Public meetings to let Center Point community have input on future

By Bethany Adams, For the Tribune

CENTER POINT– On Tuesday, October 11, the City of Center Point and the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham are offering citizens a chance to give their input on the future of the city. The Center Point Comprehensive Development Plan is being updated, and this October will see the first in a series of public meetings designed to let community members have their voices heard.

Funded through the Building Communities Program, The Center Point Comprehensive Development Plan was created in 2005 to guide the future development of housing, commercial space, transportation and more within the city.

“The program is administered through the Regional Planning Commission of Greater Birmingham, who provides federal funding for 80 percent of the project cost and the City of Center Point provides the local government match of 20 percent of the project cost,” Lindsay Puckett, Principal Planner with the RPCGB, said. “For this project, the total project amount is $129,949, with the City of Center Point paying the match of $25,990.”

The original plan outlined strategies for the re-development of commercial space along Center Point Parkway, the addition of public spaces such as Reed-Harvey Park, and the establishment of a town center. In May of 2013, the original plan was updated with a focus on the development of the Center Point Plaza Shopping Center.

October’s meeting will offer residents, business owners, and anyone else concerned with the future of Center Point to hear an intro presentation concerning the update process.

“The first meeting will be a visioning kick-off meeting and is intended to inform the public of the Comprehensive Plan Update, to identify key issues that will need to be addressed and to obtain public feedback regarding future development and community needs,”  Puckett said.

During the meeting, residents will be encouraged to participate in interactive stations designed to gather community comments and concerns. Residents are also encouraged to visit centerpointcomprehensiveplan.com to take a visioning survey and to share their input on the interactive map at communityremarks.com/centerpoint. A second meeting will be held later on in the planning process, which is expected to take nine months to a year.

The Kick-Off Meeting/Open House will be held at Center Point City Hall on October 11 from 6-7 p.m. City Hall is located at 2209 Center Point Parkway. For more information and to read the original plan, visit centerpointcomprehensiveplan.com.