Dominic Valente, Daily Herald

Provo City is in the process of updating its General Plan, and as part of that they are asking for residents to submit photos of the town.

Residents can submit photos of Provo scenery, life and architecture. If one is used for the General Plan the photographer will receive a package of gifts from retailers in Provo, according to Robert Mills with Community and Neighborhood Services.

The photos will be accepted until September 30.

There will be winners in 1st, 2nd and 3rd place in each category. Register online and submit each photo entry at http://provophotocontest.com.

You can also stop by the Mayor’s Office (City Center, Third Floor, 351 W Center Street) and submit your photos using a disc or jump drive. Please include your: Name, Email, Phone Number, and description of each photo entry — choose a submission category for each photo (Provo Life, Provo Scenery, or Provo Architecture), list the location where each photo was taken (preferably an address or coordinate if possible), and describe each photo.

Spenser Heaps, Daily Herald file photo

Mills is the project manager for the General Plan and said the resident input has been extremely valuable.

There are many time when the purpose of the General Plan is misunderstood and Mills would like the public to understand exactly what a general plan is for.

A General Plan is:

• A strategic guidebook to help guide citywide policy decisions and priorities.
• An integration of existing planning work.
• A long-range tool for planning, legislation, financing and action.
• A reflection of the community’s vision and goals.
• Inspiration for the future.
• Required by State Statute.

A General Plan is not:

• Zoning
• A set of land use code standards.
• Detailed budget document.
• Specific regulations, requirements or ordinances.

“The General Plan process was organized into three phases,” according to Mills. Phase 1 focused on gathering data to understand the community, key issues and opportunities to address the General Plan.”

Phase 1 has been completed. Phase 2 is focused on assessing what was learned from the data and the community and identify key themes and goals to move forward.

“We are towards the end of the second phase,” Mills said. “We’ve been doing a lot of outreach.”

The final phase, includes preparing a final document that the entire Provo community can use for focusing and unifying future planning and public investment.

Mills said a first internal draft had been sent out and they are refining it.

“Our hope is that we want this council to adopt the updated General plan by December,” Mills said.

While much of the engagement with residents happened during 2020, despite the COVID-19 interruptions, community input was substantial with over 400 people engaged in the first online workshop and survey and over 1,000 people in the second workshop and survey, according to Mills.

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