GAINESVILLE – The Gainesville 2030 Comprehensive Plan update is ready for submission to the Georgia Mountains Regional Commission. Without any additional public comment for-or-against the plan, and with a unanimous vote by the city council to authorize transmission of the plan, the five-year mandated update is nearly complete.
Community Development Director Rusty Ligon said the update is built upon the plan submitted in 2012. Referring to that earlier document, Ligon said, “We adopted (it) back in 2012…it was roughly an 18-month process; we had lots of public involvement at a number of meetings…and we feel like that (the 2012 document) was a great plan.”
“It’s very much still valid and relevant today,” Ligon added, but there are several additions to the 2012 plan that are included in the 2017 update.
According to Ligon the most well-known addition is the Downtown Master Plan developed by the city in 2015.
“The point is that we are constantly planning. We don’t just do a plan, put it on a shelf and walk away. We’re constantly updating the plan…that’s one of the reasons we were designated a ‘Plan First Community’ a couple of years ago.”
When asked how Gainesville’s Comprehensive Plan update differs from the Comprehensive Plan update currently under construction by Hall County, Ligon said, “The biggest difference with Hall County’s current effort and our current effort is back in 2011 we did a major update to our Comprehensive Plan and Hall County did not.”
“So this effort that we are wrapping up now is a minor update to our current (2012) plan, whereas Hall County’s is more of a major update to their planning effort.”
While Gainesville’s and Hall County’s updated Comprehensive Plans are separate documents, filed with the state individually, Ligon said the citizen-involvement process is the same: “We welcome any comments they have…it’s (changes in the Comprehensive Plan in response to citizen input) possible and it’s welcome.”
If Gainesville’s updated Comprehensive Plan is approved by the Georgia Mountains Regional Commission and the Department of Community Affairs, it will be brought back before the city council for final approval in about two months.
