Planning commission discusses housing study

The City of Kimball Planning Commission discussed the upcoming housing study at its Oct. 20 meeting.

The meeting opened with a public hearing on whether or not to add specific conditional uses to the C-1, C-4, C-5 and C-6 zoning districts. The conditional uses that will be added are already a part of the conditional uses for the other zoning districts.

“Buildings, structures, and premises for public utility services, or public service corporations, which buildings or uses the Council, after report of Kimball Planning Commission, deems reasonably necessary for public convenience or welfare,” the conditional uses read.

It was the decision of the planning commission to table this particular item.

Lonnie Dickson, the community and regional planner of Hanna:Keelan Associates, the firm in charge of the comprehensive planning program Kimball will be undergoing over the next year, was present at the meeting to give the planning commission a rundown concerning the comprehensive plan.

Kimball recently qualified for and received a grant that would pay for 49 percent of the costs toward a new comprehensive plan. It was approved by the city council to pay the remaining 51 percent and proceed in hiring Hanna:Keelan to conduct the comprehensive plan.

Dickson attended the planning commission meeting in order to provide introductions as well as an overview concerning the next year, with regards to the comprehensive plan.

Hanna:Keelan is located out of Lincoln, and has completed somewhere around 160 community and county comprehensive plans and more than 400 housing market studies. The firm has also won several awards in its line of work, such as the outstanding professional service award, distinguished planning award, housing our community award, Nebraska Housing Hall of Fame and the Founders Award.

The comprehensive plan that will be conducted by Hanna:Keelan will take a year to complete.

The areas of the community that must be studied in order to complete the comprehensive plan include demographics and socioeconomics, land use, employment and economy, public facilities, utilities and transportation and energy. The aforementioned areas will complete the preliminary comprehensive plan and are scheduled to be completed in 10 months. Three more areas will be addressed from the eighth month onward, and these areas are capital improvement/funding plan, zoning ordinance review and revision, followed by a subdivision plan review and revision.

Citizen involvement and cooperation is rather important concerning the comprehensive plan process, Dickson said. Surveys will be conducted, and in order for Hanna:Keelan to really grasp an accurate portrayal of the community’s needs, the firm must have between 35 or 45 percent of the surveys completed. The company would be “ecstatic” if 50 percent of the surveys were completed.

“We really want to have community involvement in this process because that will make it easier to obtain surveys. We’ll need help from the city in regards to see the best way to distribute surveys to the public,” Dickson said.

The next meeting concerning Hanna:Keelan and the comprehensive plan will be held Monday, Jan. 19, 2015. The next planning commission meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 17, in the city council chambers.