by Lisa Crockett

Have you ever wondered how certain businesses, homes or civic amenities came to be in Douglas County? Douglas County is in the midst of a full-scale effort to revise its plans for the future; work sessions and hearings on the matter are open to the public.

Meetings for the so-called 2030 Comprehensive Master Plan (CMP) have been ongoing, and will continue as Douglas County planning staff works to finalize its rules and recommendations.

After a months-long process of conducting public meetings to explore planning issues and concerns, the County is now in the process of synthesizing massive amounts of information to be included in the CMP.
The Master Plan covers nearly all areas of growth and development in the County, including new construction, affordable housing, water, public transit and recreation.

The plan was last revised in 2001. Since that time, Douglas County has grown by nearly 91,000 people. One of the goals of the CMP is to maintain consistency with the regional planning efforts of the Denver Regional Council of Governments (DRCOG). DRCOG recently completed an update to their long range-plan, Metro Vision. Metro Vision was extended to the 2030 planning horizon. Douglas County has chosen to maintain a similar planning horizon.

The next CMP work session will be held on February 4, from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at 100 Third Street in Castle Rock, in the Phillip S. Miller Hearing Room. The public hearing to adopt the 2030 CMP is tentatively scheduled for February 19 at 6:30 p.m.