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IntroductionDRAFT 1-1 <br />Chapter 1. SettING the <br />StaGe <br />NeW BrIGhtON 2040 <br />A Comprehensive Plan is a tool used to guide the physical and socio-economic <br />change within a community. It is intended to be broad in scope while establishing <br />general objectives and policies for such elements as land use, surface water <br />management, public infrastructure (sewer and water supply systems), transportation, <br />housing, redevelopment, park and open space, and environmental protection. A <br />comprehensive plan is visionary and general, and is to be used to guide future action <br />by the City. City actions, such as the Zoning Ordinance and Capital Improvement <br />Plans, implement the goals and vision of the comprehensive plan. <br />The primary users of the comprehensive plan are the City Council, Planning <br />Commission, and City Staff who must use the plan to guide the day-to-day decisions <br />of local government. But the plan is intended for everyone, including New Brighton <br />residents, business owners, and developers. Public participation through a series of <br />neighborhood meetings and town meetings helped make the comprehensive plan <br />what it is. Inclusive participation of all residents (current and future) is of critical <br />importance to future planning endeavors as well. <br />aUthOrItY tO pLaN <br />In 1976 under the Minnesota Land Planning Act (MLPA), communities in the <br />Metropolitan Area were required to develop a Comprehensive Plan to address the <br />interdependence of local units of government within the Twin Cities Metropolitan <br />Area. The MLPA requires the adoption of coordinated plans and programs in order <br />to “…protect the health, safety, and welfare of the general public…and to ensure <br />coordinated, orderly, and economic development.” This legislation gave the local <br />planning commission the authority to prepare the plan and submit it to the governing <br />council for approval and adoption. In preparing the plan, the planning commission is <br />required to work with other City agencies, adjacent communities, school districts, and <br />counties in order to ensure coordinated regional planning. A 1995 amendment to the <br />MLPA required the Metropolitan Council to prepare a comprehensive development <br />guide for the metropolitan area. <br />New Brighton <br />2040