EDA Meeting Date: February 26, 2024
To: Members of the Economic Development Authority
From: Jake Reilly, Community Development Director
Title
Comprehensive Plan Update and engagement exercise
Body
Action Requested:
None.
Summary Report:
This report serves as an update to board and commission members on the status of the 2045-horizon Comprehensive Plan.
The first Steering Committee meeting was held on Monday, December 18th in the second-floor training room at City Hall. Meeting materials used at that meeting are included in this packet. City staff and the consultant team are holding conversations with boards and commissions during standing meetings. The presentation and exercise for the February 26, 2024 EDA meeting is representative of the approach for those sessions and aligns with the approach taken with internal staff groups, most of the City’s standing boards and commissions, and several not-for-profit and educational partner groups.
Progress Update:
The consultant team from NEOO Partners, Inc. and Stantec, along with several City staff, have completed the “Discovery” phase of the planning process. The “Vision” phase is now underway and takes advantage of the engagement completed before the end of the year to craft a draft vision and guiding values document. The Vision phase will extend through March 2024 in order to account for additional engagement opportunities, including those with this group and each board and/or commission with interest. Additional engagement with an expanded set of community groups will allow the consultant team to “test” the vision and guiding values with stakeholders and ensure alignment with the broader community values. The attached Monthly Comprehensive Plan Updates (Attachments 1 and 2) has additional detailed information from the consultant team.
Staff will lead the members of the EDA through an exercise based on the attached, “Stakeholder Interview guide” (Attachment 3). Please review the guide prior to the meeting and be prepared for a lively, staff-facilitated discussion on an appropriate subset of discussion questions derived from the guide, in consultation with the planning commission.
Staff will also lead the Human Rights Commission through this same exercise at that group’s February 28, 2024 meeting, in English and in Spanish. Other engagement opportunities and events are scheduled in February and March and are listed below. As the comprehensive planning team works through the visioning phase and concurrent engagement Staff will provide monthly updates to each board and commission similar to the two attached herein.
If there are specific questions or concerns about the process, the monthly update, or other Comprehensive Planning issues, please do not hesitate to contact Jake Reilly, Community Development Director at jake.reilly@northfieldmn.gov or 507-649-7018.
Alternative Options:
N/A
Financial Impacts:
N/A
Tentative Timelines:
• Dec. 18, 2023 - First Steering Committee meeting held R
• Dec. 20, 2023 - Northfield Youth on Boards/Mayor’s Youth Council R
Subset of Age Friendly Northfield steering committee R
• January - March 2024 - Vision phase: Staff/consultant team meets with other boards/commissions for structured/facilitated conversations about desired outcomes of 2045-horizon comprehensive plan.
o Tentative draft schedule:
§ January 17, 2024 -Environmental Quality Commission R
§ January 29, 2024 - Housing and Redevelopment Authority R
§ February 5, 2024 - Parks and Recreation Advisory Board R
§ February 7, 2024 - Heritage Preservation Commission R
§ February 14, 2024 - Library Board R
§ February 26, 2024 - Friends of Downtown Northfield R
§ February 26, 2024 - Economic Development Authority
§ February 28, 2024 - Human Rights Commission
§ February 28, 2024 - Steering Committee meeting #2
§ March TBD - Northfield Hospital and Clinics Board
§ March TBD - Northfield Area Transportation Advisory Committee
• January through April 2024 - Analysis Phase (including opportunities for feedback)
• April through July 2024 - Plan Phase (including opportunities for feedback)
• December 2024 - Adoption of final document