Oktibbeha supervisors accept draft comprehensive plan for public review, set Oct. 6 hearing

The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously to accept the draft 2025 comprehensive plan for public review and set a public hearing for the board’s regular meeting on Oct. 6, 2025.

Consultants from Slaughter & Willingham presented the plan and described it as “a 20 to 25 year time horizon road map for the physical growth and development of your community,” outlining required elements such as goals and objectives, a future land use plan, a transportation plan, and a community facilities plan. Planner Nathan Willingham said the goals and objectives were developed from meetings with supervisors, department heads and public input across the county.

County consultant Mike Slaughter told supervisors the draft seeks to balance Oktibbeha County’s rural character with growth pressures around Starkville and Mississippi State University. “If growth in the urbanizing areas of the county is not managed effectively, it’ll create dangerous transportation conflicts,” he said. The consultants recommended adoption of a zoning ordinance and updated subdivision regulations as implementation tools tailored to different parts of the county.

Supervisors discussed timing for implementation. Several members said the plan should be revisited more frequently than the minimum five-year review to respond to rapid change. The board set a public open house for community review and additional public input ahead of the Oct. 6 hearing; staff said copies of the draft would also be placed in libraries and on the county website.

The board’s motion to accept the draft and begin the public-review process passed unanimously. County staff and the consultants said they will incorporate any edits before the public-hearing date and that adoption of land-use controls such as a county zoning ordinance would be a separate, later process requiring further public meetings and hearings.

Why it matters: The comprehensive plan establishes policy guidance for land use, infrastructure and public services across Oktibbeha County. If the board later pursues zoning or subdivision regulation changes, state planning law requires an adopted comprehensive plan as part of that process.

What happens next: The draft will be posted for public review, a community open house will be held, and the board will hold a public hearing at its Oct. 6, 2025 meeting. Consultants recommended supervisors consider implementation tools—zoning, subdivision regulations and development standards—after adoption of the plan.