Carter Infinger

Guest columnist

We are nearing the end of what we are calling Blueprint Bryan 2045. This is the update to Bryan County’s Comprehensive Plan, a document that lays out the character areas and future land use for the County. The Comprehensive Plan is updated every five years, which gives community members and other stakeholders a regular opportunity to share their vision of the County for the long-term. Bryan County is growing.

The influx of new industry with high paying jobs will certainly drive more growth, but even before that, we were the fastest growing county in Georgia because of our proximity to Savannah, Fort Stewart, the port and the Georgia coast.

This process started over a year ago with data gathering, to include a review of updated census data, to help inform on the changing conditions of the county. Following the data gathering, the county hosted open houses, conducted surveys, and collected other community input to determine the overall wants and needs of the community. This input included not only where citizens wanted to see commercial, residential, and industrial growth, but also their priorities for better living.

The largest concerns were schools, traffic, conservation of green space, and recreation. This input is one of the drivers of projects such as the Bryan County Fisherman’s Co-op park project and safety improvements on Highway 280.

Based on feedback, GMC, the consultant selected to oversee the plan, and a steering committee comprised of Bryan County citizens, have worked since Fall of 2022 to develop an updated plan. The first draft elements of that plan will be available to the public on May 23, at the Board of Education meeting room in Black Creek from 5-7 p.m. and again on May 24 at the Richmond Hill administration building meeting room from 5-7 p.m. Brief presentations will be made at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. on both evenings, followed by interactive exercises in which the public can participate. The May 24 meeting will be streamed and recorded on the County’s Facebook and YouTube pages. Citizens that are in person are asked again to give their input at these meetings.

The final steps of this process are adoption of the plan by the Bryan County Board of Commissioners and a review by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs to ensure that it meets all of their requirements. This important process will guide our planning and zoning decisions for the next five years, when we will repeat the steps over again with the most updated data and citizen input.

The most up to date information can be found on the BryanCountyGa.org website under Community Development, including contacts to find out more information.

Please attend the open houses and give your feedback on what you want to see in your community and do the same again in five years. I thank you for allowing me to be your chairman to oversee responsible growth in Bryan County. Let’s continue to work together in making Bryan County a great place to live.

Infinger is chairman of the Bryan County Board of Commissioners.