SPANISH FORT, Ala.—A resident took exception during Monday’s informal Planning Commission work session to the city’s drafting of a long-awaited Comprehensive Plan.

Nancy Milford, who participated in the community charrette held more than two years ago, said she feels the commission has not given residents enough of a voice in the drafting of the “living” document intended to set the tone, design and regulations for the city’s short- and long-term growth.

“The Comprehensive Plan is very important to me. I wanted to be a part of that discussion,” said Milford, who lives in Spanish Fort and serves as staff planner for the city of Fairhope.

“You’ve got a lot of issues (in Spanish Fort) with urban sprawl…This is a document that citizens should be involved in, and this community has changed a lot since you held the last charrette,” she said.

A public hearing to voice support or concerns about the plan has been scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Jan. 10, the next regularly scheduled commission meeting at the Gathering Place.

Milford said she worries that the final product is more reflective of what city leaders want than what the community has requested and questioned why repeated drafts were not made more accessible to the public throughout the process.

Commissioners and City Attorney David Conner countered, however, that in addition to the public charrette and pending public hearing, any member of the community was welcome to attend any work sessions at which the document was discussed.

See the rest of this story in the Dec. 31 edition of The Bulletin.

Editor's Note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated Nancy Milford is a city planner with the city of Fairhope. She is a staff planner.