Almost There: Draft of Park County Land Use Plan Available For Viewing & Comment

The Park County Land Use Plan is on track for completion in 2023, and now a draft of the all-encompassing plan is available online for another round of public input for the next few decades of growth in northwest Wyoming.

On Monday, Feb. 13, the first iteration of the long-awaited Park County Land Use Plan was published on the Park County government website.

“After significant public comment, numerous meetings, abundant research, and internal review, the first public draft of the updated Park County Land Use Plan is here,” the website celebrates.

The updated Park County Land Use Plan will establish an overarching vision and goals for the next several decades and the policy foundation that will guide where and how the county grows in that time. While the plan has no binding decisions, the County will implement land use guidance established during the Plan Park County process through subsequent updates to the County’s Development Standards and Regulations.

“We did our best to land on policies and messaging that reflect a balanced approach to planning in Park County,” the Land Use Plan website reads, “trying to respect property rights while looking out for the health, safety, welfare, and morals of our public.”

Anyone can view the 23-page draft plan, which includes a “Guided Tour” to highlight the plan’s major sections and how to interact with it online. The draft plan showcases the consolidation of the Land Use Plan through community input, identifying goals and policies, and how the plan can be implemented once adopted.

There are also two interactive maps included on the website. One shows Park County’s suitability for land use, and the other shows (potential) future land use, based on the work of team members and public input.

There will be two full-day open houses to discuss the Park County Land Use Plan – Tuesday, February 28 in Powell and Wednesday, March 1, in Cody.

The Powell open house will be held in Heart Mountain Hall at the Park County Fairgrounds. Meanwhile, the Cody open house will be held in the Cody Auditorium.

Both open houses have the same schedule:

• 8:45 a.m. – Doors open
• 9:00 a.m. – Formal Presentation
• Noon – Formal Presentation
• 6:00 p.m. – Formal Presentation
• 7:30 p.m. – Doors close

Park County officials and team members from Clarion Associates will be available for questions at both open houses.

Comments on the draft plan can be submitted directly in the document, via email, or by mail/delivery to the Park County Planning and Zoning Department through March 10.

Navigating and commenting have been designed to be as simple as possible directly on the website. By simply clicking on a section of the plan, a bubble pops up where a comment can be typed and submitted.

However, comments can also be submitted “the old-fashioned way” through mail and email.

After this comment period, the next/adoption draft of the Land Use Plan will be released before two public hearings: one with the Planning and Zoning Commission and one with the Board of County Commissioners.

The Park County website has a published (tentative) schedule for the remainder of the Land Use Plan process.

• February 21 – Project Update #10  (9:30 a.m. at the Park County Courthouse)
• February 28 – Open House in Powell
• March 1 – Open House in Cody
• March 6 – Land Use Pan Action Committee Meeting #6 (via Zoom)
• March 10 – Public Comment Period on Public Draft Closes

Park County households can expect a postcard detailing the open houses and the online port to view and comment on the Land Use Plan draft.

The dates for three events have yet to be scheduled: the “Adoption Draft of Plan Released for Public Review” and the public hearings for the Planning and Zoning & the Park County Commissioners.