After nearly two years in the works, a draft Plan of Conservation and Development (POCD) will head to a July public hearing for resident feedback.

"We started the process in September 2022, which seems like a century ago," said Planning and Zoning Commission (PZC) Chair Carol Snow at an April 29 meeting of the Board of Selectmen (BOS).

The POCD is an advisory document that provides the blueprint for the town, describing its goals to guide future actions for the next 10 years. While it does not specifically mandate what any commission, department, or ad hoc committee can do, the POCD does provide a list of goals, objectives, policies, and strategies to allow the town to implement a coordinated long-term vision. Connecticut state law mandates that municipal planning commissions periodically prepare or amend and adopt a POCD at least every 10 years. This new draft document tackles this overarching goal in 100 pages.

"It's an incredible piece of work and very well-written," First Selectwoman Peggy Lyons said.

The PZC has been meeting on the first Thursday of each month to work on the new POCD with the assistance of Tyche Planning and Policy Group.

"In the process, we learned that our themes are main things which were vitality and connectivity, resilience and sustainability, opportunity and growth, which became our goals," Snow explained.

PZC Vice Chair Bob Reinhart said the commission considered those dual themes to establish three specific goals, which, according to the draft POCD, "represent what Madison will be in the long-term." The POCD identifies the goals as being a community that "exhibits high vitality and connects people to each other, to our history, and to the natural resources around us;" that works at "sustaining a high quality of life for all and is resilient in the face of current and future challenges," and that is "growing responsibly and offers all residents the opportunity to participate in that growth."

According to Reinhart, establishing those goals allowed the commission to establish seven policies.

"If you think of the policies as strategies for obtaining the three goals that we set forward, then underneath that are subgoals that help you implement the strategy," Reinhart said.

Those policies focus on the natural environment as well as a built environment and include building a community where people can easily connect, bringing people closer to nature, preserving historical and cultural landmarks, improving sustainability, preparing for community resilience, promoting the expansion of commercial and retail businesses, and diversifying the housing stock.

While the POCD draft has been circulated to some 30 stakeholders, including the BOS, Board of Education, Economic Development Commission, the Chamber of Commerce, and Madison Land Conservation Trust, Town Planner Erin Mannix noted that no changes will be made to the draft before it goes to a July 11 public hearing.

"There's a mandatory 65-day referral period before the public hearing," Mannix explained at a May 2 PZC meeting. "Between now and the public hearing, there are no changes to this document."

Snow added that the draft POCD is considered a "public hearing draft."

"We're not going to touch it until the public hearing," Snow said. "We can take lots of comments, feedback, and make notes toward changing it, again, once we get public feedback."

After the hearing, the POCD draft and the feedback gathered will be returned to the PZC for amendments. The revised document will then be sent to the BOS for final approval.

More information, including a copy of the finalized POCD draft, is available at www.madisonct.org/351/Plan-of-Conservation-Development. Mannix noted that the Town will heavily promote the document through its various online channels, and a copy will be posted in the Town Clerk's office.

"Over the next 65 days, it will be everywhere," Mannix said.