A Shared Direction
The comprehensive plan acts as a compass. It is not a set of step-by-step directions or a forecast of exactly what will happen, but a guide that establishes expectations and keeps policymakers and the community pointed in a shared direction to achieve desired outcomes. It provides the basis for long-term decisions, expenditures and commitments that extend beyond an election cycle. This plan is the primary guiding document for the City of Boulder. Boulder County collaborates on the creation and implementation of the plan for unincorporated areas that are within the Planning Area boundary. The county also maintains the Boulder County Comprehensive Plan, which applies to all unincorporated land in the county.
A Record of Policy
The policies included in the comprehensive plan are reflective of broad community sentiment and establish a baseline of expectations for the next 20 years. They are broad in scope to be responsive to changing community needs and resilient in times of disruption.
A Framework for Decisions
The comprehensive plan will inform future planning efforts, zoning and code updates and development applications that require general consistency with the plan. The plan provides a framework for careful analysis and consideration of tradeoffs when community members, city and county staff and policymakers consider future decisions.
A Way to Measure Progress
The plan is intended to be put into action. It is the link between long-term community values and near-term choices about the future. The plan is a common reference point directing the way forward to implement the community’s vision in a coordinated and connected way.
Plan Adoption and State Compliance
The Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan is jointly adopted by the City of Boulder and Boulder County. As part of the adoption process, public hearings are required and conducted by the approval bodies including the City of Boulder Planning Board and City Council and Boulder County Planning Commission and Board of County Commissioners. Details on which bodies review and approve different types of changes as well as the timing of different types of updates to the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan are outlined in the amendment procedures included in the intergovernmental agreement between the city and county.
The Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan conforms with state regulations for municipal “master plans” as outlined in CRS 31-23-206 and related statutes. Some required elements are provided through more detailed departmental plans and documents that are considered sub-elements of this plan such as subcommunity and area plans, transportation plans, housing plans and water supply plans. The Planning Areas and Future Land Use Maps and related policies describing lands that are eligible for annexation within three miles of the city boundary serve to fulfill the requirements outlined in CRS 31-12-105(e).