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Staff reviews LLUPA and signals upcoming Comprehensive Plan refresh and RFP for economic development study
Summary
Staff gave the Planning & Zoning Commission a primer on the Local Land Use Planning Act (LLUPA) and said the county plans to issue an RFP to update the economic-development profile as the first step toward a Comprehensive Plan update; commissioners discussed public engagement and timing.
Planner Tom Cluff provided commissioners with an overview of the Local Land Use Planning Act (LLUPA), explaining the statutory duties of counties in Idaho to adopt a Comprehensive Plan, a zoning ordinance, subdivision and variance procedures, and to issue written decisions for land-use actions.
Cluff said Fremont County's Comprehensive Plan was originally adopted in 2008 and that policy updates were made in 2019 to reflect state changes; he recommended targeted updates and described staff plans to begin with an economic development profile. "We're going to update that RFP to hire that consultant soon," Cluff said, adding that consultants will be asked to propose approaches and that the Planning Commission will play a central role in shaping policies. Commissioners suggested public hearings, surveys and targeted updates instead of frequent wholesale rewrites.
Staff emphasized the practical role of the Comprehensive Plan as a policy guide rather than an automatic rule. Cluff asked commissioners to flag policies they think need updating and said staff will circulate materials; two new planning commissioners were also introduced and a new planner, Kyle Kirkpatrick, joined staff.
No policy changes were decided at the March 16 meeting; staff said the first tangible step will be issuing an RFP for an economic development consultant to support the Comprehensive Plan refresh.
