La Plata County is growing by an average 9,000 people per decade, county planning commissioners were told on March 5. It was their second meeting in the new effort to update the 2001 comprehensive plan.
They met to review updates to the introduction and growth trends section.
Planning staffer Dan Murphy said county population was 51,441 according to the 2010 Census. It's projected to reach 91,000 in 2040. The growth rate of 2.4 percent per year qualifies the county as growing significantly, he said.
Colorado is the third fastest growing state in the country, and county growth matches the state, Murphy said.
"How do we keep bringing people here in a responsible manner?" he asked.
The county has grown consistently since the 1970s, except during the 1980s. He showed a population breakdown, with 62.7 percent in unincorporated rural parts of the county, 31.6 percent in Durango, 4.4 percent in Bayfield, and 1.3 percent in Ignacio, which hasn't really grown since 1970.
In 1980, 6.5 percent of county residents worked in agriculture, Murphy reported. Now it's around 2.7 percent. It was pointed out that agricultural jobs account for zero percent of income.
Mining jobs, mainly related to natural gas, have grown from .7 percent of population in 1980 to 2.6 percent now. The share of residents working in manufacturing or retail has fallen by half, Murphy said and guessed that reflects the recession. Tourism employment is scattered among several categories, he said.
The work to update the 2001 plan is being done by the volunteer planning commissioners themselves, unlike the aborted 2009-2011 effort to draft a totally new plan, which was done by outside paid consultants and started with a series of community vision meetings around the county.
Planning Commission Chair Jim Tencza prodded commissioners to do their homework and submit their comments and ideas promptly each month. County planning staff will take those and draft language for plan updates, which are put online for everyone to see at http://co.laplata.co.us/departments_and_elected_officials/planning/comprehensive_plan.
That's what is reviewed at the next comp plan meeting, held the first Thursday each month at 6 p.m. in the county courthouse. The next element will be agriculture in April and May.
County attorney Sheryl Rogers indicated water will be part of the April 2 discussion. The county commissioners created a citizens Water Advisory Commission last year, she said, and WAC chairman Buck Skillen will be at the April 2 meeting.
One of the first questions to anyone who wants to develop in the county is, "Do you have water?" Rogers said. "It's not a simple question. A lot of people have 'paper water' but not actual 'wet water.'"
Tencza stressed that the introduction/ growth trends and ag elements were scheduled first because they are considered the easy ones. The whole process is scheduled to continue through 2016 into 2017.
Tencza noted several audience members who opposed the 2011 plan and invited their comments.
Dick Norton said, "What I've heard tonight, I can't complain at all. I think you're doing the right thing."
Planning Director Damian Peduto and staffer Jason Meininger sought consensus, meaning "nodding heads," from planning commissioners on March 5 that the things posted on the web site were okay so far. None of the commissioners said otherwise, although Tom Gorton objected that the things he had downloaded were not the same as what was presented at the meeting.
"We're struggling with this internally as well," Meininger said. "We need to have all the new stuff uploaded two weeks before the meeting. ...We hope to have staff revisions to the ag element next week."
Tencza said, "We'll take the introduction and growth trends first on April 2. To say it looks good, not necessarily approve it. If we don't finish an element on schedule, I suggest moving it to the back to not derail the schedule. It will mean as a commission we need to step up and get our stuff in."
The schedule as announced in February is infrastructure in June and July, extractive resources in August through October; implementation in November and December.
In 2016, land use will occupy January through April; the airport in May and June; public safety in July and August; environmental resources in September through November; and housing in December.
Parks, recreation, and trails are listed for 2017.
As discussed on Feb. 5, planning commissioners will approve and certify several elements at one time and send them to the county commissioners for review and comments, rather than going through the whole process and certifying the final plan all at once. The planning commission has statutory authority to approve the comp plan. It's an advisory document to the county commissioners.
