Planning Commission approves final draft of Comprehensive Plan
The Morgan County Planning Commission approved the final draft of the Morgan County Comprehensive Plan at a special work session on Thursday, February 8.
The final draft included four pages of corrections and additions that had been submitted by residents. The recommended changes included rewording of line items, clarification of minor points, spelling corrections, additional maps and more details about specific segments of the plan. Some data was also reviewed for its accuracy as requested.
With some public comments, no document changes were made since the comments were considered related to what was a regulatory decision.
Added features to the final draft will be a paragraph explaining the water movement in the watersheds and a correction of the Washington Heritage Trail map. It will also include a statement in the introduction that the goals and objectives of the Comprehensive Plan are intended to be accomplished in the life of the plan, said Planning Commission President Jack Soronen.
Planning Commission member Richard Harvey felt that there was no motivational factor involved in moving these goals and objectives along.
"I've never written a plan that didn't have a specific date for fruition. I think it's a weakness," said Harvey.
Soronen noted that Harvey had been on the Comprehensive Plan subcommittee from the beginning.
"These things usually lay on the shelf and collect dust. That's what the last one did," said County Commissioner Tommy Swaim.
Swaim said that a lot of hard work went into the plan and that it had a lot of good information. Planning Commission member Mary Ellen Largent suggested that they needed to get the Comprehensive Plan off the shelf every so often.
The plan is mandated for 10 years but can be revisited, said Soronen.
"Part of the beauty of the plan is that it's flexible," he said.
The final draft of the Morgan County Comprehensive Plan will be forwarded to the Morgan County Commission. The County Commissioners will hold a public meeting to
listen to citizens' support for
the plan, their concerns or suggestions for change, said Soronen.
If public input is substantial at the next public meeting, the document will come back to the Planning Commission to be redrafted and resubmitted to the County Commission, said Soronen. If comments are not substantial, the document will be given to the County Commission for approval after minor editing.
