Benton County planners outline two‑phase development code and comp‑plan update; public outreach RFP underway

Benton County Planning Commission members on an informational agenda item heard staff describe a two‑phase update of the county's development code and comprehensive plan and discussed public outreach and subcommittee work. Planner Petra told commissioners the first phase will be an audit of the code and administrative material and the second phase will be the policy work and public engagement.

"Phase 1 is about nine months," Petra said, and "the Phase 2 process, we're thinking it's gonna be about an 18‑month process." She said staff will continue to work with the Department of Land Conservation and Development (DLCD) and with MIG, the firm that previously worked on the development‑code update, and that an RFP for a public‑outreach consultant on the comprehensive‑plan update is closing soon.

The commission's long‑range planning item matters because the development code implements the county's comprehensive plan and state land‑use goals; the update is intended to resolve inconsistencies between the code, the comp plan and state guidance, and to produce clearer, more objective language for future land‑use decisions.

What staff described

Planner Petra said staff are auditing the existing development code…