Planning commission recommends Mt. Rogers planning district review of Marion comprehensive plan, discusses proposed boundary expansion

The Marion Planning Commission voted unanimously on Feb. 9 to recommend that Town Council approve a memorandum of understanding with the Mt. Rogers planning district (MRPDC) to conduct the town's required comprehensive plan review.

Todd Long, Marion's Director of Engineering/IT and Zoning Administrator, told commissioners that the review is required by state law and that "the last review was completed in 2022." He said he had provided MRPDC with a future land-use map that included a proposed boundary change that, in Long's words, would "double the land mass of Marion," and emphasized the need to reflect any new boundary to plan for growth and future development.

Brian Reed of MRPDC told the commission he did not expect major substantive changes to the plan beyond demographic updates and reported that he had submitted a memorandum of understanding to the Zoning Administrator for consideration. Gavin Blevins of MRPDC, who Reed said has completed similar reviews for other Southwest Virginia localities, recommended that any boundary change be implemented in phases rather than showing a full, expanded boundary on a single map.

On a motion by Commissioner Rex Anders, seconded by Commissioner Ben Reedy, the Commission voted 4-0 to recommend that Town Council approve the MRPDC memorandum of understanding as the mechanism for the comprehensive-plan review.

Reed and Blevins said they will work with the Zoning Administrator to continue the update and will notify the Planning Commission when updated demographic information is available so the commission can set a follow-up meeting. Reed also asked that the review include a map of areas of Marion affected by Hurricane Helene so storm impacts can be considered in future land-use planning.

The recommendation will move to Town Council for action; the Planning Commission did not itself adopt any boundary changes at the Feb. 9 meeting.