Regional Plan for the Greater Bear Creek Valley
After nearly a decade, the Regional Plan for the Greater Bear Creek Valley is almost complete. This planning effort brought together the cities of Ashland, Central Point, Eagle Point, Medford, Phoenix and Talent, as well as Jackson County and a number of state agencies to identify lands suitable for long-term urban growth needs sufficient to accommodate the doubling of the region’s population over the next forty to fifty years.
As part of the planning process, lands that have been selected to accommodate future urban growth within the region have been designated as Urban Reserve Areas. These Urban Reserve Areas are those into which cities will eventually expand their urban growth boundaries and, ultimately, their city limits. Ashland is the only city participating in the regional planning process that has not identified Urban Reserve Areas, as it was previously determined that lands already within Ashland’s city limits and urban growth boundary were sufficient to accommodate the anticipated growth for Ashland.
A draft of the Regional Plan has been completed and Jackson County, the land use authority with regional jurisdiction that will ultimately adopt the plan, is currently holding a series of public hearings to review the document. The draft plan includes the identified Urban Reserve Areas and policies necessary to implement the plan.
All of the jurisdictions involved in the process have signed a participant’s agreement which provides guidance for putting the plan into action, and it is anticipated that over the coming year, the draft Regional Plan will be reviewed and adopted, after Jackson County and each of the cities holding public hearings to provide opportunities for plan review and comment. Ashland’s meeting dates to discuss the draft Regional Plan are as follows:
| Planning Commission Study Session: |
|
April 27, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.
City of Ashland Council Chambers |
| City Council Hearing: |
|
June 15, 2010 at 7:00 p.m.
City of Ashland Council Chambers |
Jackson County Planning Commission:
(Discussion of plan as it relates to Ashland) |
|
August 12, 2010 at 9:30 a.m.
Jackson County Courthouse Auditorium |
While no Urban Reserve Areas have been identified for Ashland in the draft plan, the Ashland City Council will hold a public hearing at its regular meeting at 7:00 p.m. on May 4th to take public comment on the draft Regional Plan and craft their recommendation to the Jackson County Planning Commission.
A calendar of upcoming public meetings to discuss the plan at the Jackson County Planning Commission and in each of the participating cities is available on-line at:
http://rvcog.org/mn.asp?pg=RPS_Public_Meetings_2010
If you have any questions relating to the Regional Plan, please contact City of Ashland Associate Planner Derek Severson at (541) 552-2040 or email: SeversoD@ashland.or.us
