Following a public input process that began in March 2012, the Kenton County Planning Commission (KCPC) is ready to move forward on a proposed statement of goals and objectives. That proposed statement will be heard during a scheduled public hearing to be held on June 6 at 6:15 PM. As required by state law, this statement will anchor Direction 2030, Kenton County’s new comprehensive plan.

After review and recommendation by the KCPC, the statement of goals and objectives will be forwarded to each of Kenton County’s 20 legislative bodies for their consideration and action. The legislative bodies will have 90 days to take action on the KCPC proposal. This phase is anticipated to be completed in September 2013.

A preliminary draft of the statement of goals and objectives was presented at two public meetings held last October. Staff received over 180 comments on the draft which was then reviewed by the Direction 2030 task force. The task force’s responses to all of the comments as well as the final draft are posted on the project website.

This public input fostered creation of four guiding principles that will assist decision makers in using the goals and objectives effectively. Each covers a broad topic that was raised during the public engagement process.

One of these topics covers the protection of property rights. Research on other comprehensive plans locally, regionally, and nationally indicates that several communities have addressed private property rights in their comprehensive plans. The Direction 2030 task force discussed this topic and subsequently directed staff to work with concerned cities to draft language for their consideration. As a result, property rights have been added as a guiding principle.

The draft statement includes nine goals which will serve as the basis for completion of the required elements of the comprehensive plan:

• encouraging a variety of housing options for all generations and incomes;
• creating and maintaining places that draw talent;
• retaining, attracting, and creating jobs;
• celebrating the unique identity of our communities;
• promoting a healthy lifestyle;
• enhancing the transportation system;
• providing access to natural systems;
• balancing development and preservation; and
• encouraging cooperative governance.

“This has been an important step in the process and we are very pleased with the level of participation from our legislative bodies and the community,” said Paul Darpel, Chairman of the Kenton County Planning Commission. “The draft as it stands accomplishes the task of representing the community’s voice and hopefully our cities will see it that way as well.”

Staff fanned out across Kenton County in January and February to present the final draft statement of goals and objectives to the community’s 20 local elected bodies. While most of those groups provided positive feedback, four cities asked staff to work with their economic development/zoning committees for a more in-depth review.

These responses indicated a strong desire for the statement of goals and objectives to address property rights. As a result, staff presented draft language on property rights to the Direction 2030 task force in February. That updated version of the statement now includes property rights language in the guiding principles which apply to all goals and objectives.

“We’re glad that cities and local organizations are providing feedback prior to submittal of the finished product to the county planning commission. This gives us a chance to address issues on the front end, before it becomes cumbersome to address them from a countywide perspective.  All 20 of our jurisdictions must adopt goals and objectives,” said Paul Darpel, Kenton County Planning Commission chairman.

In the meantime, the Direction 2030 task force has worked to address the 182 comments received to date on the draft. Several changes have been made based on those comments, and a response to each will be posted on the project website when the review is complete.  A research report is also being compiled, as required by state statute, which specifies that elements of the comprehensive plan be based on research, analysis, and projections. This report is being compiled by collaborating with multiple agencies across Northern Kentucky to access the best data available.

“After all concerns with the statement of goals and objectives are addressed, we’ll submit an application to the Kenton County Planning Commission.  We hope to do that in April for a public hearing and action in May,” said Sharmili Reddy, AICP, NKAPC planning manager.

Kenton County’s 20 legislative bodies will have 90 days to take action on the planning commission’s recommendation. Adoption of the statement of goals and objectives and completion of the research report will pave the way for preparation of the individual required comprehensive plan elements. This second phase will include recommendations for land use, transportation, community facilities, and natural resources. It will also provide further guidance on how to achieve the adopted goals and objectives.

The second phase is anticipated to be completed by December 2013.

A proposed statement of goals and objectives for Kenton County’s first all-new comprehensive plan since 1972 is complete and nearly ready for legislative review. Final action will begin with a public hearing before the Kenton County Planning Commission and conclude with votes before each of Kenton County’s 20 local governments.

In its current form, the statement includes three guiding principles—public participation, economic considerations, and the necessary interrelationship between them. Each was a topic brought up frequently during the 70-meeting public input process that contributed greatly to the proposed statement. The guiding principles are intended to be considered in conjunction with each goal during the decision making process.

The goals and related objectives are organized in seven categories—mobility, the economy, healthy communities, natural systems, health, community identity, and governance. As with the guiding principles, these categories came directly from comments received at public meetings, small group meetings, city meetings, and subsequent discussions with the Direction 2030 task force.

“We took our time to speak and meet with any resident, organization, or legislative body that expressed an interest in the process,” said Sharmili Reddy, AICP, NKAPC’s planning manager. “We also sought out groups that are traditionally not involved in the planning process to get a well-rounded view on issues affecting our residents.”

When adopted by each of Kenton County’s 20 legislative bodies, the statement of goals and objectives will offer an integrated planning vision that recognizes the different planning needs of each of those elected bodies.

More information on Direction 2030—including the most current draft—can be found on the project website.

In November, the third and final round of public meetings regarding the draft statement of goals and objectives yielded over 180 comments from the general public, local officials and organizations. Approximately 40 residents stopped by during the course of two public meetings and discussed their thoughts and concerns regarding the draft.

This statement of goals and objectives is intended as a guide to develop policies and implementation measures in the comprehensive plan. Those currently in place were adopted in 1972 during the preparation of the first Kenton County Comprehensive Plan.

The proposed statement is based on three guiding principles; public participation, economy, and relationship between goals. These are applicable to all the goals and objectives and are expected to be used in moving forward. The proposed goals focus on seven different topics including; healthy communities, economy, health, mobility, natural systems, community identity and governance. Each of these categories includes several objectives that will be used in preparing the remaining elements of the comprehensive plan.

Immediately following the last round of public meetings in November, the Direction 2030 Task Force met to discuss the submitted comments. The task force will address all public comments and post its responses on the project’s website. The draft will then be presented to each of the required legislative bodies as an additional review opportunity prior to submitting an official application for adoption.

In accordance with state statutes, an application will be submitted to the Kenton County Planning Commission (KCPC) for review. The KCPC will offer recommendations to the legislative bodies, which will have 90 days to review the proposed statement of goals and objectives and take action.

“Our process has been open and transparent to date. We have held meetings in multiple locations throughout the county to make it easy for people to attend. We have met with anyone or any organization that has had concerns. We hope that our cities have been following this process closely and offer their support,” said Sharmili Reddy, AICP, planning manager.

Staff took steps in a new direction when it contracted a market analyst for technical assistance with Kenton County’s first totally-new comprehensive plan since 1972. Based on initial responses to the nature and quality of the data, staff is looking into an ongoing program to marry this type of data with LINK-GIS mapping capabilities for use by local communities, businesses, and economic development officials.

“Our initial reason for engaging the market analyst was relevance,” said Dennis Gordon, FAICP, executive director. “The free market is one of the most important factors determining whether a comprehensive plan is viable and likely to be implemented. The Great Recession and the ‘new normal’ it’s created makes it all the more critical that we have our finger on the pulse of the local market.

“What we got from our analyst met our initial goal. It also gave us an idea that if we could keep the data updated and available, we could assist a number of interests that work in support of Kenton County’s economic future.”

According to the program strategy being developed by staff, data developed recently by Dinn Focused Marketing would be kept up to date regularly and made available to local interests along with mapping that would make the data all the more relevant. The result, according to the draft strategy, would be more jobs and more business for the local economy.

Gordon says the idea for a “data clearinghouse” came to staff following a meeting with local homebuilders. They acknowledged that the nature and quality of the data are what they typically use when determining where to locate their next residential projects and the price range on which they should focus.

“Our development community takes huge amounts of risk on their own behalf. That means they need data to make the most accurate prediction of what the market is telling them,” said Brian Miller, executive vice president of the Homebuilders Association of Northern Kentucky. “If this data is maintained and regularly updated, we foresee the ability to heat map any demographic and economic changes in areas within the County in order to facilitate a dialogue for a number of reasons.”

Miller continued, “Zone changes, comprehensive plans, and subdivision regulations are relevant by supportive data and adaptation to changes in the local market. Flexibility is key in a more responsive planning process and it is difficult to be flexible without data that bears your assumption out.”

A recent meeting with a Covington task force looking into redeveloping neighborhoods within that city’s urban core validated the idea further, according to Gordon. “Seeing economic indicators on a neighbor-by-neighborhood basis showed these folks where they needed to focus their efforts.”

When asked when such a program might be up and running, Gordon responded that the strategy would be put on the table during upcoming discussions about NKAPC’s budget for fiscal year 2014 (that begins in July 2013). He said that while the funding necessary to make the strategy work would be minimal, he hoped to be able to raise funds outside the agency budget to help with its costs.

“These data could help private sector businesses and, as such, would make public-private partnerships totally appropriate as a funding source to keep the program going,” he concluded.

Direction 2030: Your Voice. Your Choice.  – a comprehensive planning effort for Kenton County is moving into a third round of public meetings to discuss  the statement of  goals and objectives..

The preparation of goals and objectives is an important step in the planning process as it represents a collective vision for Kenton County.  Upon the completion of these statements, Kenton County’s 20 legislative bodies and the Kenton County Planning Commission will consider them for adoption.

The first of the two meetings will be held at the Blessed Sacrament Church, 2407 Dixie Highway on Wednesday, November 7, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM.  This Goals and Objectives Workshop will provide the opportunity for the public, various interest groups and organizations to comment on the draft goals and objectives and make suggestions to strengthen these guiding principles for our community.  This will be the last scheduled meeting for acquiring input prior to the draft being finalized.

In addition to the workshop, legislative bodies or organizations that wish to have a more focused group discussion on the draft may arrange to do so before or during the session.  Please contact Sharmili Reddy at sreddy@nkapc.org for further information on scheduling a focused group discussion.

The second of the two meetings will be a Capstone Meeting held on Monday, November 12, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at the Community Christian School, 11875 Taylor Mill Road, Independence.  This open house format meeting will present the final statement of goals and objectives to the public before it is considered each of Kenton County’s legislative bodies and the Kenton County Planning Commission.

Meetings with the public, small groups, elected officials, task forces and cities have been the focus of planners working on the Direction 2030 project for the past year. Approximately 65 input sessions have been held to date - an unprecedented amount of public engagement for comprehensive planning efforts in Kenton County. The collected input is currently being analyzed and used in the preparation of the statement of goals and objectives (G&Os) which serves as the guide for policies and implementation measures in the comprehensive plan.

The first statement of goals and objectives for Kenton County were prepared during the adoption of the first comprehensive plan in 1972. The G&Os while reviewed every five years has essentially remained the same for the last 40 years. The economic and demographic changes of the last decade have necessitated the review and rework of these goals and objectives. As part of the Direction 2030: Your Voice Your Choice project, a joint task force of about 30 members has reviewed and discussed broad goal concepts based on their varied expertise and more importantly public input. These broad goal concepts are currently being transformed into countywide goals and objectives.

Public engagement has been the focus of the Direction 2030 effort and will continue to be through the G&Os phase. A public work session will be held on Wednesday, November 7, from 6-8 p.m. at the Blessed Sacrament Church, 2407 Dixie Highway in Fort Mitchell. A draft of the G&Os will be presented to the attendees for their comments. Additional focused small group meetings with interested organizations is also being planned prior to and as part of the work session. Input received at this work session will be used to revise the G&Os and will be presented the following week at a capstone meeting on Monday, November 12 from 6-8 p.m. at the Community Christian School located at 11875 Taylor Mill Road in Independence.

 “This is a critical step in the planning process. This is the phase when we strive to achieve a common set of goals and objectives that Kenton County residents and elected officials can embrace as one vision for the county,” said Dennis Gordon, FAICP, NKAPC’s executive director.

Following the public review of the G&Os they will be submitted to the Kenton County Planning Commission (KCPC). The KCPC will send the draft G&Os to each of the 19 Kenton County legislative bodies. State law gives each of the legislative bodies 90 days to review the G&Os and decide on actions. The KCPC will then hold a public hearing prior to considering adoption of the G&Os into the Direction 2030 plan. This process, including the 90-day review period, is expected to take five months beginning in January 2013.

Additional information on these meetings will be available on the project website, direction2030.org.

The majority of respondents to a recent public meeting keypad survey chose employment as the element that needs the most improvement locally. Based on that consensus, economic competitiveness will be the focus of the next public meeting scheduled for July 25th from 6-8 p.m. at Simon Kenton High School in Independence.

Fifty-five percent of respondents selected jobs as the most important local issue when compared to shops and amenities, outdoor recreation, housing options, and education. The desire for better employment was also articulated in small group discussions. At almost every meeting citizens have expressed strong concerns about good jobs for youth as an incentive to stay in the area.

A portion of the meeting will include a discussion amongst panelists after which the public will have a chance to ask questions or make comments—a similar format to the June 14th public forum on healthy communities. A summary of that session is posted on the project's website.

In addition, a forum specifically for elected officials from Kenton County’s 20 jurisdictions will be held on July 19th at the Edgewood Senior Center.  That session will discuss specific county-wide and city issues.

Both meetings will further the conversation on policies that can be addressed in the Kenton County Comprehensive Plan: housing; land use; transportation; environment; and, community facilities. Preparation of the plan's goals and objectives is anticipated to begin in September after the conclusion of this second round of public meetings.

Since its start, the Direction 2030 project has continuously emphasized the importance of public input and interaction with the key persons who deal with issues addressed in the Comprehensive Plan.

Opportunities for such dialogues include public meetings held in different areas of the county, small group meetings with groups traditionally not represented in the public meetings, meetings with a Technical Task Force, and a Planning Task Force. The Kenton County Planning Commission which includes one representative appointed by each legislative body has the final authority to adopt the Comprehensive Plan.

While over 200 people attended the first round of four public meetings, the small group sessions allow a more in-depth conversation with different groups in the community. One such meeting was held after an initial public meeting at Piner Elementary School.

“These small group meetings have allowed us to hear the specific issues that residents of southern Kenton County have mentioned. The needs of the residents are somewhat different from the rest of the county and we are working in collaboration with theDirection 2030 effort to bring those issues to the forefront,” said Kenton County Commissioner Beth Sewell.

A small group meeting was also held in Elsmere with the African American community, who represent 4.6 percent of Kenton County’s population according to the 2010 U.S Census.
 
“We appreciate the opportunity to bring our thoughts and ideas to the table as part of theDirection 2030 effort,” said Jerome Bowles, President of the Northern Kentucky branch of the NAACP and Technical Task Force member.

A continued effort will be made to keep all the groups involved in the planning process as the plan moves into the second round of public input meetings. The input received at these meetings will be presented to the Planning Task Force for their consideration, and then the preparation of goals and objectives will begin.

“The Comprehensive Plan is the foundation for planning efforts, including zoning and subdivision regulations, in Kenton County. We strongly encourage residents of Kenton County to get involved in the planning process so you can have a say in the adopted policies,” said Paul Darpel, Chairman of the Kenton County Planning Commission.

Direction 2030 is quickly moving into the second phase of public input as planners prepare for two roundtable meetings. The first meeting will be held on June 14th at Ludlow High School and the second will be held in mid-July, details of which will be announced soon. Based on guidance from the Direction 2030 Planning Task Force, the focus of these two roundtables will be to seek expert feedback on issues expressed by residents from the first round of meetings.

As planners work toward recommending policies, input from many diverse communities within Kenton County is critical in appropriately shaping the vision for the entire county. The input gathered from the four public meetings, five targeted meetings with groups not represented at the public meetings, as well as from Direction2030’s Technical Task Force and Planning Task Force is important to articulate the main policy issues.

The Planning Task Force includes members of the Kenton County Planning Commission, Northern Kentucky Area Planning Commission and the Northern Kentucky Area Planning Council. The Technical Task Force is comprised of representatives from key public agencies and those with expertise in areas that the comprehensive plan is required to address.

The two roundtable discussions will include a presentation by Dinn Force Marketing, describing market metrics that need to be considered and how those metrics align with input gathered during the first round of meetings.

“These upcoming meetings are important for elected officials, planning commission members and the general public to attend. These meetings are a good opportunity for us as a community to educate ourselves on opportunities and constraints in implementing policy issues raised by people in Kenton County. Most importantly, these meetings will provide the critical information to begin preparing countywide goals and objectives and provide direction for policy,” said Kenton County Planning Commission chair Paul Darpel.

Following the second round of sessions, a capstone meeting will be held to gather feedback from the community on the draft Goals and Objectives element for the comprehensive plan. Public input is important to ensure that the county is prepared to overcome current obstacles, particularly as it relates to market conditions, and is positioned to successfully provide a healthy community for current and future residents.