. Peters Municipal Golf Course and the downtown area.

"I'm hoping it will be better attended because of specific issues being discussed," he said.

"It doesn't make any difference how much money we spend, unless the people buy into it," Jim Erpenbach said.

The planning commission also talked to Rick O'Neal, Villa Nevada Trailer Park owner, about the complaints the city has received from the Trailer Park's neighbors about the weeds growing along and in the creek bed along Atlantic Street as well as other places.

O'Neal told the commission that the trailer park is responsible for maintaining the area of the creek as well as any vacant mobile home spaces.

He said that he plans to get some part-time people to help get things under control.

"With 50 percent vacancy, it makes hard to maintain," O'Neal said.

City Council member Jayne Novak said that council asked the planning commission to take look at the problem because of the complaints they have received from people in the area.

"Once you get established that you will maintain the property, we'll quit asking you to come to meetings," Novak said.

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