Adams County - Adams County residents still have a chance to voice their opinions over the county's proposed comprehensive plan.
There are public meetings Wednesday and Thursday in several places across the county.
You can find dates, times and locations below.
Since the county board first started talking about a comprehensive plan, we've heard the same concern voiced over and over from people opposed to it - that this is a step toward zoning the entire county.
Tony Boone has lived in Adams County his entire life. He doesn't like the comprehensive plan.
Why are you concerned about the Adams County Comprehensive Plan?
Boone said, "I am concerned, as well as a lot of citizens of Adams County, of the comprehensive plan because we believe, maybe not today or tomorrow, but in the future it will lead to land regulations as well as zoning within the county."
Boone says zoning is specifically mentioned here on page six of the final comprehensive plan proposal. He also told me that a consultant said during a recent meeting that the county board is only two votes away from approving zoning. And Boone says Adams County Board Chairman Mike McLaughlin spoke of the possibility of future zoning during an interview with us here at KHQA last year.
We brought those concerns to McLaughlin.
Is this about zoning?
McLaughlin said, "The simple answer is no, this is not about zoning."
Is this a step towards zoning?
McLaughlin said, "It could be, but with all the public outcry the message has been clearly stated that people don't want zoning and honestly there isn't a single person on my board who would have voted for zoning and there were very few before this anyway."
McLaughlin says the whole purpose of the comprehensive plan is to create an organized strategy for future development and growth. And the controversial future land use plan, which many opponents see as the stepping-stone to zoning, got cut out of the final plan.
McLaughlin said, "They miss the point that all that has been eliminated. Can it come up in the future, sure it can, but it could be ten, twenty, thirty years down the road...I don't have the answer to that and neither do they."
Here is the list of public meetings:
Wednesday, Sept. 23rd at 5:30 P.M. in the Payson Elementary Multi-Purpose Room
Wednesday, Sept. 23rd at 8:00 P.M. at the Liberty Middle School Gym
Thursday, Sept. 24th at 2:00 P.M. in Rooms D024 & D025 of the Paul Heath Building at JWCC
Thursday, Sept. 24th at 5:30 P.M. at the Mendon Middle School Gym
Thursday, Sept. 24th at 8:00 P.M. at the Central Junior Gymnasium
The Steering Committee Meeting Wednesday, Oct. 7th at 6:30pm in room A021 JWCC (Science & Tech Building South end)
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