Politics

MountainTrue is hosting a community meeting at 5:30 p.m. Monday at the Hola Cultural Center in Jackson Park to talk about Henderson County's 2045 comprehensive plan, take questions and discuss ways advocates for land conservation want to strengthen it.

Currently under a paragraph by paragraph review by the Henderson County Board of Commissioners, the plan aims to guide growth over the next 20 years.

In their March 13 meeting commissioners are scheduled to take up Goal 3, “Improve resiliency of the natural and built environments,” and Goal 4, “Prioritize multi-modal transportation options and connectivity."

MountainTrue and its members have been critical of the comp plan, saying it "weakens the county's hand" in protecting natural areas, fails to commit to a farmland preservation fund, declines to adopt "best practice design standards for new construction" in wildlands and scraps any reference to climate change. In the history section, the comp dropped a reference to the “forcible relocation” of Native Americans westward via the Trail of Tears.

In December Mountain True Southern Regional Director Nancy Díaz wrote an 1,800 letter to commissioners listing the organization's objections to the plan and its recommendations for strengthening it.

“Many Henderson County residents hope that county commissioners will pass a plan that does a better job addressing the issues that have plagued our community over the past 20 years and chart a better course for the future," Diaz said. "Sprawling development, farms and green space disappearing, a lack of housing options — these are issues that can be addressed in an ambitious comprehensive plan. This meeting is an opportunity for the community to learn about where the plan currently stands, and MountainTrue’s recommendations to reach a plan that reflects the priorities named in the community survey.”

The meeting at Hola Carolina — which is in the large brick house on top of the hill at the park — is scheduled from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Monday.