Community Development seeks $300,000 two‑year comprehensive plan update, including parks master plan

David Callahan, community involvement director, told commissioners the department is requesting a two‑year, $300,000 effort to complete a comprehensive plan update and an integrated parks master plan. He said combining the two tasks with a single consultant and public-engagement process produces economies and better outcomes.

“About $92,000 of the $300,000 would be the parks master plan,” Callahan told the board, and he framed the work as both a statutory responsibility and a tool for managing growth. He said the current comp plan needs updating to reflect new data and community priorities; he recommended splitting the $300,000 across FY26 and FY27 because the scope is likely a two‑year process.

Reba (department staff) and Craig (department staff) summarized that, aside from the consultant request, other Community Development operating budgets are flat or slightly reduced through vacancy management and fee adjustments. They also noted the department’s revenue mix (building and planning fees) and recommended a 5% fee increase to help close a projected gap between revenue and operations.

Board members asked whether the comp plan requirement is statutory; staff confirmed state law requires a comprehensive plan and noted a typical update cadence of roughly 10 years. The board gave direction to staff to refine fee revenue assumptions and incorporate any changes into the auditor materials and later budget deliberations.

Ending: Staff will bring a detailed consultant scope and fee schedule for the comp plan/parks master plan and a recommendation on fee adjustments for board consideration during budget deliberations.