SANDPOINT — City Council approved a contract with Logan Simpson Design, Inc., on Sept. 18, initiating the process to update the city’s comprehensive plan.

“Our timeline is to have an interim update for the airport plan component, which is a priority for us and for the city, to have that done by December,” said Aaron Qualls, the city’s planning and community development director.

The update to the plan comes in the wake of three zone change requests on land surrounding the Sandpoint Airport. While all three were ultimately approved, council approved a temporary moratorium in July on new requests for up to one year to allow adequate time for the comprehensive planning process.

The updated plan will include a state-required chapter on the airport and its land use. Idaho’s Airport Land Use Guidelines provide six recommended airport land use compatibility zones — runway protection zones, lateral safety zones, critical zones, airport traffic pattern area, airport influence area and impact coordination zone. Council members became familiar with some of these, such as the lateral safety zone, during the recent zone change requests.

The comprehensive plan is a 20-year vision “by and for the community,” Qualls said, that guides major decisions such as where and how the city may grow.

The purpose of the comprehensive plan update is four-fold, he said. First, it is required by state law. It also sets the stage for what can be built in the city and where, provides context for development decisions, and provides a degree of predictably for property owners, businesses, and residents.

“The comprehensive plan is truly comprehensive — it incorporates many elements,” Qualls said, adding that there are 17 required elements per state statute, though the city is not limited to those elements. “The comprehensive plan will also take into account the various master plans we have adopted or are underway.”

There is a lot of data associated with the plan, he said, including population and demographics, and some of the elements include housing and community design, transportation, education, recreation and the airport among others.

“There are many pieces and it requires many voices,” Qualls said of the comprehensive planning process. “For a plan to be successful, it takes extensive public involvement.”

There will be various opportunities in the near future for public involvement, Qualls said, including meetings, surveys, listening sessions and more.

While the airport component will be done before the end of the year, the full comprehensive plan update is expected to be completed and presented to council for adoption in September 2020.

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Mary Malone can be reached by email at mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.