Sandy Springs Wins Award For Next Ten Planning Initiatives

SANDY SPRINGS, GA -- The city of Sandy Springs has been recognized for its Next Ten planning process, which includes an update to its Comprehensive Plan and four small area plans for key locations throughout the city. The city was honored Sept. 28 by the Georgia Planning Association with the Outstanding Planning Process – Large Scale award during its annual fall conference in Columbus.

This award category is the most "comprehensive and holistic of the award categories with a focus on the overall planning process," the city notes. Guidelines to be considered for the honor include comprehensiveness of technical and data analysis, stakeholder and community outreach, documentation and deliverables and positioning for implementation (SIGN UP: Get Patch's Daily Newsletter and Real Time News Alerts. Or, if you have an iPhone, download the free Patch app).

“Leaving our first decade as a city, we struggled with rapidly increasing growth, governed by outdated legacy models," said Sandy Springs Mayor Rusty Paul. "We wanted a plan that was both transformative, guiding managed, quality growth, and fueled by the collective vision of our citizenry. Planning firm, Rhodeside & Harwell, stepped outside the box with us, leading the community on a step-by-step journey toward consensus, creating a plan embraced by the community and one which will help to build a sense of place that is truly and uniquely Sandy Springs."

The award places an emphasis on public involvement, equity, sustainability and technology. To communicate with the community, from sharing information to exploring ideas, Sandy Springs officials embraced both traditional methods and technology. Thenext10.org housed information and documented each step of the planning process. The website also served as a connection between planners and community, facilitating polls, questions, and input forms. An interactive map served as a visual and information resource. Social media was incorporated through a Next Ten Twitter page as well as through the city’s social media channels and website, weaving connections and information.

Mayor Paul added that face-to-face interaction and collaboration was another vital link in the process. The city used traditional open house meetings for group gatherings. The planning team also traveled into the community, showcasing maps and concepts and taking in feedback at festivals and events, as well as through mobile workshops, setting up the Next Ten van at locations in each of the city’s six districts. Meetings were held in coffee shops to boardrooms and included drop-in sessions at city hall, focusing on ease of participation for the city’s various stakeholders.

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“Our residents have always guided future steps for our city, and we went to great lengths to ensure we reached as many people as possible," the mayor continued. "We gathered the Lego blocks of ideas, big and small, and mapped out a vision that was united as a singularly focused, community-wide vision."

At the final public hearing for the Next Ten Comprehensive Plan, there was no dissenting comment provided before the City Council adopted the plan.

“Our community felt heard and input incorporated," Paul added. "Most importantly, the plan we adopted is their vision."

Photo: from left to right are Corey Hull, president, American Planning Association, Georgia Chapter; Jim Summerbell, president-elect, American Planning Association, Georgia Chapter; and Lousia Tovar, urban planner with the city of Sandy Springs. Credit: city of Sandy Springs