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Consultant outlines eight strategic themes, cites 421-household survey in Iowa City comprehensive plan update
Summary
Confluence principal Christopher Shires told the City Council and Planning & Zoning Commission that robust public engagement and a statistically valid ETC survey (421 responses, 95% confidence) informed eight strategic themes — with housing, resiliency and placemaking rising as priorities — and said drafting will proceed with advisory review and public checks before finalization.
Christopher Shires, principal with Confluence, told the City of Iowa City work session on Oct. 21 that the city’s comprehensive plan update is moving into the drafting phase after extensive public engagement and a statistically valid household survey.
Shires said the outreach included stakeholder interviews (about 75 solicited, 38 completed), neighborhood meetings, pop‑up events, charrettes, and an online engagement portal, plus broad marketing and materials translated for multiple languages, including Arabic and Spanish. He said ETC (Kansas City) completed 421 randomized household surveys, producing results the consultant described as reliable at a 95% confidence level with a margin of error of roughly ±4.8 percentage points.
The consultant presented eight strategic themes developed from that engagement: housing for all; sustainability and resiliency; culture and placemaking; economic development; transportation and mobility; city services; parks and recreation; and community collaboration. "People are generally very pleased with the community," Shires told councilors, and he contrasted Iowa City’s high marks with national averages the consultant cited.
Shires emphasized that the plan will be a new document rather than a cut‑and‑paste update: "We're giving you ... it's brand new," he said, describing plans for a new chapter structure, a new future land use map, and specific recommendations that will be translated into action steps, objectives and policy considerations during drafting.
Councilors raised questions about what the city can reasonably influence — especially on housing and education — and how survey questions were selected. One councilor noted surprise at an item showing that 82% of respondents expected to still live in Iowa City in five years; Shires said the university’s presence and typical local factors likely shaped that outcome. On survey design, Shires said consultants and ETC crafted questions tuned to Iowa City and vetted them with city staff so the survey would be concise enough to ensure completion.
Shires said some topics that appear in appendices or district plans may be consolidated into a more cohesive future land use plan, but that recommended appendices would be updated if retained. He also flagged increased attention to storm hazard and climate resiliency in this cycle. "Housing's always been important. It's never been more important," he said when asked how priorities have shifted since the prior plan.
Next steps, Shires said, are phased: the team will proceed with drafting (including recommended actions and potential policy options), work with the advisory committee on chapter‑by‑chapter review, and then return drafts to the public and the council for further feedback before final adoption.
