The City Council’s work session on the comprehensive plan update set a public hearing for Monday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m., city staff and a regional planner said. Philip Jones of the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission told the council the draft must be adopted by Oct. 31 if the city wants to avoid losing its Department of Community Affairs (DCA) "qualified local government" status.

Jones said the draft plan reflects public input, steering-committee comments and minor map cleanups, and he summarized changes to vision and policy language, the future land use map and the community work program. "If it's not adopted on time, the main thing that's at risk is losing qualified local government status to the Department of Community Affairs," Jones said. He added that losing that status would limit the city's ability to apply for and draw down grants until the plan is adopted.

The planner said the Capital Improvements Element (CIE) requires two council votes to transmit to DCA and then a resolution to adopt after DCA review. The comprehensive plan itself can be transmitted to DCA with a letter from the mayor and a public hearing; adoption requires a council resolution after DCA review. Jones said DCA may take up to 35 days to complete its review.

Council members discussed logistics for the public hearing and favored an evening session to encourage public attendance. Council settled on Monday, Sept. 8, at 6 p.m. as the hearing date and time; Jones said staff would finalize the advertisement schedule and submit the notice to Main Street. The planner also noted proposed substantive edits: expanding transitional mixed-use designations in the downtown overlay to allow higher density and more mixed uses, and adding or clarifying policies on parks/open space, commercial protection and economic-development priorities.

Next steps, as described by Jones, are to publish the required 15-day notice, hold the public hearing, transmit the draft to DCA and return to council with DCA comments and a proposed adoption resolution. The council did not adopt the plan at the meeting; the public hearing will be the last public step before DCA review.