The City of Biddeford is seeking public input on goals, policies, strategies, and values for the City’s Comprehensive Plan Update that have been drafted based on input received through previous community surveys and focus groups.
The Planning Board, with support from the Planning & Development Department, will hold three two-hour Public Sessions via Zoom. The first two sessions will take place on Tuesday, April 12 at 1:00 p.m. and 6:00 p.m. and the final session will take place on Thursday, April 14 at 1:00 p.m. Individuals will only be allowed to participate in one of the three sessions.
At these sessions, there will be live voting on goals, strategies, and values in each topic area included in the plan. Topics will include Economy, Housing, Transportation, Public Facilities, Recreation, Natural Resources, Sea Level Rise and Climate Change. The input from these sessions will ensure that the Comprehensive Plan goals have broad support and that the plan is driven by values that community members share. A draft of the Goals, Policies and Strategies memo is available for review at www.biddefordmaine.org/comprehensiveplan.
Registration is required by Monday, April 11 at noon to get access to the link prior to the session and can be accessed on the City’s Comprehensive Plan webpage linked above. Biddeford residency is not required to participate.
“Public input continues to be vital as we approach the end of the Comprehensive Planning process,” said Bill Southwick, chair of Biddeford’s Planning Board. “We are looking forward to hearing from the community on their reactions to the work that has been completed so far.”
Following these public meetings, a Future Land Use Map will be created. The Planning Board will incorporate feedback from all these sessions into the Comprehensive Plan draft, then work with Planning and Development department staff to finalize the text of each section of the plan. This draft will be released to the public and a Public Hearing will be scheduled with a 30-Day notice. Following the Public Hearing, any final changes will be made by the Planning Board and staff, at which point the Planning Board will vote to send the Comprehensive Plan to City Council for approval and adoption.
For more information, please contact Hannah Bonine, Assistant City Planner, at 207-284-9115 or by email at hannah.bonine@biddefordmaine.org.