Bethany Morrison, a long-range planer with the county, joined us for our October GAC meeting to introduce the General Plan. She reviewed the purpose and scope of the plan as well as how to accesses it and give feedback. The General Plan sets the County Council’s long-range policy for the comprehensive physical, economic, environmental, and sociocultural well-being of the County. As such it is the primary planning tool to guide development patterns, direct future opportunities, and determine public investments. While not a specific plan for growth and development, it is critical in providing a vision for future growth and addresses the layers of healthy, livable, and sustainable communities. In short, it is the umbrella plan for the County planning system. Specific areas of focus are land use, infrastructure, economy & housing, health & safety, recreation & open spaces, and resource protection.
The General Plan is currently available for public review and comments are being accepted through November 20, 2023. To access the plan, go to https://www.planning.hawaiicounty.gov/general-plan-community-planning/gp. There you can go to an interactive site that allows you to move through the plan, see comments that have already been made, respond to those comments or create new feedback. This document will guide the Big Island for the next few decades, so I highly encourage you to take the time to review it and give feedback. Too often the business community is absent when it comes to the County making decisions that affect us. Here is a chance to make a difference.
The next GAC meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 16. Please reach out to Miles or Carla if you would like to join.
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