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Planning staff recommend Alachua County transmit update to water‑supply plan
Summary
County planning staff presented a county‑initiated amendment to extend and update the joint water‑supply facilities plan with the City of Gainesville and GRU, and the local planning agency voted to recommend transmitting the amendment to the State Land Planning Agency for review.
Michael Castine, senior planner with the Alachua County Department of Growth Management, told the local planning agency that staff is seeking a recommendation to transmit Comprehensive Plan Amendment Z25000007, an update to the county's water‑supply planning documents, to the State Land Planning Agency for review.
The amendment updates the county’s joint water‑supply facilities work plan with the City of Gainesville and Gainesville Regional Utilities (GRU), refreshes population and water‑use projections and extends the planning horizon. "These are county initiated amendments to the comprehensive plan," Castine said, and they "extend the timeframe of the water supply plan" and incorporate the joint facilities work plan by reference. Staff recommended that the local planning agency recommend that the Board of County Commissioners transmit Z25000007 to the State Land Planning Agency and other reviewing agencies for comment.
Why it matters: the joint plan sets projects and conservation measures that make the county eligible for water‑management‑district funding and helps align future capital projects between the county, the City of Gainesville and GRU. Castine said the Water Management Districts adopted a regional plan in 2017 and updated it in 2023; local governments are required to adopt corresponding updates within the statutory timeframe.
Commissioners pressed staff on intergovernmental coordination. One commissioner asked whether the plan adequately coordinates with nearby municipalities (Newberry, Alachua, Archer) and with both the St. Johns and Suwannee River water management districts. Castine replied that the regional districts coordinate those efforts and that some smaller suppliers in the unincorporated county are now preparing their own plans.
The local planning agency voted to recommend transmitting Z25000007 to the State Land Planning Agency; the recommendation advances the amendment to the Board of County Commissioners, which will consider a transmittal hearing on June 24. After state review, staff said the amendment will return to the board for a final adoption decision.
