The City of Tallahassee is delaying the transmission of its comprehensive plan for a year. Neighbors in historic, downtown neighborhoods expressed concerns about possible increases in development of homes and business spaces. Watch the video to find out what commissioners and neighbors plan to do in the meantime.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
Were not going to burden this community over the summertime to answer every single question that’s going on. We need more time, Mayor John E. Dailey said during a city commission meeting on June 11.
After months of push back from neighbors, the city is delaying updates to its comprehensive plan for a year.
It’s a small win for neighbors living in historical, downtown neighborhoods.
But they say the work isn’t over yet.
“Hopefully, we’ll get a chance to work on some of those substantive issues, Lafayette Park resident Randie Denker said.
The plan outlines how the city will grow until 2050.
It increases development from housing to business spaces, depending on the designated land use.
For residents in historic neighborhoods like Lafayette Park, the concern is infill building more housing within existing neighborhoods
That could mean seeing up to 12 housing units per acre.
“The biggest issue was that people in the public had not had a chance to be informed and to get acquainted with what changes were going to happen, Denker said.
That’s where the Alliance of Tallahassee Neighborhoods came in.
They’ve hosted informational sessions and even organized mass efforts to show up to commission meetings.
But some say communities like those on the south side were not represented.
A lot has been changing rapidly in terms of defining how many units per acre you can build, ATN Chair Kathy McGuire said. The neighborhoods weren’t able to communicate in time with their neighbors in order to keep them up with this evolving definition.
City planners say that they’ve held meetings and have made changes based on feedback while the plan tries to recognize the needs for more housing and prevent risks of urban sprawl.
“We’re going to grow and we need somewhere to put them,” Mayor Pro-Tem Diane Williams-Cox said at the meeting.
Now, the city is hoping to spend the next year educating before the plan goes any further.
“I think we need to really roll up our sleeves and not just meet in chambers but get out in the neighborhoods, Dailey said.
The commission is planning to meet again in August to look at ways to communicate with neighbors about this plan.
Some commissioners suggested hosting in-person informational sessions and posting to social media.
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