Opinion ID: 852855
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Role of the Comprehensive Plan

Text: Indiana municipalities may establish an advisory plan commission to make recommendations to the legislative body of the municipality about the physical development of the community. Ind.Code Ann. §§ 36-7-4-201, 202 (West Supp.2004). [2] Plan commissions create comprehensive plans to promote efficiency and economy in the land use development process. See Ind.Code Ann. § 36-7-4-501 (West 1997). [3] The Code provides a general description of these plans: A comprehensive plan must contain at least the following elements: (1) A statement of objectives for the future development of the jurisdiction. (2) A statement of policy for the land use development of the jurisdiction. (3) A statement of policy for the development of public ways, public places, public lands, public structures, and public utilities. Ind.Code Ann. § 36-7-4-502 (West 1997). A comprehensive plan is a general, long-term blueprint used as a guiding and predictive force in the physical development of a community. Charles M. Haar, In Accordance With a Comprehensive Plan, 68 HARV. L.REV. 1154, 1155 (1955). Social, economic, and physical conditions in a community all influence the creation of a comprehensive plan's goals and the means to be used in achieving these goals. Id. The benefits of comprehensive plans are numerous. Comprehensive plans play a central role in zoning inasmuch as they rationally allocate land use with due consideration given to the community as a whole. Udell v. Haas, 21 N.Y.2d 463, 288 N.Y.S.2d 888, 235 N.E.2d 897, 900-01 (1968). Such plans help shape the identity of communities and give private property owners notice of this identity and expectations for the future. See Donna J. Patalano, Police Power and the Public Trust: Prescriptive Zoning Through the Conflation of Two Ancient Doctrines, 28 B.C. ENVTL. AFF. L.REV. 683, 697-98 (2001). The scope and perspective offered by comprehensive plans help alleviate the potential inefficiencies in the development of communities caused by the focused activities of different local agencies that do not coordinate with one another. Haar, 68 HARV. L.REV. at 1155. The Indiana Code requires that the plan commission and the legislative body pay reasonable regard to the comprehensive plan in preparing and considering proposals to adopt initial zoning ordinances and amendments. Ind.Code Ann. §§ 36-7-4-602, 603 (West 1997). These bodies must also consider current structures and uses in each district, the most desirable use for the land, property values, and responsible growth and development. Id. A comprehensive plan is a community's long-range vision for physical development, but implementing the plan as regards a given piece of real estate may not be the best course of action for the community on a given day. A comprehensive plan is a guide to community development rather than an instrument of land-use control. See 4 Kenneth H. Young, Anderson's American Law of Zoning, § 23.15 (4th ed.1996); Ogden v. Premier Properties, USA, Inc., 755 N.E.2d 661, 671 (Ind.Ct.App.2001) (deviation from the plan, standing alone, does not establish arbitrary action, especially in light of other evidence before the city council). Thus, Indiana Code § 36-7-4-603 sensibly states that the plan commission and legislative body shall pay reasonable regard to a number of enumerated factors: (1) the comprehensive plan; (2) current conditions and the character of current structures and uses in each district; (3) the most desirable use for which the land in each district is adapted; (4) the conservation of property values throughout the jurisdiction; and (5) responsible development and growth. Id. The Court of Appeals' interpretation of the statute  that a municipality must comply with its comprehension plan's vision absent a compelling reason  attempts to create a rebuttable presumption that the statute does not erect. A municipality must consider all factors and make a balanced determination. Ind.Code Ann. § 36-7-4-603 (West 1997).