Comprehensive plans come in all shapes, sizes, and varieties. Their purpose is to provide communities with information and policies that will guide future planning and community decisions. Comprehensive plans incorporate a twenty-year vision and provide a rational basis for local land use decisions. Because communities vary greatly, the uniqueness of individual comprehensive plans reflects community-specific and locally driven planning processes. While a local government may choose to include additional elements, a comprehensive plan must include AT LEAST all of the below nine elements as defined by the Comprehensive Planning Law.

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• Issues and Opportunities

• Housing

• Transportation

• Utilities and Community Facilities

• Agricultural, Natural and Cultural Resources

• Economic Development

• Intergovernmental Cooperation

• Land Use Implementation