Spokane is in the beginning stages of updating their 20 year Comprehensive Plan. This guiding document sets the vision and path for the city as it tackles issues of land use, transportation, economic development, public health, capital project planning, and more.  The Comprehensive Plan is the foundational document for developing new ordinances and policies to realize the vision it lays out.

Right now the City Planning Department is asking for citizen input into the neighborhood portion of the Comp Plan through a project called Shaping Spokane. Shaping Spokane has three ways for the public to provide input:

1) A short online survey about our neighborhood

2) An interactive map tool to highlight points of interest in the neighborhood

3) A long form survey called “My Neighborhood Story” to provide in-depth information about the neighborhood and its character. This long survey takes 30-45 minutes, but you will be entered in a weekly prize drawing to win things like symphony tickets and gift baskets from local retailers.

The information from these surveys and maps will be used by city staff to develop a profile for each neighborhood to be appended to the new version of the Comprehensive Plan. To see a draft neighborhood profile, click here. In addition to individual neighbor input, the city is asking each neighborhood council to provide input through these tools as well. The SNC Land Use Committee will work to draft a response to My Neighborhood Story that incorporates the goals and features of our existing open space and connectivity plans.

We strongly encourage you to submit comments via the surveys. This is your chance to have your voice heard directly in the city planning process and extol the virtues of the Southgate Neighborhood. The bigger database of answers they have, the more reflective the new Comp Plan will be of our goals and desires. If you have any questions, you can contact shapingspokane@spokanecity.org.