Empire Village Master Plan Project Overview
The Village of Empire Planning Commission is working on an important project that will help to shape the village's future planning: an update to the Village Master Plan. This project will update the 2019 plan, ensuring that future growth and development align with the needs and desires of its residents.
The Empire Village Planning Commission developed the first master plan in 2012. In 2019, the Empire Village Council approved a complete revision of that plan. In September 2020, an addendum related to Coastal Resilience Management was included in the Plan.
In January 2024, the Planning Commission began discussing the 2019 plan and the 5-year review process. Several options were available to consider:
1. Prepare an amendment to an existing plan
2. Extend an existing plan to be effective at a later date
3. Work on an amendment to a sub-plan (a plan or part of a plan)
4. Amend an existing plan involving only grammatical, typographical, and editorial changes.
In February 2024, the Planning Commission sent out the required notifications regarding the decision to prepare an amendment to the existing plan, per the Michigan Planning and Enabling Act. The notice was also posted on the Village website.
During this time, the Village Council was actively engaged with a development firm, Renovare Development, to assist with a Site Feasibility Analysis for a new office in the Village. After initiating that Scope of Work with Renovare, the Village purchased a site for the new Village Office. At that time, the Planning Commission needed additional funding for professional assistance for the Master Plan update. The new office team (three members of the Village Council) pitched the idea of revising the original scope of work from Site Feasibility Analysis to focus on two pressing issues for the Village:
1. A series of workshops for the Village Council and the Planning Commission on development tools at their disposal in protecting the Village's interests and offering developers insight into potential development opportunities in the Village.
2. Updating the Master Plan with experts in the field.
This reallocation of funding offered the Village and its residents significant added value: The Village would benefit from detailed site constraint plans and three site feasibility plans (something the PC and the Village Council could never do independently). Upon completion of the education sessions, the Village will be better positioned to work with developers and leverage federal or state funding sources. In addition, the PC would have adequate funding to update and align the Master Plan with other Village plans and the new tools available for economic development or growth.
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