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Planning committee approves draft existing land-use map for Ashland County comprehensive plan
Summary
Ashland County planning committee voted to accept a draft existing land use map that staff says reflects 2026 conditions and will serve as the baseline for the county's future land use chapter; the vote carried after a voice roll call and one recorded opposition.
The Ashland County Planning Committee voted to accept a draft existing land use map as the baseline for the county's comprehensive plan.
Emily of Northwest Regional Planning, who led the map presentation, told the committee the map is a 2026 snapshot created from aerial imagery and parcel GIS data and reviewed by county zoning and GIS staff. "This existing land use ... is a snapshot in time of how land is being used in Ashland County across the county, countywide in 2026," she said, adding that conservation lands account for about 43% of the county, private forest and open space about 31%, tribal lands about 14%, and more developed uses total less than 0.1%.
Committee members discussed map accuracy and suggested additional layers. A member asked whether the map could include a layer for tax-exempt parcels to explain why Ashland County often ranks low on economic indicators; the committee's GIS specialist, Clem, said the statewide parcel dataset includes a tax-exempt coding and that a public-lands/tax-exempt layer could be produced. "The statewide parcel data set where each county annually submits their countywide parcels to the state ... gets updated annually," Clem said, describing how the coding could be extracted for the plan.
A committee member moved to accept the draft existing land use map as the plan's baseline; the motion was seconded by Van Beerren. A voice vote was held; at least one member voiced opposition during the roll call, but the motion carried and the map will be incorporated into the plan update.
The committee directed staff to work with county zoning and GIS to refine the future land use map and to circulate revised draft text and supporting tables (including definitions and the percentage table of land-use categories) before the next meeting. Staff said next steps will include drafting the future land use map and reviewing vision, goals, objectives and actions for the remainder of the plan.
