Anderson groups working to create a city 20-year-plan

Several groups in Anderson are joining together to create a 20-year comprehensive plan for the city.  After the first meeting, IPR’s Thomas Ouellette reports on what changes people say they want to see for Anderson.

More than 700 comments from attendees were recorded for analysis during the community feedback session.

Attendees were presented a large board with three sections where they could voice what they want Anderson to be, barriers they need to overcome and opportunities they hope the city will be able to provide in the future. Participants were given sticky notes to jot down their ideas and stick them to the relevant section.

Officials said common hopes for the city were a redeveloped downtown area and increased resources for the education system.

Common concerns on the other hand were for the rapidly aging population and better access to affordable housing, which is a problem statewide.

Sally DeVoe ran the Madison County Community Foundation for nearly two decades.  She said while she is anxious about the city’s future, she is also hopeful that people of Anderson can overcome any obstacle together.

“I’m concerned about a lot of things in this community but I think we have hope because we have a proximity to major urban areas. We have people who care a lot about this community and we can overcome what challenges we do have.”

Principal & Director of Planning for Rundell Ernstberger Associates, Cynthia Bowen, led the Monday night session. She said that not only was that night’s turnout one of the biggest she has seen, but it was among the most positive as well.

“I think they were very happy that they were being asked about what issues they thought needed to be talked about and what their dreams are for the city of Anderson,” she said. “That was clear by the number of sticky notes that I saw being slapped down on piece of paper after piece of paper.”

Updates to the comprehensive plan are being posted on the Advance Anderson website. 

Officials from the feedback session want to stress that the comprehensive plan is a malleable document that can be adjusted to fit the needs of the people as time goes on.  

There are two more chances for community input this month:

• Thursday, August 8 at 6:30 PM at the Flagship Enterprise Center
• Monday, August 12 at 5:30 PM at the Flagship Enterprise Center

More opportunities for public input are planned throughout the rest of the year.

When the plan is finished it will be submitted to the city council and redevelopment commission for approval.

Thomas Ouellette is our reporter and producer.  Contact him at thomas.ouellette@bsu.edu.