Timnath Comprehensive Plan Update What’s New!?

By Town of Timnath

Review the draft Comprehensive Plan!

We are in the final stages of finalizing the Comprehensive Plan Update, and it’s time for residents to review the draft plan and offer their final feedback. The community has been invaluable to this process and now we want to hear from you prior to the plan’s adoption by Town Council.

The goal of the Timnath: The Vision Renewed Comprehensive Plan is for it to be a guiding document that helps define what the future of Timnath will look like. This includes everything about our town’s future including the density of future home developments, what kind of businesses can be developed and where, the location of future trails and connections, our local economy and where future parks will be located.

Now that the draft is ready, we would love to have your feedback! Please submit your feedback by January 3rd.
The Plan is organized into five descriptive chapters, each organized by six vision themes.

Plan Organization
Chapter 1 – Introduction includes the purpose of the plan and the planning process, including a summary of key public outreach.
Chapter 2 – Building Our Foundation includes a brief history of the Town’s development and previous planning efforts, as well as a summary of key opportunities and existing conditions that guide the Plan.
Chapter 3 – Our Future Vision describes the community’s goals and objectives by vision theme and includes an illustrative Framework map that presents the goals in a conceptual graphic.
Chapter 4 – Our Plan describes the future land use categories, including the primary uses, densities, and allowed zoning.
Chapter 5 – Our Path Forward identifies a series of specific steps to be taken by the Town and community partners to achieve the vision and goals.

Vision Themes

A First-Rate Small Town: This vision focuses on ensuring that Timnath offers a high quality of life, connectivity and a unique sense of place. This is characterized by smart growth decisions, connectedness of its neighborhoods, and an abundance of amenities and services that serve the community.

An Unparalleled Old Town: This vision protects the charm of Timnath’s Old Town while supporting public amenities, businesses and appropriate residential development within the Old Town area.

An Open Country Feel with Parks and Natural Areas: The Comprehensive Plan accounts for five community parks, an extensive community trail system and open spaces to provide a framework for development within the Town.

A Regionally-Connected, Locally Enhanced Multimodal System: This vision plans for multimodal transportation routes making it easy to move around Town and the region by car, bike or by walking trails.

A Neighborly, Cohesive Community: Residential development will include a variety of housing types fostering a sense of community while providing different choices for the current and future residents of Timnath.

A Supported Small-Town Economy: Commercial areas will serve the Town’s economy and be strategically placed along high-trafficked areas, while also encouraging locally owned small businesses to flourish and be supported in the Old Town area.

About the Plan

The Town of Timnath is preparing an update of the Timnath Comprehensive Plan, which guides the physical development of the Town. The process will update our vision, examine key community needs, capitalize on future opportunities and refine our future growth. This Plan Update will also incorporate and combine the existing Downtown Plan and the Parks, Recreation, Open Space and Trails Master Plan into one document.

Current building permit trends suggest that the Town’s population could grow from 4,000 residents to 12,000 in the next 10-15 years. As such, it is imperative that the community continues to strategically plan for this expected growth. The Plan Update will reflect the desire of the community to maintain its small-town character and to support and manage growth in a responsible manner.

Phase 1 Summary:

To kick off the planning process, the Town and consultant team began by discussing current issues and opportunities and informed stakeholders and the public about the overall process. This was done by holding a series of events and an online survey where residents were encouraged to feedback on the process. We heard that the community loves the small-town feel, overall quality of life and family-friendly living Timnath offers. However, the Comprehensive Plan should also further guide the Old Town area, pedestrian and bicycle connections and preserve the sense of character and open space.

If you’re interested in learning more, the Phase 1 Foundation and Public Launch document summarizes the feedback received from these various events and online comments. Read it HERE.

Thank you to all community members that provided feedback on our key goals and objectives and future land use choices by attending the Community Receptions or taking the online questionnaire.

Phase 2 Summary:

Phase 2 of the Comprehensive Plan focused on the development and revision of six different vision statements. The Phase 2 outreach involved attendance at the Holiday Tree Lighting on December 7, 2018, and an online survey. Respondents were asked about their general support for the vision statements and opportunities to implement the vision. Click here to review the revised vision statements and view the community feedback on the preliminary options.

Next Steps:

The feedback we received during Phase 2 will be used to create Future Land Use Maps. Staff and the Steering Committee are also currently working to update the Comprehensive Plan’s goals and objectives based on the received feedback and existing condition trends.

What is the Steering Committee’s Role?

The Steering Committee is a working group who has been selected by Town leadership and who are vested in Timnath’s future. The Committee represents a variety of perspectives and interests to provide input on all aspects of the Comprehensive Plan. They have been tasked with assisting in and actively engaging in the outreach process to garner participation from their friends, neighbors, family, etc., representing the community, being a sounding board for key concepts and alternatives, reviewing sections of the plan at key points, and advocating for the final Comprehensive Plan.