Photo by Jim Ridolphi
CCGG member Paul Costello addresses the Planning Commission at last week’s public hearing on the updated Comp Plan. Costello said the public input process in Goochland is “broken.”

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Goochland’s current Comprehensive Plan Update, Goochland 2028, cleared its first hurdle as the Planning Commission recommended sending the document to the Board of Supervisors for consideration. They took that move after hearing more than two hours of public comment, most of it expressing concerns with the update.

County planner Tom Coleman made the county’s presentation, highlighting changes and goals of the new plan. But many residents were unsatisfied with the amount of public input that accompanied the process.

Officials originally sought to make this update “the people’s plan,” but many who spoke said the words were not backed with action. Some said the plan needed another round of public hearing, but that seems unlikely. The process began in early 2007, featured two rounds of community meetings and a citizen’s advisory committee to communicate public concerns to county officials and board members.

The majority of speakers expressed concern with the public input process, the inability to obtain up-to-date copies of the proposed document and the lack of public meetings between the Planning Commission and citizen groups.

Citizens Concerned for Goochland Growth (CCGG) was well represented at the public hearing and many members spoke in favor of delaying the approval process to allow more public input.

John Josay, a CCGG member said the document lacked a clear mission. He called the proposed update “incomplete” due to the lack of citizen input.

Coleman said the project was an attempt to tweak the county’s previous plan, and highlighted changes in the proposal. Boundary lines for the villages of Sandy Hook and Crozier will be decreased, and minimum lot sizes have increased to two acres, an adjustment from the average lot size. Manakin and Oilville are identified as major growth villages and an area along Rt. 623 north of Centerville is targeted as flexible for commercial and industrial development.

John Lewis said the proposal lacked the teeth to accomplish the tough goals it outlined, and objected to the use of less than arbitrary language. He pointed to the use of the word “shall” and its definition in the documents glossary as “strongly advised.”

“These are weasel words,” Lewis said.

Goochland resident Janet Lehre said the proposed document seemed like “a reactionary approach to the inevitable.” She said aspects of the plan, like the urbanization of the eastern portion of the county, are not necessarily visions embraced by all citizens.

Linda Sasser who lives in Columbia, expressed frustration in obtaining access to the plan. Although copies were available on the county’s Web site, many portions of the county do not have the Internet download speed to access the files.

Commissioners listened intently and Coleman fielded questions from some speakers.

Another contingent of commenters, comprised of Henrico County residents who live near the Goochland County line, were concerned with the Comp Plan’s identification of the Route 623 corridor as a targeted industrial area. The proposed region is adjacent to several neighborhoods in Henrico.

Specifically, they noted rumors of a landfill expansion that would affect their residences, and they asked the commissioners to consider their quality of life when approaching the new plan. They said increased activity on Rt. 623 means more traffic on their neighborhood streets and increased danger for their children.

Commissioner Bob Rich assured them no such proposal for expansion is on the table.

Sitting in on his third Comp Plan process, Rich said this one featured the most public input, and noted the plan is “dynamic, not static.”

That review process was also on the mind of Jacelyn Pogue, the president of CCGG. She suggested annual meetings between self appointed citizens committee and the Planning Commission to study the progress and effects of the new plan.

Commissioner Knight Bowles suggested the plan still lacks a solution for a major problem in the county —providing housing for public employees like school teachers and sheriff’s deputies. Until the density issue is addressed, Bowles said the plan doesn’t include “ a vision for creating a community.”

He said higher densities in village areas could provide those solutions and make more affordable housing available.

The plan will move to the Board of Supervisors for another public hearing, possibly in December.

Planning Commission chairman Lowe Lunsford adjourned the meeting, saying, “Much has been done and much needs to be done.”

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