OAK RIDGE, Tenn. — Oak Ridge could see some big changes in the coming years. The city is updating its Comprehensive Plan for the first time since 1988.
Wayne Blasius, the city's planning and development director, said the time had arrived for the plan to be updated.
"It certainly was out of date but because there wasn't much happening. It was less significant," he said.
The Comprehensive Plan lays out the blueprint for the future of Oak Ridge. That plan can be used as a guideline for neighborhood planning and projects to fix old infrastructure or build new infrastructure. It can also inform decisions on land usage in the area.
"With more things happening, and many new industries and residential developments on the horizon, it's very important to plan that and be sure that we understand where we're trying to go," Blasius said.
In order to get the community involved in the planning process, the city enlisted the help of ambassadors. These ambassadors go out in the community at different events to inform people about the plan. Vanessa Spratling is one of them.
"Right now we're just starting, but the hope is to get out and help with planning and help with events and encourage the community to be involved in the surveys online," she said.
The city hopes to be able to bring more people into its community. When the city was built it had the capacity to house 75,000 people, but currently, only around 30,000 people live in the city. So there's plenty of room for more.
"We think that there's plenty of room for growth and there's a lot of new industry coming in which will then, hopefully, encourage people that work here to also live here," Blasius said.
Ambassadors and city officials hope that the people in Oak Ridge get excited for the changes to come.
"I'll be in my 70s but I'm looking forward to what Oak Ridge will bring. I know it will enhance the quality of life, I'm looking forward to the development of Oak Ridge," said Spratling.
If you'd like more information on the comprehensive plan you can find it here.