Comprehensive Plan

The purpose of the Comprehensive Plan is to establish a vision for how the community wants to grow and develop over a twenty-year horizon.  The Comprehensive Plan establishes a vision for how the community wants to grow and develop over the next 20 years.  It is a guide for all residents, property owners, developers and decision makers as to the anticipated use of the property in the future and the key trends, challenges and opportunities impacting life in Champaign.  It is a policy document that is a precursor to the City’s Zoning Ordinance.  The Comprehensive Plan acts as an “umbrella plan” with a long-range focus and somewhat general recommendations.  Specific focus area and neighborhood plans, called Elements of the Comprehensive Plan, address specific details and targeted implementation tasks that help to realize the vision established in the Comprehensive Plan.  These are found on the Focus Area and Neighborhood Plan page.

Functions of a Comprehensive Plan:

  • Establishes a community vision
  • Anticipates the future needs of the community
  • Presents the strategy for growing in a responsible and sustainable manner.

Champaign Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan 

Key Themes of Champaign Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan:

  1. Build a “Complete Community.”  A Complete Community is one that accommodates the needs of all residents and users in a way that simplifies their everyday lives.  There are three focus areas, Complete Neighborhoods, Complete Public Infrastructure and Complete Streets.  See the Introduction Chapter for more information.
  2. Address changing housing needs.  Champaign’s population is growing and also changing.  The median age has and number of intergenerational households continues to increase, while wages remain stagnant.  A growing number of residents live alone or with roommates rather than traditional family units and the population continues to diversify.  Meanwhile, an overwhelming majority of homes are single-family detached homes or large apartment complexes over 8 units,.  Increasing housing choices through missing middle housing, or housing of 2-8 units, is one approach that can better align local housing stock with the community demographics.  This ensures residents have attainable options to meet their needs over the course of their lifetime.

Existing Conditions Analysis:

To effectively realize the vision of the Champaign Tomorrow Comprehensive Plan in 2040, analyzing existing conditions helps identify emerging trends and issues in need of consideration.

Additional Resources:

History of Planning in Champaign

The City of Champaign has a long history of City Planning, going back to the City’s first plan in 1926.  The City has had a total of seven Comprehensive Plans, including the current plan.  See page 5 of the Introduction Chapter for more information.  A collection of previous Comprehensive Plans can be found below:

 

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