Champaign County to release draft of comprehensive plan

It was last updated in 2004 and it looks at the local economy, demographics as well as technological and public policy conditions in the county. The most recent update is being conducted with the help of the Logan-Union-Champaign Regional Planning Commission.

“An updated comprehensive plan provides a basic road map to current and prospective citizens, businesses, public officials, and developers,”said a news release from the commission.

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The process to update the comprehensive plan started last year and cost $40,000 to complete, said Bradley Bodenmiller, the director of the regional planning commission.

He said they are using a mixture of funding from Champaign County, the City of Urbana as well as most of the villages and townships in the county.

As part of the update, a public survey was conducted in 2018 that included over 700 responses. In addition to that, around two dozen interviews were conducted with local community leaders, Bodenmiller added.

A steering committee guided the plan’s development and subcommittees were formed consisting of local experts in topics like agriculture and utilities.

Goals set forward in the plan are based on that feedback. In certain sections, the plan looks at data collected over a 10 year period, compares it and makes suggestions on what the county can do to tackle foreseen changes such as in population, overall acreage of available farm land as well as crop diversity.

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A draft of the updated plan is available online at www.lucplanning.com. Copies are also being delivered to the commissioner’s office and to libraries in Mechanicsburg, North Lewisburg, St. Paris, and Urbana.

Residents will be able to review the draft as well as submit feedback during an open house at the County Building, 1512 S. US Hwy 68, on Jan. 8 from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. Additional comments can be submitted at the commissioner’s office or at the libraries until Jan. 10.