PORT TOWNSEND — The city has initiated a public process in preparation for the 2016 Comprehensive Plan update, including an online interactive component as well as a meeting from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“We are doing something unique,” said City Manager David Timmons.
“People can come and attend the meeting and participate on the discussion and dialogue or they can get the same information and provide input at home.”
The comprehensive plan is “a road map for the city for the next 20 years,” said Lance Bailey, Development Services director.
So city officials hope to get as much involvement as possible from residents.
Doors will open at 5:30 p.m for the meeting in the commons at Fort Worden State Park.
Mayor David King will make a presentation, and Bailey will explain the comprehensive plan process.
That will be followed by small-group discussions focusing on the plan’s main topics.
Those topics are transition and community resilience, housing, transportation, jobs and quality of life.
While each topic will be discussed, there is a sixth “other” category to collect information about anything that doesn’t fall into the other five categories, Timmons said.
The information presented at the meeting will be “mirrored” on the Speak Up Port Townsend website, http://tinyurl.com/PDN-Comp-Plan, offering people a chance to provide feedback about the plan and what issues should be addressed.
“The online component adds to what we are doing, so anyone at home will have the same opportunities as those at the meeting,” Timmons said.
He added: “If you can’t make the meeting or don’t feel comfortable participating in that kind of forum, you can do it online.”
The Speak Out website has been up for a few months and now includes a 12-question survey about Port Townsend’s strengths and weaknesses which had drawn 476 responses as of Friday afternoon.
Considering the city’s estimated 9,210 population, this reflects a high level of citizen involvement, Timmons said.
“The site has been up for a while, but we are using the comprehensive plan to launch it in a really public way,” Bailey said.
“This will be an ongoing thing, and we can use it to gather information about a variety of issues.”
In addition to the meeting and the website, the city, in partnership with the Port Townsend Library, will make a dozen laptops and tablets available to those without computers, offering training on how to use the Speak Out site, Timmons said.
The training dates, to be held at the Port Townsend Community Center, are to be announced.
Bailey said that the comprehensive plan is a dynamic document and can be revised.
Changes will need approval from the City Council.
If a city attempts to take action that contradicts its comprehensive plan, it can be taken to court, Timmons said.
Changes to the comprehensive plan can originate from the City Council, the planning commission or from residents, he said.
The finished plan needs to be ratified by the council by October 2016, Timmons said.
Since two City Council members are not running for re-election, those seats will be filled by new faces at the beginning of 2016.
Timmons said he doesn’t expect the new members will change the process “but they will be very involved in the details of the comprehensive plan during their first year in office,” he said.
________
Jefferson County Editor Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or cbermant@peninsuladailynews.com.