REGIONAL PLANNING COMMISSION
DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY AND LAND USE PLAN
The Fairfield County Planning Steering Committee is pleased to present to the officials and citizens of the County the Fairfield County Development Strategy and Land Use Plan. This Plan is a major accomplishment of regional collaboration between local governments as well as those agencies responsible for development within the County. The Plan was prepared in response to a directive from the Fairfield County Regional Planning Commission who, with support and funding by the Fairfield County Board of Commissioners, initiated the process. The Plan’s recommendations can be summarized in three themes: Managing Growth, Fostering Stewardship, and Investing Wisely. Accomplishment of these ideals will permit Fairfield County to accommodate continued growth, thereby reaping the benefits of economic prosperity while retaining the charm and inherent attractiveness so important to the citizens of the County.
The Plan has two objectives; first, to provide, for the first time, an overall planning and policy ethic for Fairfield County identifying goals, policies, and objectives for the future of the County. In this way, the Plan provides a vision of what the County could be and, as such, serves as a benchmark for guiding planning related decisions and as a point of reference for more detailed plan implementation action by responsible officials and agencies.
Second, the Plan provides a broad framework for local municipalities and townships when evaluating and coordinating local plans, policies, and goals. The Plan serves as the focal point for discussion among those interested in the future of the County. The Plan should be subject to continuous examination and testing, for if the Plan is to achieve its defined Goals and Objectives, it will require local action and citizen support. It is intended that existing local plans and policies will be modified, where appropriate, reflecting the County’s development ethic.
The Plan was unanimously approved by the Steering Committee on April 17, 2001 and is hereby transmitted with supporting documentation to the Regional Planning Commission for its consideration and action. We hope that, following review, the Plan will be formally accepted. Following the Regional Planning Commission’s action, portions of the Plan will need to be transmitted to the County’s municipalities and townships for appropriate action.
It is important to note that the Fairfield County Development Strategy and Land Use Plan should not be viewed as an end but rather as the beginning of what must be a comprehensive, continuous, and coordinated effort to develop practical guidelines aimed at improving both the living and working conditions in Fairfield County.
2009 ACTIVE TRANSPORTATION PLAN
The Fairfield County Regional Planning Commission worked in conjunction with the Mid Ohio Regional Planning Commission to update Fairfield County's Master Plan. The update, referred to as the Fairfield County Active Transportation and Open Space Plan (Fairfield County Plan), follows three developments that have occurred in Fairfield County; publication of the Fairfield County Development Strategy and Land Use Plan, a Healthy and Smart Development project from the Fairfield County Health Department, Community Health Development and two applications to the Safe Routes to School Program. Significant events are occurring in Fairfield County that further drives this plan; the City of Lancaster comprehensive bike trail, the City of Pickerington’s trail along Diley Road, and the City of Pickerington’s Comprehensive Bikeway Plan.
View the 2009 Active Transportation Plan
Rolling Forward
2013 Rolling Forward prepared by the Fairfield County Active Transportation Committee
Thoroughfare Plan: The purpose of a Thoroughfare Plan is to, in a logical way, create a vision of the future roadway network in the County. The Plan classifies each roadway in the County based on its function (mobility vs. access). Some roadways will provide for through traffic, some will serve primarily for access to properties, and some will serve a combination of both. Roadways in the County are classified as one of the following:
- Principal Arterial
- Minor Arterial
- Major Collector
- Minor Collector
- Local Road
At the highest level of roads in the County are arterials. They include those classes of highways emphasizing a high level of mobility for the through movement of traffic. The highest classes of arterials, interstates and freeways, are limited access to allow for the free flow of traffic.
At the lowest level are local streets and roads. Their primary function is to provide land access. Travel speeds, distances and volumes are generally low, and through traffic is usually discouraged.
Between these two extremes are the collectors whose name describes their function. They collect traffic from the lower facilities and distribute it to be higher. Collectors provide both mobility and land access. Generally, trip lengths, speeds and volumes are moderate.
PLAN UPDATE: ELECTION HOUSE ROAD - US 33A
In 2009 an update to the thoroughfare plan was adopted by the Regional Planning Commission. Map of the updates.
FAIRFIELD COUNTY UPDATE TO THE 2002 DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY AND LAND USE PLAN
The Land Use Plan in and of itself is a long-range plan used to guide growth, revitalization and preservation efforts throughout Fairfield County. The update is a necessary step to plan appropriately given the changes in Fairfield County in the last 20 years, in addition to the estimated growth in the Columbus metropolitan region and Fairfield County in general.
With the input of public residents throughout the County and a stakeholder committee comprised of the County’s most informed and devoted individuals, the plan recognizes the public’s desire for revitalization and preservation while understanding the opportunities that will derive from collective successes of all communities with the Columbus Region over the next 20 years.
