10-24-2016 Council Work Session Packet

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ITEM NO. 2 MEMORANDUM ITEM 2 TO: ORONO CITY COUNCIL FROM: JEREMY BARNHART, COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR SUBJECT: 2018 COMMUNITY MANAGEMENT PLAN HISTORY AND PROCESS DATE: OCTOBER 24, 2016 In February 2017, the City will kick off the Community Management Plan update, due to the Metropolitan Council by December 2018. The Community Management Plan (also known as the Comprehensive Plan) is an important document for city leaders, as it communicates the desires of the community in land use, density distribution, utilities, natural resources, transportation, parks and other tangible features of our community. The comprehensive plan directly influences zoning and other land use controls. It is important that residents participate in this planning effort, as the plan influences the zoning and development patterns of areas to be developed or redeveloped in the coming years. It also influences the prioritization of city investment, including trail construction and park acquisition. Process To gather the necessary community feedback, staff intends to use a taskforce type committee, established by the City Council. This Project Advisory Committee (PAC) would include two Councilmembers, two Planning Commissioners, a park commissioner, and 2-4 citizens. This committee would provide advice to the planning team. Draft review and preliminary discussion would occur at this level. Staff further envisions a couple of general open houses, one in February/ March, to outline the process. Small Focus areas (Navarre, small lot neighborhoods) will have their own neighborhood meetings to discuss their own issues and opportunities. Staff envisions a consultant do the Navarre plan (as budgeted) as staff resources will not allow completion of the existing work load, the comprehensive plan, and ordinance amendments expected. History The Met Council requires an update to the Comprehensive Plan every 10 years. The City first adopted a comprehensive plan in 1974 (then the Comprehensive Guide Plan), where it formalized land use policies established in the 1950's. These policies included goals to retain "single family character, preserve and maintain open space, and existing natural resources, and provide for limited diversity of housing types at densities consistent with the maintenance of open space." The 1980 update to the Community Management Plan reflected the then new Metropolitan Council. The 1990 policies remained the same, but the level of detail increased. The update in 2000 continued the goal of low density development in the Lake Minnetonka watershed. The update in 2008 was viewed as a "mid -course correction"; a reflection of a 'diverse citizenry', more specifically impacts of