As Jerome Township officials work toward an update of their comprehensive plan, they are also working to ensure it stays up-to-date in the future.
“It really is kind of a fluid thing,” Trustee Megan Sloat said.
Earlier this year, the township contracted with consulting firm MKSK to lead an update of the comprehensive plan, which details the vision for the future of the township, including land use. It is separate from the zoning code.
The township’s current comprehensive plan was adopted in 2008.
Township Administrator Brandon Standley said he has been asked by several residents if Jerome should implement a requirement to update its comprehensive plan every few years. He said he believes other nearby municipalities have similar standards.
Sloat said, throughout her time on the Board of Trustees, she has discussed the matter with staff from the Logan-Union-Champaign Regional Planning Commission (LUC).
She said LUC officials recommended against “putting it on a stopwatch.”
Because areas develop and change at different paces, Sloat said comprehensive plans do not operate on a strict time schedule. Instead, she said it is “more of a recognition when things change.”
“It’s something we use all the time, so we’ll know (when it needs to be updated),” Standley agreed.
Trustee Chair Wezlynn Davis said she feels there should be “nothing more than a committee to review” the comprehensive plan every so often.
Davis said it could be comprised of township staff, trustees or resident representatives.
Sloat agreed, adding that the group “could meet every couple years.”
Trustee Barry Adler shared a similar opinion.
He said he feels strict requirements to update the comprehensive plan could be restrictive.
Instead, Adler said he would like to see a policy that requires a review of the comprehensive plan every five years, even if it is just completed by the township administrator and discussed with the Board of Trustees.
He said he would ideally like to avoid going as long between updates as the township has between its most recent plan – 2024 will mark 16 years.
Sloat noted that the period of time between updates was motivated in part by finances, but she feels it was largely because the plan served its purpose until officials recently saw a need for updates.
“It wasn’t like there were major problems and we sat on it,” she said, adding that the plan is being updated, not “totally redone.”
Standley agreed that the 2008 plan provides “the blueprint” for updates that are underway.
In other business:
– As part of the township’s rebranding project, Standley said options are narrowed down to “really one choice” that the design firm is “tweaking to look at a couple different versions.”
In September, the board approved a contract with Slagle Design to complete design services, including creating a new logo and “brand identity” for the township.
Two years ago, the township conducted an online survey asking residents whether they would prefer new branding focus on Jerome’s “historical heritage” or “where we’re going in the future,” Sloat previously explained.
Between 63% and 64% favored the historic option, which Sloat said Slagle would incorporate into final designs.
Standley said he feels the rebranding package should be ready for adoption at the township’s next regular meeting, Dec. 19.
– The Jerome Township Division of Fire is hosting a toy drive for children in need.
There will be a drive-thru drop-off for new, unwrapped toys in the TJ Maxx parking lot of the Dublin Green shopping Center on Saturday, Dec. 9 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Donuts and hot chocolate will be given to those who donate toys.
Station 210, 9689 U.S. 42, and Station 211, 11840 Ewing Road, will also toy collection bins available through Dec. 18.