Reminder: Updated draft Near Northwest Area Plan now available for your review!

Over the summer, Near Northwest residents shared feedback on the first public review draft of the Near Northwest Area Plan. For the last few weeks, the planning team has been analyzing this input and updating the draft accordingly. Now a second draft is available! This updated version reflects what we heard from the community and moves us one step closer to a final long-term vision for the neighborhoods of Chaffee Park, Highland, Jefferson Park and Sunnyside.

Use the buttons below to take a look at the updated draft and documents that summarize community engagement and feedback. 

Comments can be made directly on the plan through Monday, November 13. After that, the comment form will continue to be available for feedback and questions. We encourage you to submit comments on the second public review draft early in November to ensure they are incorporated into the draft that will be reviewed by Planning Board and City Council.  

You had a lot to say on the first draft of the plan--here's what we heard

The planning team received input on the first draft plan from comments made directly on the plan document, our online survey and in conversations at more than a dozen community events. Here's a a quick recap:

Engagement led by city staff

• Community Events and Pop-Ups: more than 500 interactions at 18 Meetings/Pop-Ups Attended
• Draft Plan and Survey: 251 respondents 
• Draft Plan Page Views: more than 5,000 views
• Feedback: 800 comments

Engagement led by our community-based "promotoras":

• Surveys: 121 respondents
• Community Canvasing: Focus on Chaffee Park and East Sunnyside, visited areas around schools, supermarkets, rec centers & parks
• Feedback Themes: Affordable housing; access to good-paying jobs; support for businesses; transportation and safe streets; health services.

What's in the draft plan?

After two years of work with community members in Chaffee Park, Highland, Jefferson Park and Sunnyside, the draft of the Near Northwest Area Plan is available for review and feedback. The draft lays out a long-term vision for these neighborhoods that celebrates the “Northside” as an inclusive and diverse area, and ensures that, as it grows and evolves, it remains a place that continues to feel like home.  

Through extensive engagement in public meetings, online surveys, focus groups and conversations with local "promotoras" working across the area, participants expressed a desire to build on the area's longstanding sense of community and belonging through recommendations that:

• help residents build wealth and stay in their neighborhoods long-term
• support local businesses and ensure neighborhood commercial areas that residents have come to depend on and identify with continue to thrive
• ensure access to a variety of housing options
• balance preservation with new construction that's compatible with existing architecture, including both residential areas and small-scale store fronts on historic "street car" corridors
• connect the area through an inter-neighborhood trail network and mobility improvements that prioritize pedestrians and alternative modes of transportation

About the Near Northwest Area Plan