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MINUTES OF THE <br /> ORONO TRUTH-IN-TAXATION/CITY COUNCIL MEETING <br /> Monday,December 10,2018 <br /> 6:30 o'clock p.m. <br /> stated this is the first hurdle that needs to be crossed in terms of a development proposal and some <br /> proposals have triggered an amendment to the Comprehensive Plan. <br /> A committee was established by the City Council in March of 2017 and included 13 members. The <br /> committee met monthly and guided and advised Staff on changes to the plan. The Committee operated <br /> under three primary goals: <br /> 1. Retain rural character and natural resource protection policies established in previous plans dating <br /> back to the 1970s. <br /> 2. Satisfy Metropolitan Council requirements. <br /> 3. Improve the readability of the document. <br /> The Plan retains the general development and land and water protection philosophies established by <br /> earlier plans. Preservation of rural character and preservation of water quality was very important to the <br /> committee. <br /> In April,following a number of committee meetings,the draft Comprehensive Plan was published on the <br /> City's website and was also sent to surrounding cities for their review and comment. At the end of <br /> October, a second open house was held to obtain further input from the residents. A number of comments <br /> and questions were received during that period. A number of the changes were based on formatting <br /> changes and updated data from sources,including the state and the Metropolitan Council. The comments <br /> received during the public comment period have been incorporated into an exhibit to the document or <br /> otherwise incorporated into the plan. <br /> Barnhart noted the City's housing goals in the 2040 Comprehensive Plan have remained basically the <br /> same from the previous plan,and the table included in Staff's report reflects Orono's population, <br /> household and employment forecasts from 1970 through 2040. The City is required to provide <br /> opportunity for 154 units of affordable housing making the average or below the average median income. <br /> Currently there is around 639 units of that type in Orono. The City provides for those opportunities by <br /> guiding different sections of the City for higher density. <br /> Barnhart noted the following changes are included in the 2040 Comprehensive Plan but that it is not an <br /> all-inclusive list: <br /> 1. Expansion of MLJSA. The Plan proposes a single expansion of the MUSA boundary to serve <br /> vacant property on the north end of Wildhurst while preserving steep slopes and significant tree <br /> stands in the area. This is a change from the draft proposed in April. <br /> 2. Land Use. To meet the growth projections of the Metropolitan Council,the Land Use Map was <br /> updated. The map reflects a revised listing of land use categories. These ten categories are used <br /> throughout the document per Metropolitan Council requirements and include seven residential, <br /> two commercial/industrial,and a park/open space land use. Island residential is a new land use <br /> and is employed for the residences on Big Island and Deering Island. <br /> The plan shows low density residential as the predominant land use south of Fox Street. An earlier <br /> version of the land use map showed portions of these area as medium density residential,recognizing the <br /> Page 10 of 19 <br />