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Lakewood City Council adopts Envision Lakewood 2040 comprehensive plan after multiyear process
Summary
After a two‑and‑a‑half year public process, the Lakewood City Council approved the Envision Lakewood 2040 comprehensive plan on July 28. The plan is advisory and sets vision elements, goals and a future land‑use framework to guide the city's next 15 years.
The Lakewood City Council voted unanimously on July 28 to adopt Envision Lakewood 2040, the city’s updated comprehensive plan. The measure was the culmination of a two‑and‑a‑half‑year planning process that included public workshops, advisory committees and review by the planning commission, which recommended adoption earlier in 2025.
Roger Waddnall, the city’s comprehensive planning manager, and Kristi Ivanoff, senior planner and project manager for the update, presented the plan and a summary of the public‑engagement process. The plan lays out a vision statement, five guiding principles, 25 goals and about 160 strategies, and pairs those vision elements with a future land‑use map that uses nine categories to guide where different types of development and preservation should occur.
Waddnall told council the plan is a guidance document rather than zoning: “It is not zoning. It is advisory, and it sets a framework for the city for the upcoming future,” he said. Ivanoff summarized the outreach, noting open houses, surveys, pop‑ups and three council‑appointed volunteer advisory groups that advised plan content over the multi‑year process.
A public speaker asked that the vision statement also acknowledge Lakewood’s agricultural and equine heritage; Karen Shantz, who identified herself as a Ward 2 resident and longtime equine property owner, urged adding language to the vision to recognize the city’s western and equine traditions. Council members noted that the planning commission had adopted the plan and that substantial public engagement had fed into the final document.
Councilors spoke in favor of the plan during the discussion period, with several highlighting priorities the document includes — from greenhouse‑gas and vehicle‑miles‑traveled goals to strategies for crime prevention, homelessness response, and evidence‑based housing programs. Council members said they expect the plan to guide future zoning and capital decisions but emphasized that zoning and any site‑specific approvals will still be handled through separate processes.
The final vote recorded on the July 28 agenda was 11 yes, 0 no.
Ending: With adoption of Envision Lakewood 2040, staff said the plan will guide city decision‑making for the next 15 years and provide direction for subsequent zoning updates and capital planning. Councilors urged continued community engagement as zoning and implementing tools are developed.
