Great Falls city planners want feedback on growth policy plan

The City of Great Falls has launched a new website dedicated to growth policy updates and gathering community feedback.

As part of its public engagement efforts, the Department of Planning and Development has launched a website dedicated to providing up-to-date information on the city’s growth policy plan for the next 20 years.

The Growth Policy guides city leaders, business owners and developers toward future growth based on the needs of the community.

Community members can sign up to receive ongoing updates on the project’s progress and provide feedback directly to city planners. The City is interested in learning what a citizen’s ideal community looks like, as well as any current or projected problems the community may face.

Great Falls Assistant Planner Alaina Mattimiro says, “We want everyone connected to Great Falls to have the opportunity to participate. This is you, your friends, your family, your grandparents, your children, your colleagues. If you live on base, we need you, if you live in Cascade County but work in Great Falls or shop in Great Falls, we want feedback from all of those people. This will be the best public engagement effort in the city’s history, and it’s happening right now. So we’re very happy about that.”

Planning and Development has already visited the community to present and gather feedback through various workshops. Mattimiro says, “We really ask people, ‘Where do you want Great Falls to be in 20 years, how can we get there, and what are your top priorities?’

The city’s new growth policy plan is currently in the first phase of a four-step process that includes a community analysis and efforts to involve the public in development planning.

The consultant is currently working with the city to analyze housing and income data to develop affordable housing strategies. You can also view the previous growth policy from 2013 and track progress on the website.

Mattimiro says: “If people want to look at what has been done in the past, they can do that, and also at some of the things we decided in 2013 that we wanted to see. And you’ll be able to see if we’ve made any progress on some of these projects.”

To learn more about Great Falls growth policies and provide feedback, click here to visit the site.