BEND, OR -- Deschutes County Commissioners are asking for public input on the next Comprehensive Plan. Senior Long Range Planner Nicole Mardell says it’s, "Our guiding policy framework for decision making on planning, growth, resource protection and development in the rural county - so, all the areas outside of city limits - over a 20-year period." She tells KBND News, "So, even if we have new Commissioners, even if staff changes, this document is used over a 20-year period to determine what direction to go on things like zoning code amendments, county grant programs, criteria for rezoning." For more on the plan, click HERE. 

Development of the plan has been underway for several years, and Mardell says they've already received around 280 comments from the community, "As staff, we tried to create a really representative plan for rural community members. There were a wide diversity of opinions on a lot of issues. So, what you see is - a lot of the content is finding a middle ground, trying to balance a lot of those issues."

The fourth and final public hearing on the Comprehensive Plan is Wednesday evening. "This is the chance for folks who may not have been involved in the process, or who were waiting to see the final draft, to weigh in," says Mardell. She notes the format is different from typical hearings, like the proposed RV rental dwelling code, which also goes before the Board Wednesday, "For that one, we’re asking for feedback on very specific code; there’s really limitations on what people can focus on. Where, with the Comprehensive Plan, everything is on the table."

The public hearing for allowing RVs as rental dwellings was initially scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday, but the agenda now shows it at 10:50 a.m. The Comprehensive Plan hearing is at 5:30 p.m. Both are at the County Services Building, at 1300 NW Wall in Bend.