HomeMy WebLinkAboutComprehensive Plan Review Email - Jessica MortensenMonday, August 21, 2023
Dear City Council Members,
I hope this message finds you well. Would like to share my experience and thoughts regarding the recent Planning and Zoning meeting I attended last Thursday, where the Comprehensive
Plan Review was discussed. My intention is to offer constructive feedback to help enhance the process and community involvement.
Having been involved in the early stages of the review process and having met with Alan, I was interested to learn more about the progress made. Admittedly, I had not been keeping up
with the updates as closely as I should have. Due to my work commitments, I rely on social media primarily for business purposes and often miss important announcements.
On the same day, a friend casually mentioned the possibility of the review being voted on during that meeting. This prompted me to visit the city website to search for information.
Unfortunately, my initial search led me to the 2008 comprehensive plan review. On the next link, I found the bids for consultants (Comprehensive plan RFP). I decided to try to search
on Facebook. There was a link posted on August 16th that read the draft can be viewed on Engage Rexburg website, but that link brought up the Phase 1 summary update, not the actual
plan.
I rearranged my plans for the evening and attended the meeting, having not yet found the materials I was looking for but determined to find someone there who could help. Not having time
to review the plan hindered my ability to contribute to the discussion in a meaningful way. Now that I have had time to review the plan, I appreciate the thoughtfulness that the steering
committee and others have invested in it. While I see many positive improvements, I remain concerned about certain zoning issues. I also believe the transportation plan should be
closely aligned with the comprehensive plan, and it did not appear that planning and zoning had reviewed them in conjunction with each other. That may not be accurate, just my observation.
During the meeting, a comment arose about the absence of community members, highlighting the need for more engagement. It was suggested that people tend to only engage when issues directly
affect them. However, I firmly believe the community may just not have been aware of what was going on.
In considering the outreach, I empathize with the challenges faced by the city in disseminating information widely. As traditional communication channels like newspapers have become
less effective and not everyone is on social media, the reach becomes limited. As a solution, I propose the inclusion of a one-pager with utility bills as a possible method of reaching
a broader audience. Possibly using email addresses of community members and business owners could prove effective in delivering critical information.
Lastly, my husband’s interactions with individuals at the Madison County Rodeo highlighted the lack of awareness about the meeting and its significance. Some expressed regret over missing
the opportunity to be informed, especially given the occurrence of a major community event on the same night.
While I understand there may be constraints on time, I believe that further community input could greatly benefit the comprehensive plan review process. Should the opportunity arise
to send the plan back to planning and zoning, I am committed to helping raise awareness and encouraging participation.
Thank you for your commitment to our community’s growth and development.
Warm Regards,
Jessica Mortensen