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Botetourt County adopts Envision 2045 comprehensive plan after public hearing
Summary
After public comment and planning commission discussion, the Board of Supervisors unanimously approved Envision 2045 on Nov. 25, 2025. Staff emphasized the plan is community-driven and includes changes made after nearly 2,000 pieces of feedback, new groundwater protections, and targeted land-use adjustments.
The Botetourt County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved Envision 2045, the county's updated comprehensive plan, during a joint public hearing with the Planning Commission on Nov. 25.
McCoy, planning staff who led the presentation, described the document as "the community's plan," noting it resulted from in-house work, multiple outreach rounds since 2017, three community feedback sessions, and online surveys that together produced nearly 2,000 pieces of feedback. McCoy said the plan is intended to guide growth, protect rural character, coordinate land use and transportation, and meet the statutory requirement referenced as "section 15.2-22-23."
Staff highlighted specific edits made in response to public input: reductions in areas identified for medium-density housing compared with the 2010 plan; returning some low-density designations to agricultural; removing a strategy to pursue certified local government status through the National Park Service after community confusion; and adding language to strengthen groundwater protection and to acknowledge Roanoke City and Allegheny health districts as partners.
A resident (identified in the record as Libby Schiffer) testified during public comment that the plan "will take away the character of Botetourt" and expressed concern the plan promotes urbanization, recommended lowering property taxes as an alternative approach to affordability, and objected to curriculum recommendations and references to "food deserts." McCoy and commissioners responded to questions about local projects and whether the plan's language would support recently discussed initiatives (Rebecca Furnace and a prospective history museum/welcome center), saying the plan's chapters provide policy-level support and that specific regulatory or zoning changes would follow to implement project details.
The Planning Commission voted to forward the plan and recommend approval; Lockerbie moved to approve the draft and the commission carried the motion unanimously. The Board of Supervisors then moved and seconded the resolution to adopt Envision 2045 as provided by staff; the chair announced the motion passed unanimously. Supervisors thanked staff for the in-house work and recognized Planning Commissioner Steve Kidd for 28 years of service.
The transcript records the board's unanimous adoption but does not include a roll-call vote sheet in the hearing excerpt; the county's official adoption resolution and final plan text will appear in Planning & Zoning records.
