Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the General Plan topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Highland Council adopts water element of general plan, defers broader update to January
Summary
After months of community outreach, Highland City Council unanimously adopted the water use and preservation element of its comprehensive general plan with amendments and agreed to continue review of the rest of the draft until January to allow more public review and edits.
Highland City Council on Dec. 2 adopted the water use and preservation section of its updated comprehensive general plan but continued consideration of the remaining elements until January.
The council voted 5–0 to adopt the water element as amended after a long discussion about public outreach and technical edits. Staff and the planning consultant told the council the state requires a compliant water element by the end of the year; councilmembers agreed to approve that portion now and return with a revised full draft for final action in the new year.
Consultant Aubrey Larson told the council the draft general plan follows each element with community feedback, existing conditions, and goals and implementation strategies. "The goals and implementation strategies are the places where the rubber meets the road," Larson said, urging the council to focus on outcomes rather than every phrasing in the public‑comment summary.
Council debate before the water vote ranged across outreach methods, population projection choices and wording. Some councilmembers said the city should give residents more notice and clearer links to the full draft before finalizing the whole plan. Several members pressed staff to correct typos, verify map boundaries and replace instances of the word "rural" with "semi‑rural" to reflect local character without changing funding eligibility.
The water element passed as amended to: remove overly prescriptive language about private ponds and pools, clarify participation in federal/state rebate programs, confirm the gravel‑pit aquifer recharge option is a pilot, and add an implementation strategy directing the city to adopt regulations ensuring new or expanded water systems coordinate with Highland's water supplies and avoid adverse impacts.
Councilmember Ron Campbell moved adoption of the water element "as included in the agenda packet, but with the amendments agreed to this evening," an approach the full council supported. The council then directed staff to publish the revised full draft and return to the council in January with a consolidated document for final action and broader public notice.
What happens next: Staff will publish an updated draft for public review over the holidays, correct maps and spelling errors flagged during the meeting, and bring a consolidated draft back at the council's first meeting following the new year. The council emphasized it wants substantive changes presented in tracked form before a final vote.
