A comprehensive plan is a long range, strategic guide intended to provide technical advice on the physical growth and development of a community.

Typical components of a comprehensive plan include analytic sections designed to empower local officials to make significant decisions regarding economic development, housing, recreation, transportation facilities, community amenities and overall land use patterns, all of which are related to a community’s goals and objectives.

There are three primary purposes of a comprehensive plan:

1. To address the planning requirements of state law while providing a sound and logical basis for city/county growth management strategies;
2. To provide some predictability about the potential land uses and timing of development so that both public and private sectors can make informed decisions in the area of real estate and capital investments; and
3. To provide the Planning Commission and City Council/County Commission with policies for future planning decisions and the methods to control land use through the zoning and subdivision ordinances, the capital improvements program, and other enforcement control.
   See Also: Comprehensive Planning Maps