FAQs • Bethlehem, NY • CivicEngage

What topics can a Comprehensive Plan address? What does a Comprehensive Plan actually do?

Comprehensive Plans typically address a wide range of issues that are important to residents and business leaders. Bethlehem’s current Comprehensive Plan provides an overall vision for our hamlets and our town as a whole, with key priorities and strategies for achieving that vision. It provides direction to the Town for investing in transportation improvements and public facilities, revising or creating new zoning regulations, protecting ecologically-sensitive areas, becoming more environmentally sustainable, and recommending issues for further study. Concept plans and other visuals within the Comprehensive Plan help demonstrate ideas and hoped-for outcomes.

Updating Comprehensive Plans allows communities to refresh the overall vision and update priorities and strategies in light of changing conditions, new challenges, and experience implementing the previous plan.

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Comprehensive Plan Update

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1. What is a Comprehensive Plan?: A Comprehensive Plan is a guidance document that sets goals, policies, and priorities for investing in the physical, economic, and environmental future of our Town.

2. What topics can a Comprehensive Plan address? What does a Comprehensive Plan actually do?

3. When was the last Comprehensive Plan created for the Town? Where can I find it?: The most recent Comprehensive Plan was adopted by the Town Board in 2005. It can be downloaded from the Economic Development and Planning Department’s Planning Division web pages at Comprehensive Plan.

4. Why is the Comprehensive Plan being updated?

The 2005 Comprehensive Plan provides a vision up to year 2020, which is just around the corner. As Bethlehem continues to grow, we want to establish our vision for the town over the next 15 to 20 years.

The Update is anticipated to focus more deeply into several issue areas, including transportation and traffic, open space conservation, the character of residential neighborhoods, economic development, and environmental sustainability.

5. Is this the first time the Comprehensive Plan is undergoing an Update?

Yes, this will be our first comprehensive Update. That said, progress reports were completed in 2007 and 2013, so this will not be the first time the Comprehensive Plan has been reviewed. The 2005 Comprehensive Plan recommended that, within 5 to 10 years of its adoption, a progress report be produced to assess the degree to which the plan recommendations had been implemented and to identify possible topics and areas that should be revisited and updated.

6. How long will it take to update the plan? And how can I stay informed and/or participate in the process?

The Update process is expected to take 12-18 months to complete. To stay informed and learn about ways to participate:

Visit and bookmark the Comprehensive Plan Update web page. This website will be the central public portal of information for this initiative.
Make sure to sign up to our “News Flash” to receive updates on community news related to the Comprehensive Plan Update. Go to the “Notify Me” link on most of the Town's web pages and enter your email address or phone number to receive notifications via email or text.
Press releases will be drafted and distributed so that local newsletters can publish timely information for their readers during the course of the initiative.
Future workshops or meetings will be announced on the Town website, in addition to other opportunities for residents to contribute information, opinions, photographs, data, etc.

7. How can I provide opinions, ideas, strategies, and/or information to contribute to this process?: You can share your ideas and more at community forums and by sending emails to BethlehemForward@townofbethlehem.org . We want to hear from you!

8. Who is leading this initiative?: This initiative is being directed by the Planning Department and will be guided by various Town stakeholders, including boards and committees. Through a competitive request for proposal process in the Spring 2019, the Town will hire a consulting firm to prepare the Comprehensive Plan Update.