Columbus’s upcoming Comprehensive Plan maybe one of the most important functions of the city – determining what the city will look like in 20 years and how we will get there. A city Comprehensive Plan determines the public policy priorities of the city and how city services and government monetary resources will be distributed in our community. Are you tired of the exodus of retail and restaurants from this area, or the flight of population to the north and to adjoining counties? This exodus and flight actually lessens the human resources of our community and the tax receipts from property and sales tax as super-suburbanization creeps further and further north, east and west to neighboring communities. The result is a strain on city resources and a never ending demand for newer and larger infrastructure leading to somewhere else. Aged and failing infrastructure is left behind in the wake of the population patterns moving away from the city’s core. These unfortunate realities are not unique to Columbus, Georgia. Many cities have gone down this road of unwittingly neglecting its in-town infrastructure, neighborhoods and economy. But many of those communities have reversed their down-turning spiral through changing their public policy focus and the Comprehensive Planning for their city to encourage in-town growth.
We have the opportunity now to request that Columbus make in-town renewal a public policy priority. That the city set as its objective investment in our in-town infrastructure with a goal of bringing population (particularly that population growth expected from BRAC and Aflac expansion and the spin-off growth from the new Kia plant) into our in-town communities. Such a public policy goal increases potential revenue to the city to fund the public works necessary to sustain a vibrant in-town living area.
We hope you will read MidTown’s suggested considerations for the city’s Comprehensive Plan listed below and record your thoughts and preferences for a new Comprehensive Plan at Columbus Visioning Survey (2028 Comprehensive Plan). We also invite you to come to the city’s Public Visioning Workshops to be held in MidTown: Monday, January 28th (6:00- 8:00 p.m.) at Wynnton Arts Academy Cafeteria; and Tuesday January 29th (6:00 – 8:00 p.m.) at Clubview Elementary Cafeteria.
MidTown Considerations for Comprehensive Plan
1) The city should formally adopt the MidTown Project Plan and its 25 year plan for revitalizing MidTown Columbus as part of the city’s Comprehensive Plan. The Columbus South and Uptown, Inc. revitalization plans should also be incorporated into the Columbus’ Comprehensive plan.
2) The city should adopt an Overlay District (more flexible building codes tailored to foster redevelopment of smaller land lots typically found in in-town areas) to encourage redevelopment along Wynnton Road from Peacock Avenue to Hilton Avenue.
3) The city should adopt a three-lane road improvement design for Buena Vista Road from Lockwood Avenue to Illges Road in order to encourage residential and neighborhood retail development along the Buena Vista Road corridor.
4) Adopt a policy to encourage in-town redevelopment and in-town living.
5) Adopt a policy to reclaim and redevelop vacant, abandoned or blighted properties in in-town communities. Re-establish Columbus’ Land Bank Committee to acquire and redevelop tax indebted or otherwise abandon properties in in-town areas.
6) Declare a policy and develop a plan to capture for Muscogee County a significant percentage of anticipated regional population growth from BRAC, Kia, and Aflac. Stop subsidizing super-suburbanization that ultimately encourages population to move to neighboring counties like Harris, Talbot, Lee and Russell counties, and that encourages the inefficient and reckless consumption of our dwindling rural/greenspace land.
7) Create a vibrant in-town community that encourages the retention and attraction of young professionals to Columbus.
8) Repair existing, but aging and failing, infrastructure in in-town communities because said infrastructure inhibits growth and investment and decreases the quality of life.
9) Combat the economic, racial and age segregation of our neighborhoods and schools through the redevelopment of our highly integrated in-town areas and through better planning.
10) Attract additional experienced, broadminded planning and development staff, qualified to negotiate public funding and amenities with state or federal entities, and otherwise qualified to structure creative solutions to planning or project impediments. Reduce outside consulting fees and increase information continuity and efficiency by maintaining qualified city staff. Support greater emphasis on the importance of the city's planning department and provide additional resources for the city's planning function.
11) Establish a goal of bringing Columbus up to at least the national average of 11.5% park space. Build parks and pocket parks through out our in-town areas to increase our quality of life and increase in-town population.
12) Recognize historic districts, historic structures and landmarks as economic resources to encourage population and business recruitment, and to increase visitor tourism and our quality of life.
13) Update and strengthen our Tree Ordinance, Buffer Ordinance and Sign Ordinance to improve Columbus’ quality of life and competitiveness for population and business recruitment.
14) Increase staff to bring about effective code enforcement.
15) Broaden city and Chamber economic development focus to include service businesses, such as financial services and other type business that encourage young professional populations, as opposed to such a heavy industrial development focus.
16) Emphasis heritage tourism as a major economic development initiative.
17) Recognize that crime is fought not only by increased public safety resources, but through reinvigorated neighborhoods, a fair distribution of public resources and the creation of a sense of community and pride.
18) Set as an immediate priority a resolution to our land fill shortage.
12) Recognize historic districts, historic structures and landmarks as economic resources to encourage population and business recruitment, and to increase visitor tourism and our quality of life.
13) Update and strengthen our Tree Ordinance, Buffer Ordinance and Sign Ordinance to improve Columbus’ quality of life and competitiveness for population and business recruitment.
14) Increase staff to bring about effective code enforcement.
15) Broaden city and Chamber economic development focus to include service businesses, such as financial services and other type business that encourage young professional populations, as opposed to such a heavy industrial development focus.
16) Emphasis heritage tourism as a major economic development initiative.
17) Recognize that crime is fought not only by increased public safety resources, but through reinvigorated neighborhoods, a fair distribution of public resources and the creation of a sense of community and pride.
18) Set as an immediate priority a resolution to our land fill shortage.
