Memorandum

Lawrence-Douglas County

Planning & Development Services

TO:	David L. Corliss, City Manager
FROM:	Planning Staff
CC:	Scott McCullough, Director
Date:	September 30, 2009
RE:	City Commission Planned Growth Goal Report – Master Planning Efforts and UGA Review

This report updates the City Commission on continuation of the city’s master planning efforts including the review of the Urban Growth Area boundary, a stated goal of the 2009 City Commission goal setting work session.

As of 2009, Planning Staff has completed five sector plans around the city including the Revised Southern Development Plan, the Southeast Area Plan, the Farmland Redevelopment Plan, the West of K-10 Plan and the K-10 and Farmer’s Turnpike Plan and has begun the process of working with stakeholders to draft the Northeast Sector Plan.  These plans do not align well with the current Urban Growth Area (UGA) boundary and the UGA does not adequately account for feasible or planned water and wastewater infrastructure. 

The UGA is an important concept in Horizon 2020 as noted:

The Plan defines the limits of the UGA for the Planning period.  Through adoption of an annexation policy, development can be anticipated to occur in areas most easily served by public facilities and services and future development can be scheduled in concert with planned infrastructure improvements.

There are implications to properties within the current UGA.  It provides an expectation to property owners that, at some point, areas within the UGA have the potential to be annexed into the city of Lawrence and receive city services.  The UGA is split into 5 service areas, service area 1, 2, 3a, 3b, and 4.  These service areas are locations that can be more readily served with urban services with 1 being the most and 4 being the least readily serviceable.  Properties within service area 1 are required to annex before any division of land or development can occur.  In reality, some of the areas that are identified to be readily served with urban services can not be as they do not necessarily match the city’s water and wastewater master plans.  This causes issues with those that are required to annex but the city can not provide the properties with urban services. 

Additionally, properties within the UGA that are proposed to be subdivided are required to submit a future build out plan to review the future urban density development potential.  This step is not required of property owners wishing to divide property outside the UGA.

The review of the UGA was initiated by the Planning Commission as part of the annual review of the comprehensive plan in April 2008.  Along with the completion of the Northeast Sector Plan, additional information regarding future water and sanitary sewer serviceability will be helpful to accurately analyze and recommend an appropriate UGA boundary that establishes areas of development potential over a reasonable time period.  A review of the UGA boundary is on the PDS work plan for 2010.