Tupelo steering committee members excited for comprehensive plan update
Apr. 28—TUPELO — Discussions on updating the All-America City's guiding document have begun in earnest, with the first closed-door meeting of the steering committee in the rearview mirror and the second on the horizon.
Comprising over 30 community members, the steering committee will help Tupelo city officials create its comprehensive plan, which is a document that details the city's projected growth over 15 years and provides a framework for all city ordinances.
"Everybody is very enthused," said City Planner Jenny Savely, who is taking point on updating the city's comprehensive plan. "There are a lot of good ideas already. We have assembled a fantastic team. ... They realize, as a city that of our size, we are constantly trying to find creative solutions for old problems."
The city's current comprehensive plan will expire in 2025, setting a mid-year 2024 deadline for the steering committee to finish its work. The group will meet monthly, breaking into subcommittees to tackle pertinent topics. These include housing, quality of life, community engagement, economic development and community development.
Along with committee members, city of Tupelo department heads and officials will also attend these meetings. Tupelo Downtown Main Street Association Director Lucia Randle is part of the community development subcommittee. She said the first meeting the committee had in April was very productive and praised all those involved.
Savely said the committee will work with a consultant to complete a study and to make the final draft of the comprehensive plan proposal.
Steering committee meetings, set for the second week of each month, are closed to the public. City officials said there will not be a quorum of elected officials in attendance at any meeting.
Keep Tupelo Beautiful Director Katheryn Rhea is on the steering committee and part of the Quality of Life subcommittee. She said she is proud to help shape the city of Tupelo's future.
Rhea said she is pleased with the diversity of thought, race and background among committee members.
"I think that they've come up with a great group that will bring great ideas to the table," she said. "I'm optimistic about the conversations that will come."
Rhea also encouraged residents to reach out to steering committee members to offer suggestions for changes that would make life in Tupelo better.
"It is a time to brainstorm wild dreams and see what sticks," she said. "I would like to see specific, obtainable things in the plan and the plan to obtain those things.... I would actually like to see the administration take what the committee comes up with and figure out how to make these things happen."
After the years-long project is finalized, the Tupelo City Council will vote to adopt the plan. That should happen sometime around June 2024.
Before that vote, the city will include multiple work sessions and public hearings, giving citizens and the council ample time to review the document and make adjustments.
