Nassau County planning board recommends approval of 2045 comprehensive plan update

The Nassau County Planning and Zoning Board on Aug. 19 voted to recommend approval of CPA 25-015, the county's Evaluation and Appraisal Report (EAR) updating the comprehensive plan horizon to 2045, after a presentation by consultants from INSPIRE Placemaking Collective and brief board discussion.

The recommendation, made by Board member Morris and seconded by Board member Erickson, passed on an affirmative voice vote by all board members present. The EAR update is a procedural requirement under state law to revise goals, objectives and policies and to adjust the planning horizon to meet changes in statutes and current conditions.

Consultants said the update incorporates revised state requirements that now use a 10- and 20-year planning window rather than the prior 5- and 10-year windows and that the county is updating population projections and existing-conditions analyses to 2045. "The process did change a little bit back in 2023. So instead of looking at a 5 and 10 year planning period, we now have to do a 10 and 20 year planning period," said Jay McCloud, lead for the technical analysis, Inspire Placemaking Collective.

Why it matters: the EAR is the administrative step that keeps the county's comprehensive plan consistent with Florida statutes and with current data. The board was asked to recommend transmission of the EAR to the Board of County Commissioners, after which the county will transmit the amendment to the state for a 60-day review and later adoption and certification.

Key details from the consultant presentation and board discussion:

- Statutory/administrative change: The EAR will update the planning horizon to 2045 to satisfy the revised statutory requirements and to reflect changes in state statutes (identified during the presentation as statutory revisions that local plans must now reflect). Chris Stardy, principal in charge for Inspire Placemaking Collective, said the work ensures compliance with "section 163.3191 of Florida Statutes" (the statutory EAR process).

- Future land use: Consultants said there are no changes to the county's current Future Land Use Map as part of this EAR update.

- Infrastructure capacity: Using the county's current map and projections for the unincorporated area, presenters said potable water, sanitary sewer and solid waste capacity and planning are sufficient to accommodate the projected population through 2045. Transportation congestion exists on some roadways and was identified as an area for possible future investment.

- Parks and recreation: The EAR update shows a small deficit in county-owned parks acreage relative to the county's adopted level of service for the unincorporated area. Consultants noted privately owned recreation, state lands and beaches are not included in the county-owned parks calculation used for the comprehensive plan's level-of-service analysis.

- Seasonal population: The update incorporates seasonal population but consultants said the seasonal population is a small fraction of the overall population and does not materially alter the analysis.

- Financial feasibility requirement removed at state level: Board members questioned the removal of a statutory financial feasibility requirement. "The financial feasibility is no longer required," McCloud said, explaining the change was made because the prior requirement imposed a high bar and had made comprehensive plans serve as detailed accounting documents. County staff noted capital projects remain subject to annual five-year CIP (capital improvement program) processes under local budgeting practices.

- Timeline: Staff said the EAR must be transmitted to the state by Oct. 1. Following transmission, the state has a 60-day review; the county anticipates return and adoption certification around December or January. Consultants and staff said they expect to return to the Board of County Commissioners in September for follow-up hearings as the transmission and review proceed.

Board engagement and next steps: Board members asked technical questions about how parks were counted, map digitization and how population projections were split to reflect only the unincorporated county. Elizabeth Back, Nassau County Planning Department, introduced the consultants and oversaw the staff presentation. The board closed the public hearing on the EAR, moved to recommend approval of CPA 25-015, and the item will proceed to the Board of County Commissioners for transmission to the state.

The county indicated a broader Vision 2050 update is planned separately; the EAR is characterized by staff as an administrative, compliance-focused step to maintain statutory consistency ahead of the larger visioning work.