A general plan is the primary document adopted by the community to help decision-makers evaluate development proposals and lead growth toward a desired vision. The general plan typically looks at the entire community and future expansion areas, identifying land uses (residential, commercial, manufacturing, parks, etc.) and other elements that make up the community. The general plan vision is established through public participation, which should be dynamic and informative. The general plan has a life of 5 to 10 years, yet looks 20 or more years forward in order to anticipate long term change. Every 5 to 10 years the General Plan needs to be reviewed and updated in order to address changes and evolving priorities.

Updating the Vernal City General Plan provides a unique opportunity for the community to reflect on the past and dream about the future. When successful, the process identifies what works and what needs to be improved. During the update process, the general plan will change and morph, eventually representing the preferred blueprint for the future. Once the Vernal City Plan has been finalized and adopted, implementation tools such as the zoning ordinance and site development guidelines should also be updated in order to help meet the future community vision contained in the plan.

While providing overall guidance to planning issues in the community, the General Plan is not necessarily inflexible. The intent is to state clearly the overall policy objectives and goals - these should remain inflexible until such time as the General Plan is updated or amended. However, within the context of the overall General Plan policy objectives and goals, there is opportunity for flexibility in the execution and implementation of the plan. It is important to adopt the broader ideals to guide decision-making, while considering a range of creative solutions for site-specific issues that do not compromise those ideals. In this way, the General Plan remains a vital, living document that will serve the community for 5 to 10 years.

Questions or Comments?
Contact Mark Vlasic with Landmark Design at (801) 474-3300 or via email at
vernalcity@ldi-ut.com, or Allen Parker, Assistant City Manager/City Planner with Vernal City
at (435) 789-2255 or via email at aparker@vernalcity.org.
Visit the Vernal City website at http://www.vernalcity.org/.

Large Turnout at Public Workshop

A city-wide Public Visioning Workshop was held on Tuesday, February 10th at Discovery Elementary to help planning consultants develop ideas for Vernal City. The meeting provided residents and others an opportunity to review maps, discuss visions, locate specific uses and growth areas, and help develop possible solutions for improving Vernal City.

The planning team presented a summary of issues gathered during the scoping meetings held in January, discussed the purpose of general plans and the need for updates, and presented the findings of the existing conditions analysis. The meeting was then opened up to general questions. Many of the attendees were concerned that Vernal City had plans to annex areas currently outside of the City boundary. Once this issue was clarified, many attendees then participated in a visual preference survey and a workshop format to help determine the direction of future growth. Additional workshops were held the next day with students at Uintah High School and seniors at the Golden Age Center.

Please take a look at the workshop presentation material on this web page under "Public Involvement".

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact Mark Vlasic at Landmark Design (801) 474-3300 or Allen Parker, Vernal City Assistant City Manager/Planner at (435) 789-2255.