Battle Ground city staff are nearing the completion of the city’s 2045 comprehensive plan update as required by the state of Washington.
For Battle Ground Planning Supervisor Sam Crummett, the term “comprehensive” is the keyword to resonate with the community members, as the plan really includes every aspect of a city.
“It includes all of the parts and pieces that are critical for a growing city,” he said. “So that would include things such as planning for our street system, our water and sewer systems. Housing is a big part of this, not just planning for the amount of housing units we need, but the type of housing. Housing affordability is a big issue on people’s minds, so we’ve put a lot of focus into making sure we can include housing for all income brackets in our city.”
As there are a lot of naysayers to growth in north Clark County communities, Crummett had a simple response to those who may be against planning on a larger population.
“Under state law, we cannot shut the door on growth,” he said. “We have to accommodate the growth that is anticipated in our 20-year horizon.”
In the next 20 years, Crummett said the city will need to accommodate approximately 12,000 people. With that estimated accommodation, the city’s population would be in the ballpark of 37,200 total faces within the city limits.
“Of course, that’s a projection,” Crummett said. “So it’s going to be over that, possibly or under that, possibly. But somewhere around that figure is what we’re planning for.”
On Wednesday, Nov. 19, city staff working on the comprehensive plan held an open house at the Battle Ground Event Center for community members to learn more about the project, as well as provide comments. Crummett said many comments during the process of working on the comprehensive plan have been about parks and trails. Crummett said it has been a “top of the list” item for community members. Addressing traffic concerns has also been a major factor in citizen comments, he added.
“I know that traffic is something that people care about and want to be able to get home safely and quickly,” Crummett said.
In general, livability is of huge value to the residents of Battle Ground, Crummett said.
“I think that can translate into a beautiful city, a safe city, a city where you can shop and work and not have to drive to another city to do those things,” he added.
With housing growth being a centerfold item in comprehensive growth plans, commerce may get a back seat in some city’s plans, but for Battle Ground, job growth is taking a front seat with the urban growth boundary expansion, including Dollars Corner for job expansion. From 92nd Avenue and state Route 502 west to Dollars Corner, Crummett said the city envisions growing the employment landscape in that corridor. Crummett said the goal is to continue improving the city's livability so residents can work where they live.
“Ideally, we could recruit employment here and also accommodate our homegrown industries,” Crummett said of labeling land for job growth.
Along with job growth, residents can expect to see the commercial corridors to continue to fill in. But city staff are envisioning pockets of neighborhood commercial, too. The installment of neighborhood commercial — typically a bodega, coffee shop, or non-corporate business — will also promote walkability for Battle Ground, Crummett added.
“The term that we’ve incorporated into our plan update is what are called 20-minute neighborhoods, where you can walk to meet your basic needs within 20 minutes from your home,” he said. “So that would include things like a school or a park or maybe a market, or somewhere to buy some goods.”
