RICHMOND – Months of planning by city leaders accepting public input and professional guidance have led to the Richmond City Council’s adoption of a new comprehensive plan.

“It was very positive input that we had from our citizens,” Mayor Mike Wright said prior to formal acceptance.

Public forums and online questions drew good responses to the overall question of how the public wanted the city to grow in coming years, he said.

The latest plan includes significant differences from the plan created in 1999, Wright said.

“A lot of it has to do with the direction of growth of the city,” he said.

The planning process showed interest in the city growing “from the center of town more toward the south” in the direction of Walmart and the fast-food restaurants, Wright said.

“Other concerns, which we always have, are streets and infrastructure,” he said.

Richmond Economic Development Director James Gorham said the framework for future community growth follows city land use plans and no need for zoning changes has arisen.

This is a 20-year growth plan, so we will do our due diligence and work with the plan … as much as possible,” he said.

City Administrator Tonya Willim said the plan did not focus, in terms of appropriating funds, on growth, infrastructure and other prospects for the future.

“It doesn’t go that far,” Willim said. “As the city builds upon its own capital improvement plan, once the ‘comp plan’ is approved, we will start planning on the goals and objectives … and we’ll start figuring out how to financially be able to produce those. But again, it is a 20-year plan, so we’ll take things budget by budget.”

‘It is a 20-year plan, so we’ll take things budget by budget.’

TONYA WILLIM RICHMOND CITY ADMINISTRATOR