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Auburn launches full rewrite of comprehensive plan, sets July 2026 target and invites public input
Summary
City of Auburn planning staff and a 19-member citizen committee launched a comprehensive-plan update that the city says will guide growth for the next decade. The process began in February, includes surveys and three July open houses, and will go to the City Council for adoption in July 2026.
The City of Auburn has begun a citywide rewrite of its comprehensive plan, officials said on the Absolutely Auburn podcast, aiming to produce a final plan for City Council consideration by July 2026.
The comprehensive plan "will guide the city's growth, development, and investment over the next 10 years," Jen Bohnig, host of the City of Auburn communications podcast Absolutely Auburn, said during a program about the update. The effort officially started in February and is being managed by the city planning staff with help from outside consultants and a 19‑member citizens committee, city officials said.
The plan matters because it guides zoning and other long-range decisions and is tied to state law, officials said. "If you wanna have zoning, you gotta have a comprehensive plan," David Hediger, Auburn's director of planning, said on the podcast. Lauren Kaffee, the city's long-range planner, noted the process follows the state's Growth Management Act and that having a plan also makes communities eligible for certain grants and incentives.
City staff described a multi-step schedule: an inventory and analysis phase now, followed by summer visioning and future land-use work, then policy drafting and implementation steps. A draft will be posted online for comment; the city plans three open-house style engagement events in July organized by topic (housing and transportation; natural environment; city services). The office is also running a public survey with a deadline of June 20, and officials said all committee meetings are open, recorded and posted on the city's comprehensive-plan website.
John Cleveland, chair of the comprehensive-plan committee and a former Auburn mayor, urged broad public participation. "We very much encourage citizens of Auburn, residents of Auburn to participate in the process," Cleveland said. He noted public input is important both for policy and for legal defensibility when land-use regulations are later challenged in court.
Officials said the city is seeking input from a wide range of residents and users, including students: consultants are scheduled to present results of an abbreviated student survey on June 17 after roughly 300 middle-school and about 200 high-school students responded to school outreach, the committee said on the podcast.
Regular committee meetings are generally scheduled for the fourth Thursday of each month at 6 p.m. in the City Council chambers on the second floor of Auburn Hall; each meeting begins with a roughly 15-minute public-comment block. Staff emphasized that the plan should be a living document that future councils and administrations can use to guide infrastructure, zoning, housing, and other decisions.
The committee told listeners the city aims for the final plan to reach the City Council in July 2026 for a formal adoption vote. Until then, drafts, meeting schedules, and comment tools will be posted at auburnmaine.gov under the Auburn 2026 comprehensive-plan landing page, and staff encouraged anyone with a connection to Auburn to participate.
How to participate: fill the online survey by the posted deadline, attend one of the July open houses, submit comments via the ideas wall on the plan page, or contact planning staff at City Hall (City Hall hours: 8:30 a.m.–4 p.m., Monday–Friday).
