SPEARFISH, SD – The Draft Comprehensive Plan will be presented during the February 26th City Council Study Session at 4:15 p.m. in Council Chambers at City Hall.
The draft plan has been updated since the January 15th City Council Study Session, when the Spearfish City Council heard public comment and provided feedback to the consultant to incorporate. The draft will be a redline document, which means readers can track changes between drafts, and will be posted in the packet for the Feb. 26th City Council Study Session meeting, which can be found at https://www.spearfish.gov/AgendaCenter once posted.
The Spearfish Comprehensive Plan was last adopted in 2013, amended in 2022, and is generally updated about every 10 years. To create an updated comprehensive plan, the City Council approved a contract with the planning and design firm, SE Group, May 1, 2023, and the project officially kicked off in August 2023. After initial background research, the first Community Engagement event was hosted in October 2023, when approximately 150 community members attended an open house to provide input about the community’s vision and priorities. An online survey and interactive map were also available for citizens to provide comment. In addition, the project was guided by an advisory committee made up of approximately 15 community members and City staff who met six times between project kickoff and June 2024; there were eight stakeholder conversations held with community leaders, business owners, advocates, and City and Lawrence County staff; and the Advisory Committee, Planning Commission, key stakeholders, and City and County staff convened for a land use workshop.
Utilizing the feedback received, a draft plan was completed in September 2024, with presentation at a City Council Study Session in October 2024. After reviewing the initial draft plan, City Council members had additional questions and desired further discussion, with the Jan. 15th study session dedicated to providing feedback to develop a revised draft.
A comprehensive plan, required for every municipality by South Dakota Codified Law, is defined in state statute as “any document which describes in words, and may illustrate by maps, plats, charts, and other descriptive matter, the goals, policies, and objectives of the municipality to interrelate all functional and natural systems and activities relating to the development of the territory under its jurisdiction.” It is a document developed to serve as a philosophical foundation for specific regulations, codes, and methods to guide future development and operation of a community, including land use, infrastructure, economic development, public facilities, government finance, zoning, etc. The primary elements are Goals that state the desired outcome, and supporting the Goals are strategies (actions) offering ideas for achieving each goal, with measurable outcomes listed.
