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Ashland County planning committee sets timeline for plan adoption, schedules October open houses and December ordinance vote
Summary
The committee agreed to post a draft comprehensive plan in September, hold two public open houses in October and target ordinance adoption on Dec. 15, with a Sept. 15 facilitated meeting to finalize materials and an Aug. 11 working session to prepare action steps.
The Ashland County Planning Committee agreed July 21 to a schedule for completing and adopting an updated comprehensive plan, setting public outreach and notice deadlines to meet statutory requirements.
At the meeting, Emily (the committee’s facilitator) outlined the adoption process and timeline, saying the plan adoption process “is typically a 4 to 5 month process for completion.” Committee members agreed to target posting the draft plan in mid- to late-September so a 30-day public notice could support October outreach and a December ordinance adoption.
The committee settled on two public events in October: an evening open house in Morris on Oct. 20 at 6 p.m. aimed at south-county residents, and an Oct. 27 open house in Ashland with a 9 a.m. session tied to a county board meeting where the planning committee would present a resolution recommending the draft plan to the board. The committee discussed whether to host the formal public hearing at a county board meeting or via the planning committee; members noted a county-board hearing would let the full board hear public feedback.
Members set intermediate deadlines and meetings to finalize materials: a working session in August (tentatively Aug. 11 at 2 p.m.) to begin reviewing action items, and a facilitated meeting Sept. 15 to finalize the draft before public posting. The committee asked Emily to circulate an updated timeline with the agreed dates.
Committee members noted a practical concern: adopting an ordinance on Dec. 15 would require the public notice to be issued approximately 30 days earlier and that staff coordinate with the local paper for legal publication. Committee members and staff agreed the committee can still amend the plan after public testimony if needed, either at the meeting or by returning matters to the planning committee for revision.
The meeting concluded with agreement to continue refining the schedule and outreach plan at upcoming August and September meetings.
