County planning staff told the board that survey response for the comprehensive-plan/LDR update has been lower than expected despite in-person outreach, and announced an open house on Sept. 9 and a series of staff-sector workshops to improve participation.
Kimley‑Horn, the consultant assisting the LDR and comp‑plan update, held pop-up events and counted about 29 completed surveys in the outreach so far, staff said. To broaden participation, the county will hold an open house on Sept. 9 from 4–6 p.m. at the county building with informational stations and examples of proposed regulatory options so residents can provide feedback in person.
Staff described the open-house stations as topic-specific displays (for example, tree protections, signs, fencing and parks) and said the materials will explain trade-offs such as who would pay to build and maintain parks. The county will also hold targeted staff workshops later in September and October with building and zoning, fire, housing authority and other sectors to gather technical feedback.
Consultants will compile survey responses, workshop feedback and stakeholder interviews into a proposal of recommended changes and present those findings in a public workshop tentatively scheduled for Nov. 6.
Staff said the county’s existing comprehensive plan and many of its LDRs have not been substantially updated in years and that the review aims to set a 15‑year outlook for land use, growth, mixed‑use development and infrastructure planning. Several board members emphasized the need for a clear variance process so regulations can be applied flexibly where rules do not fit a site.
Staff also noted coordination with the City of Lake City, which is monitoring the county process for potential cross-jurisdictional alignment of regulations.