The McHenry County Board Planning and Development Committee will be conducting the final public review meetings on the McHenry County 2030 Comprehensive Plan during the first week in March. The open house style meetings are scheduled as follows:
March 1, 2010
McHenry Township at the Town Hall
3703 Richmond Rd. Johnsburg 5:00-7:00 p.m.
March 2, 2010
Harvard Junior High School - Music Room and Cafeteria
1301 Garfield St. Harvard 5:00-7:00 p.m.
March 3, 2010
MCC - Lobby near Conference Center (near cafeteria) and Large Breakout Room
8900 US Hwy. 14 Crystal Lake 5:00-7:00 p.m.
March 4, 2010
Marengo High School - Teacher work room and study hall
110 Franks Rd. Marengo 5:00-7:00 p.m.
March 6, 2010
McHenry County - Administration Building Rooms A,B and C
667 Ware Rd Woodstock 9:00 a.m.-noon
Participants may arrive at any time during the open house style meetings. A short overview presentation will be provided every 30 minutes. Participants will also have an opportunity to review the Plan and engage in one-on-one discussion with members of the P&D Committee. Participants will be able to submit verbal and written comments during the meetings.
Comments may also be submitted via email to 2030plan@co.mchenry.il.us or in writing to: McHenry County 2030 Plan, Department of Planning and Development, McHenry County Government Center, 2200 North Seminary Avenue, Woodstock, IL 60098. All comments must be received by 4:30 PM, Monday, March 8, 2010.
The P&D Draft 2030 Comprehensive Plan will be available to review on the 2030 Plan website: www.mchenrycounty2030plan.com, at local libraries, and at the McHenry County Department of Planning and Development, which is located on the second floor of the County Administration Building located at 667 Ware Road, Woodstock. An analysis of potential areas to change on the future land Use map and comments from the County Board members representing District 6 are also available on the 2030 Plan website.
The 2030 Comprehensive Plan establishes a long range vision and provides a general guide for the next two decades. The finalized plan will set the direction for future development of the County and the preservation of it its natural resources.
The McHenry County Regional Planning Commission spent three years developing the 2030 Plan prior to recommending the Plan for adoption by the County Board in October 2009. The County Board Planning and Development (P&D) Committee has thoroughly reviewed the recommended Plan. The Committee initiated a number of changes to the text, maps, and policies. These changes will be indicated in the public review draft. This will allow readers to quickly identify portions of the Plan that the Committee is changing.
According to former Regional Planning Commission (RPC) Chairman Charles Eldredge, "the P&D Committee had numerous questions for us about particular points in our recommended Plan. But, after its detailed review, the P&D Committee largely agreed with the essence of the recommended Plan. Most of the Committee's changes are corrections or clarifications, rather than policy changes." RPC Vice-Chairman Dennis Dreher concurs that "the P&D Committee has done a good job in reviewing the RPC's draft plan. For the most part, the changes that were made help to clarify the Plan, but maintain the intent of the original policies."
According to P&D Committee Chairman Tina Hill, "the most significant change recommended by the Committee is to reduce the population forecast from 540,000 to 495,000 to better correspond to what we believe is a realistic rate of growth. However, the Committee did not change the Future Land Use Map to match the reduced population projection. This is an area where we specifically want public input. Are there some areas mapped for residential or estate development that we want to maintain in agricultural use through 2030? Or should we keep the Future Land Use Map as proposed in order to accommodate more growth if there is demand?" In order to facilitate this review, the Committee has prepared an analysis showing residential and estate areas that could be removed from the map based on consideration of the LEAM analysis, agricultural soils, aquifer recharge areas, and hydric soils.
Chairman Eldredge stressed "this plan belongs to the public at large. While both the RPC and P&D Committee did their best, the public needs to participate in its adoption." Vice-Chairman Dreher added "the County Board has signaled its intent to actively engage the public one final time. This is a wonderful opportunity for residents to weigh in and help to determine a future vision for the county."
For more information visit the 2030 plan website www.mchenrycounty2030plan.com or call the McHenry County Department of Planning and Development at (815) 334-4560 ext. 1.