Arlington will hire Moore Iacofano Goltsman as consultants in its update to the city’s comprehensive plan, the council decided Tuesday night.
City council members voted unanimously to approve hiring MIG, a company from Berkeley, California, for $640,000. Andrew Piel, council member for District 4, was absent for the meeting and the vote.
MIG consulting helps cities with long-term planning. It has a heavy focus on inclusion, walkability and pedestrian street use, safety and integrating existing ecology into plans for a city’s future.
The original timeline for the comprehensive plan saw the city council hiring a consultant in October, but the council decided to table the item until Tuesday night’s meeting.
John Chapman, the long-range planning manager for the city, previously told KERA News that hiring MIG opens the door to other necessary steps. The most important, he said, is public input.
"We just want to focus on ensuring that this plan is going to create a future for Arlington that represents everyone," Chapman told KERA News. "The overarching goal is going to be transforming the awareness of this plan into concrete action. ... It's very important to hear not just the positives but the negatives."
And with something like a comprehensive plan, Chapman said it's especially important to have input from people all across the community, not just those who typically attend planning and zoning committee meetings or city council meetings. Consultants will assist with contacting some of the folks who can be difficult to reach.
"We know and understand who we will hear from, but we need to hear from those who we don't normally hear from," Chapman said. "We'll be working with the consultants, whoever is selected, and really formulating a plan as to how to reach community members that are traditionally left out of the planning process and how to reach them and get their feedback."
Running out of space
The last time the city evaluated its long-term plan and made adjustments was in 2015. The plan made efforts to address the shrinking open and developable land in the city, but as Arlington nears build-out — meaning no space for new development — figuring out how to accommodate for growth is a top priority.
The city has already started efforts to redevelop land currently home to aging, abandoned or dilapidated buildings. New construction in the Entertainment District will already see new housing available starting in January, with the One Rangers Way luxury apartments across the street from Choctaw Stadium.
Mayor Jim Ross said in his State of the City address last month that the city will also be looking for opportunities to connect the Entertainment District and Downtown Arlington, making it walkable and introducing new development for business and housing in the space between the two.
Other development, like a local company taking over a plot of land intended for a mosque but abandoned in 2015 to build a new shopping center. That shopping center will connect nearby neighborhoods and an existing trail.
