PRESENTER: Presenter
Christopher J. Looney, AICP, Planning Director
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SUBJECT: Title
Update on Envision New Braunfels
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DEPARTMENT: Neighborhood & Community Planning
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COUNCIL DISTRICTS IMPACTED: All
BACKGROUND INFORMATION:
A comprehensive plan is an over-arching, policy document that guides community decision making to reach long-range goals and aspirations of residents. Driven by community-wide citizen and stakeholder input, it informs all other plans communities engage in at different hierarchical levels. Time horizons for comprehensive plans range from 5 to 25 years depending on rate of community change.
New Braunfels’ City Charter requires frequent updates to our comprehensive plan. In August of this year, City Council approved a contract with MIG Inc., to assist staff in the public, community driven effort to update Envision New Braunfels.
ISSUE:
Much has been accomplished since Envision New Braunfels was adopted in 2018, and our community has experienced much change. The City has begun to be impacted by buildout within the city limits reaching approximately 73%, unbuildable floodplain areas notwithstanding. A paradigm shift is required to adjust from traditional greenfield development and sprawl to infill, redevelopment, and adaptive reuse. Ascertaining how to accomplish this while bearing in mind both environmental and fiscal sustainability, and maintaining New Braunfels’ historic resources, culture, and exceptional quality of life will be one of the driving objectives of the plan update.
Preparation for the comprehensive plan update included completing a Land Use Fiscal Analysis (LUFA) which was adopted by City Council in 2024. Envision New Braunfels includes a future land use map with geographic sub-areas and future centers of anticipated activity. The LUFA examines municipal revenues and corresponding costs to deliver services based on existing development patterns and the Future Centers as identified in Envision New Braunfels. The data in the LUFA will be utilized to help define, clarify, and inform recommended updates to the future land use map and overall comprehensive plan; to implement land use and infrastructure policies that support an approach to development and redevelopment that is resilient, equitable, fiscally sustainable, and data-driven; and to build an informed public input process for the comprehensive plan update.
The comprehensive plan update will build upon the current plan and its successes with the following:
• Public outreach to obtain the long-range vision and aspirations of our community residents
• Recording accomplishments and identifying new or updated goals and actions
• Using the Land Use Fiscal Analysis, other plans and studies completed since the comprehensive plan adoption, and a capacity and demand analysis to inform data-driven updates to the Future Land Use Map
• Scenario modeling and evaluation
• Creating a detailed, milestone-driven, community-wide implementation strategy
Part of the initial data gathering for the update includes a questionnaire for our residents. We are gathering their input on their thoughts about the current goals in Envision New Braunfels, and what types of “places” (land uses and intensities) they would like to see in different parts of town. Their feedback will be a guide to developing the draft Place Types for consideration for the updated Future Land Use Map. The questionnaire will conclude on December 12th. We will also have an initial open house at the Westside Library on December 11th for those who wish to learn more and provide their input in person.
STRATEGIC PLAN REFERENCE:
☐Economic Mobility ☐Enhanced Connectivity ☒Community Identity
☐Organizational Excellence ☐Community Well-Being ☐N/A
• Community Identity: Initiate the update to Envision New Braunfels, the City’s comprehensive plan, and use the Land Use Fiscal Analysis to bring a data-driven element to the Future Land Use Map.
FISCAL IMPACT:
Land Use Fiscal Analysis input into the Comprehensive Plan update will be as noted above.
Recommendation
RECOMMENDATION:
N/A
RESOURCE LINKS:
Envision New Braunfels, LUFA, etc:
<https://www.newbraunfels.gov/3454/Comprehensive-Planning>
Community Questionnaire:
English:
<https://bit.ly/NewBraunfelsCompPlan>
Spanish:
<https://bit.ly/PlanIntegraldeNewBraunfels>