I'd like to call to order the city council study session of March 26th.

Clerk, will you please call the roll?

Councilmember Bushnell.

Present.

Councilmember Daniels.

Councilmember Diaz.

Absent.

Deputy Mayor Hines.

Here.

Councilmember Ramba.

Here.

Councilmember Scott.

Absent.

Councilmember Ashka.

Absent.

Councilmember Walker.

Here, Mayor Woodards.

Here.

Mayor and Council members, the study session material material was sent to you at 11.

All right.

We're going to jump right into our agenda today.

And our first item is a comprehensive plan update.

And I'm now going to call on planning and development services principal planner, Steve Atkinson to begin the presentation.

Steve.

Great.

Thank you.

And good afternoon, Mayor Wooders, Deputy Mayor Heinz members of the Council.

I'm Stephen Atkinson, Principal Planner with Planning and Development Services.

And really excited to be here today for what really I think constitutes the more public launch of the One Tacoma Plan update.

So the work that we have in front of us to update the city's comprehensive plan.

Part of the purpose of the meeting today is really to give you a briefing on the work that is underway currently, give you a sense of the scope of work, supporting this update, and then leading into a summary of the engagement strategy.

One of the things that I just wanted to make note about the comprehensive plan is it touches on a lot of the different work that our different departments and staff and agencies undertake in the city every day.

So we really want to recognize that it really takes a significant broad staff team to do this work.

But we have a tremendous team with us today who will be taking a lead on the presentation today.

So beyond myself, I'd like to welcome Kerry Wilhelm from Public Works, Alyssa Torres, and then Maryam Moenyan from Planning and Development Services.

As we go through the presentation today, we want to make sure that we are communicating with you about some of the project background and planning context.

So Miriam will take the lead on walking through some of that background information, and then I'll be providing some support in the presentation on some of the scope of work that is going to be part of this effort.

And then we'll be handing it off to Carrie to talk about some of the guiding vision that is supporting this effort.

And then Alyssa Torres will walk us through the timeline and community engagement efforts that are upcoming.

So if you uh want to dive into more of the details than just the highlights that we're presenting today, I'm happy to make sure that you uh are aware of those materials, and then uh we'll be following up and scheduling some time with you uh to coordinate on some of the next steps.

So again, if you have questions uh following the meeting today, uh please feel free to ask today or in your follow-up.

Um so with that, we'll go ahead and kick off uh on the next slide.

Um, and I'd welcome uh Miriam to walk through some of the planning context.

Thank you, Steve.

Um, my name is Miriam Muinian.

I'm a senior planner with the planning and development services department.

Uh so first let's talk about what is a comprehensive plan.

Uh comprehensive plan is a tool that helps um the city plan for the growth that we know is happening in Tacoma and in our region.

It is a long-term plan that thinks about the needs of current and future residents, workers, business owners, um, and uh visitors.

The comm plan guides decisions on land use, transportation, housing, capital facilities, parks, and such.

The comprehensive plan, also known as Wantacoma plan, is used by city staff to plan and coordinate actions, policies, and programs that serves community members at every income level and stage of life.

The plan is also used to guide investments of taxpayer money into public programs, facilities, and services.

The Wontacoma plan is essentially a shared region between city staff and city residents about what Tacoma's future should look like.

By planning with our community members, uh, we can work to repair past harms and build a more equitable future for Tacoma that offers the same opportunities and quality of life for everyone.

In addition, Tacoma is one of five metropolitan cities identified in the region as hubs for increasing population, and we need to plan for that growth.

This includes thinking about what current and new residents will need to live well, increasing our available housing, and adding local jobs to the economy.

Next slide, please.

The Puget Sound region is experiencing a rapid population growth.

The region's population is anticipated to grow by one and a half million, reaching overall 5.8 million people by 2050.

PJ Sound Regional Council, or PSRC, has collaborated with regions, cities, counties, tribes, ports, agencies, businesses, and communities to develop Vision 2050, which is region's growth strategy to prepare for this growth that serves as a guide for maintaining a healthy environment and a strong economy.