Martin County begins final hearings on comprehensive plan updates; adoption set for March 25

Martin County planning staff said the county is in the final phase of a multiyear process to update its comprehensive plan and will seek formal adoption of amended chapters on March 25.

"Every seven years, the state requires us to do, housecleaning of our comprehensive plan," said Clyde Doolin, the county's comprehensive planning administrator. He told podcast hosts that the Evaluation and Appraisal Report, known as the EAR, is intended to update dated material, correct references and reflect changes such as municipal incorporations.

The EAR matters because it is a statutorily required review that keeps the county's comprehensive plan in compliance with state law and enables the county to continue processing plan amendments, Doolin said. "If we don't do it, our plan is not going to be considered in compliance with state statute," he said.

Why it matters: The county amended 16 chapters based on the EAR and transmitted those chapters to state agencies in October 2024. State review produces an Objections, Recommendations and Comments (ORC) report; county staff must respond before the Board of County Commissioners can adopt the changes. The board opened the first of three public hearings (no action taken) and will continue discussion at a March 11 hearing before holding a final adoption vote on March 25, Doolin said.

Doolin described the multi-step schedule the county followed: presentation of the EAR to the board in March 2024, more than a year of community outreach and technical edits, transmittal of amended chapters to state reviewers, receipt of ORC comments, and a set of public hearings to allow commissioners to review and discuss each chapter together.

The amendments include updates to remove or re-label references to areas that have changed status; Doolin gave the example of a formerly unincorporated area that incorporated in 2017 and now must be referred to by its municipal name, Indiantown. County staff also used public input gathered through an online survey and in-person meetings at the Blake Library to guide revisions.

The process is lengthy: Doolin described the EAR cycle as about two years of work within the seven-year statutory review window. Once the board adopts the chapters, the county will submit them again to state agencies so the state can compare what it reviewed in October 2024 with the final adoption package sent after the March vote.

Doolin said the goal is to ensure the plan remains legally defensible and current. "You always have to take into consideration that they're gonna be some people who don't like what you do," he said, noting the need to document procedures and timing to reduce legal risk.

County staff said more detailed materials and links to the EAR documents and the schedule of hearings will be posted on the county web page and were promised in the podcast's show notes.

The board did not take action during the initial hearing; staff indicated the board will continue deliberations at the March 11 hearing and is scheduled to vote on adoption of the remaining chapters on March 25.