Council adopts updated general plan
Document will go up for a vote in November
The Yuma City Council unanimously approved a resolution adopting the 2022 Yuma General Plan on Wednesday. The 262-page document, a comprehensive, long-range guide for future development, is updated every 10 years, with voters approving the final update.
The decennial update is intended to reflect current demographics, recent data on built and natural environments, development changes that have occurred over time and updated projections for future community needs.
Yuma opted for a technical update to reflect current demographic data and the council’s direction for development of the community, incorporated the council’s adopted vision and strategic outcomes and included changes to the land use map to reflect council policy and existing development activity.
The general plan is organized into 13 chapters that address the 17 elements required by state statute. It contains information and maps about Yuma concerning the required elements, goals, objectives and policies for the development of the city and action Items to reach those goals.
The plan provides guiding policy for the development of the city but does not legislate any new fees, taxes or changes to development and building codes.
The city offered several public participation opportunities as part of the process, such as Planning Commission presentations, a joint council and commission presentation, listening sessions, mailed newsletter, media appearances and online survey.
After holding public hearings on Sept. 13 and Oct. 11, the Planning and Zoning Commission
recommended adoption by the council with some changes.
The council held a public hearing on Dec. 15 and further discussed the plan during a Jan. 18 work session.
On Wednesday, Councilman Mike Shelton said he was pleased with the final document and thanked the council for their hard work.
Councilwoman Shoop described it as “well written, very easy to decipher for those who want to do business with the city.” She noted that the document should be “accessible and understandable,” especially for those who want to “bring their money” to the community.
Councilwoman Karen Watts said she was happy to see some of the additions made to the housing and conservation elements, such as adding action plans to “study the development of a community solar project targeted to low income families” and “monitor water agreement discussions for the Colorado River and protect current levels and continuous flows through the Yuma community.”
However, Watts said she was disappointed by some of the conservation goals, such as pushing out the timelines for programs and incentives for energy efficiency standards. She noted that Yumans live in the desert and the drought is expected to worsen.
“We need to be thinking progressively,” Watts said.
Only one person asked to speak on the issue. Jay Meierdierck of the Yuma Audubon Society noted that the organization had submitted lengthy comments on the general plan, some of which were included, but “not enough.”
Meierdierck said that the Gila and Colorado rivers, which he called the reason Yuma exists, play a “very minimal” role in the plan. For instance, he noted, the transportation, recreation and conservation chapters do not address the rivers directly.
Meierdierck recommended that the document be sent back to staff for further changes.
However, the council went ahead and voted 7-0 to approve the resolution. The plan is considered a “living document” and changes can be made to it through the amendment process.
The updated document will go up for a vote in November.
To view the 2022 General Plan, go to https://tinyurl.com/29n5fjak.