By Aila Boyd aboyd@ourvalley.org
The last Comprehensive Plan community meeting will be on May 14 from 4-7 p.m. at the Buchanan Library.
The meeting, which will be held by the Botetourt County Department of Planning and Zoning, allows county residents the opportunity to review maps and materials, talk to facilitators, and share their opinions about how different parts of the county should develop in the coming years.
Data collected will be used to inform public input processes and planning documents.
The Comprehensive Plan is a document that establishes goals and policies for community growth and change.
During the meetings, citizens were asked to identify areas that the felt should be changed, protected, and transitioned. Another activity allowed them the opportunity to identify areas where they felt growth should be targeted. Also, emoji mapping was used. During that activity, citizens reviewed a map of the county and then were asked to place emojis (symbols that can be used to express feelings) on the parts of the county that they felt strongly about. The emojis expressed worry, sadness, love, and anger.
To date, Botetourt County has held a total of four Comprehensive Plan community meetings.
The first meeting kicked off on April 11 at the Eagle Rock Library. Roughly 20 people attended the meeting. Other meetings took place at the Fincastle Library on April 24, the Blue Ridge Library on April 30, and at the Greenfield Education and Training Center on May 7. Rough attendance estimates for the meetings are as follows: Eagle Rock-20, Fincastle-35, and Blue Ridge-25.
Full summaries of each meeting, additional information about the Comprehensive Plan, and an online survey can be found at http://visionboco.wordpress.com.
