Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee Now Accepting Applications

With Buncombe County beginning a two-year planning process to create a new Comprehensive Plan for the future growth of the County, the first step is to create a steering committee to help guide that work. While the official start of the Comprehensive Plan process is August 2021, applications are available now to join the group of roughly 20 Buncombe County residents to sit on the committee.

In order to ensure the committee reflects Buncombe County’s diversity, residents with experience in one or more of the following areas are encouraged to apply:

• Housing/Affordable housing
• Transportation
• Hazard mitigation/Resiliency
• Sustainability/Environment/Conservation
• Aging populations and other demographic trends and projections
• Early childhood/Youth population trends/Multigenerational needs
• Equity
• Land Use/Development trends/Future land use
• Critical facilities/Concurrency management
• Economy and industry
• Emergency management/Public safety
• Farmland/Food security
• Infrastructure
• Tourism
• Parks and recreation
• Greenways
• Healthy community
• Ability/Disability

The Steering Committee is also seeking input from one high school and one college student, in addition to the general public. The deadline to apply is May 17, 2021.

Committee members will serve a three-year term beginning around August 2021 with an anticipated commitment of one meeting per month. Different phases of the planning process may require more than one meeting per month.

A comprehensive plan is used by local governments as a broad, long-range planning tool for the community. The Buncombe County Comprehensive Plan will focus on the next 20-year period and look at the relationships between land uses, infrastructure, and key community needs. A comprehensive plan is not limited to studying land use components - it can include other areas of focus such as safety, public health, affordability, multi-generational needs, equity, and more.

Start the application process.