Time to plan for our future

Have you ever tried to put together a desk or some other complicated piece without using the instructions?

It starts out easy enough, but about mid-way through there usually seems to be extra or missing pieces.

That seems to be what we're experiencing in Campbellsville and Taylor County.

We need some instructions - more specifically, a plan for where we're headed. If we don't have an idea of where we're going, how are we going to get there?

First of all, without countywide planning and zoning, there can be no plans of any sort for the county. Even if there was a plan, there's no way to enforce it without zoning laws.

During his first term in office, Taylor County Judge/Executive Eddie Rogers attempted to introduce the idea after some residents in the Shiloh Road area were unhappy when a business located in their neighborhood. But magistrates didn't pursue it.

The City of Campbellsville does have planning and zoning and it does have a comprehensive plan. It's required by law and must be reviewed every five years.

The plan was last revised in December 2006. That means 2011 is the year for another review.

A look through its 70-plus pages, however, mostly gives one a precise recitation of the history, layout and demographics of the city.

Chapter 1 is the introduction, Chapter 2 focuses on history and historic preservation, Chapter 3 lists physical resources and national environment, Chapter 4 is demographics, Chapter 5 is economic conditions, Chapter 6 focuses on transportation, Chapter 7 is housing, Chapter 8 community facilities and Chapter 9 is about land use.

Chapter 10 of the plan, "Findings, Observations and Recommendations," however, is blank.

One would assume that this chapter would focus on plans for the future, but it doesn't.

In fact, the entire plan really includes no specifics at all.

Why shouldn't we demand that a plan be provided for our community? In what part of town do we want future businesses to locate? Where would we want more apartment complexes to be? What about neighborhoods with families and young children? Just exactly what plans do we have for our community's future?

A drive through Danville and Boyle County shows a progressive community that has planned for its future. Why can't we do something similar?

With a 5.2 percent growth in our city population and a 4.5 percent growth in our county population since 2002, as the U.S. Census Bureau estimates, there needs to be a plan for where we're headed.

A decade ago, Census figures showed that there were 9,769 workers in Taylor County. But 2,281 of them drove out of town to their jobs.

Wouldn't it be best to put those 2,000-plus people to work in our own community?

We must plan for our growing population, job growth, infrastructure and expansion, but we should also evaluate our community honestly as well as promote our positive aspects, of which there are many - Green River Lake, good public and private schools, a university, historical sites and much more.

There should be public input and perhaps even the expertise of a third party.

We certainly don't want to end up with missing pieces of our community - or have extra pieces going unused.

Our mayor and judge/executive as well as magistrates and council members promised to work with each other during their recent election campaigns. Implementing a comprehensive strategic plan to benefit all would be a great place to start.