The Woodland Park Planning Commission finished its chapter-by-chapter review of the Envision Woodland Park 2030 comprehensive plan in a Sept. 9 work session.

The commissioners’ recommendations will be incorporated into the final document by Kristy Brown, a representative of Logan Simpson, who has been taking notes at each review session.

Planning Director Sally Riley said the final draft will be sent out later this month and will be ready for adoption by the planning commission on Oct. 14, and will be ready for endorsement by the Woodland Park City Council on Oct. 21.

Chapter 1, the “Introduction,” acknowledges volunteers and public participation and includes the city’s vision and an executive summary. It has maps and a short history of Woodland Park and emphasizes that the city has always been a retail and service center for Teller County and not just a tourist destination.

It also explains that state statute requires planning commissions to update city master or comprehensive plans every 10 years.

Chapter 2, “Land Use and Growth,” has a vision of “Ensuring the City provides sustainable and managed growth that supports healthy places to live, work, play, and learn.”

For Woodland Park, sustainable and managed growth means balancing growth with the city’s ability to provide water. The chapter includes population trends based on 2010 and 2020 U.S. Census data. Woodland Park’s population increased by 700 people in the past decade. There was a decline in the 45-54 age group and an increase in the 60-74 age group. Other age groups have remained steady. The chapter’s goal is to “Provide opportunities for growth and development while preserving community and environmental quality.”

Objectives include making sure new development fits the intent of the comprehensive-plan map and uses resources efficiently. It also suggests evaluating city regulations and requirements to ensure that development optimizes positive impacts and minimizes negative impacts while providing diverse neighborhoods.

The chapter also includes an update to the city’s annexation policies. “The city must be able to provide services to annexed properties,” Riley said.

One aspect of future-land use is the potential addition of a U.S. 24 reliever route. City planners would make sure no commercial growth takes place along the route that could draw business away from the city center. “We will work closely with the county to avoid this kind of development,” Riley said.

The chapter also includes the three-mile plan, which covers growth within a threemile radius of the city’s center. In Woodland Park’s case, areas of both Teller County and El Paso County are located