Months of deliberation will be on full display Thursday, along with an opportunity for citizens to make their voices heard about road development in the city.
City of Elizabethton officials announced the public is invited to participate in the Major Road & Thoroughfare Plan public comment open house on Thursday, Aug. 31, at the Elizabethton/Carter County Public Library.
From 4 to 6:30 p.m., residents are invited to visit and give comments and opinions about the city’s proposed plan. With an open house format, Director of Planning and Development Director Jon Hartman said that residents can stay for the entirety or visit for a quick comment, to make sure their voices are heard.
Having events like Thursday are key for development, Hartman stated, and gauging feedback from what citizens want to see in the community. Representatives from the city, including the subcommittee that developed the plan, will be in attendance. The public will also have the opportunity to receive more information on street planning, road classifications and what the preliminary plan has in store for development over the next 10 to 20 years.
Different projects are currently pegged in the preliminary plan, according to Hartman. Preliminary ideas include road-widening for Milligan Highway and work on Southside Road, including linking the road to Mary Patton Highway.
While the subcommittee has spent deliberating ideas, Hartman added the ability to have public forums will be vital moving forward with the plan’s implementation over the years.
“That’s the biggest reason behind having these public forums,” Hartman said. “This gives the public an opportunity to view the plan, make comments, suggestions and even recommend other ideas.”
Following the public forum, the subcommittee will reconvene and delve through the information obtained and look at either adding or reducing items. The plan would then move to the Regional Planning Commission with another public forum scheduled to take place in the future.