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For Questions and Comments:

Please contact the City of Riverton at 307-856-9127

Welcome!

Riverton Master Plan Adopted!

Following an approximately 10 month process, Riverton’s City Council unanimously adopted the community’s Master Plan on April 7, 2009. The new Master Plan builds on the public input and ideas generated as part of the Community Assessment process completed in 2007. The Master Plan will serve as a guide for land use development, transportation, parks and recreation, housing and neighborhoods, and infrastructure and services investments in the City for the next 20 years. Many members of the community participated in the planning process and provided their input on a range of topics. Read more about master plans >

How was the Master Plan developed?

The City’s planning team worked with the community to update the plan through three main steps:

What is Riverton like today? During Step 1, trends and existing conditions for Riverton were identified. This step involved looking at statistics and trends for housing, economy, population and other factors of the community. The planning team created written summaries by topic area with maps, graphs, and other images to show what was really happening “on the ground.”
What do we want Riverton to be like tomorrow? During Step 2, community members were asked to describe, “What do you want for Riverton in the future?” The planning team worked with the community to define a shared a vision and to develop goals and policies that will help the city achieve the community’s vision.
What do we need to do to achieve our desired future? During Step 3 an implementation strategy and action plan were developed to help the city meet the goals defined by the community in Step 2. The Action Plan identifies short-term (1-3 year) priorities, as well as those that can wait a few years.

This website was developed as part of the planning process. As a result, it contains a number of interim work products in addition to the adopted Master Plan.

Step 2: Plan

During this step, the planning team will build on the trends and conditions information from Step 1 and work with the community to establish a shared community vision, explore different possible growth patterns and discuss what the community prefers to see for its future, and then decide on a land use plan for future growth and the goals and policies to support it.

Look for the following Step 2 work products:

Draft Vision, Goals, and Policies — The Vision, Goals, and Policies will serve as a foundation for the Master Plan.
Vision: A statement of what the community desires for its future. The planning team will work with the community and build on the Community Assessment to develop the Vision.

Goals: Concise statements of what the community aims to accomplish over the life of the plan.

Policies: Specific directions the City will take to Act on the individual plan goals and, ultimately, the vision

Future Land Use Plan — The Future Land Use Plan will guide future land use and development patterns in the City. The planning team will work with the community to explore options, prepare a draft plan, and refine it, as follows:
- Alternative Land Use Scenarios — In this step, the planning team will work with the community to consider two to three different ideas for how the community could grow in the future. These choices will consider different options for how land is used in the future – including additional commercial, residential, and agriculture. The planning team will work with the community to combine preferred options for different areas into a single plan map.
- Draft Future Land Use Plan – The draft plan will illustrate the desired growth patterns for the City. Tailored policy guidance will be provided to address each of the plan’s required elements: housing; transportation; agricultural, natural, and cultural resources; land use; economic development; utilities, services, and facilities; and intergovernmental cooperation. The planning team will continue to refine the Future Land Use Plan with the community.

Questions & Answers

What is a Master Plan?

A Master Plan consists of maps, policies, goals and objectives and provides a “blueprint” for how a community should grow in the future. A Master Plan typically looks 10-20 years in the future and incorporates a wide range of issues and questions relating to land use, including transportation, land use mix, parks and open space, community facilities, community character and identity, housing and neighborhoods, and economic development. Once adopted, elected and appointed officials of the City will use the Plan as a guide for their land use and public investment decisions.

How does the Master Plan relate to zoning?

The Land Use Plan map, a major component of the Master Plan, is not the same as City zoning regulations and districts and does not change existing zoning. Future zoning and re-zoning, however, will have to be consistent with the new Master Plan map once the City adopts it. The Land Use Plan map of the Master Plan is a “blueprint” for future development decisions and looks at the big picture of how land uses should be mixed and located. The Riverton Municipal Code is the tool that implements the Land Use Plan. It contains more specific guidelines for how development can happen in specific areas, or zoning districts. These standards regulate more specifically how an individual lot can be developed including: allowable uses, building heights, fire safety, number of parking spaces, landscaping, signs, and other variables of site design.

How long will it take to update the Master Plan?

The Master Plan update process began in the spring of 2008 and is expected to be completed in the spring of 2009. Public involvement is very important to the development of the plan, particularly in assessing future goals, policies, and land use alternatives. Public meeting dates, times, and locations will be posted on this web site, and the City encourages all members of the public to attend. Before the updated Plan will become a formal policy document of the City, it will go before the Planning Commission and the City Council for review, comment, and adoption. These hearings will also be open to the public.

Who Will Be Involved in Updating The Plan?

The Master Plan update will incorporate the feedback and input from a variety of sources, including:

Property owners and residents
Business owners and ranchers/farmers
State and federal agencies
Interested stakeholder groups
Service providers (safety, water, sewer, energy, schools, etc)
City elected and appointed officials
City staff

There will be meetings throughout the process. Please read more under the Get Involved tab of this web site and check the Upcoming Events box on the main page for upcoming meetings.

Step 1: Learn

During this step, the planning team will create a report on Existing Conditions, trends, and policies in the City. The Existing Conditions report will build on the information assembled as part of the Community Assessment and will form the background and context for the Plan.

Look for the following Step 1 work products:

Community Profile Report and Maps — This report will provide an overview of current conditions in the City including sections on current and projected population, employment, housing, economic development projections, transportation, land use natural features, environmental hazards, mineral reserves, development capacity, and facilities and services. In addition, the planning team will prepare a series of maps to illustrate land use, environmental, service, and demographic information. See the Maps page of this web site to view all maps.
Issues and Opportunities — A Key Issues and Opportunities paper will describe the issues the plan will address, synthesizing and building on issues identified as part of the Community Assessment. The planning team will work with elected and appointed officials, the Citizen Advisory Committee, and public to identify issues.
- Key Issues and Opportunities — 7/2008 >
Summary of Existing Plans — The city already has a number of plans and studies that focus on specific topics such as transportation, water, solid waste, and housing. We’ll review each plan and study and summarize the key findings and recommendations of each. This will help make sure that the Master Plan in line with other plans and policies of the city.
- Riverton Plan and Policy Summary — 7/2008 >

Step 3: Act

During this phase, the planning team will work with the community to prepare strategies for achieving the plan and role all the work products from earlier steps (Step 1 and Step 2) into a draft Master Plan. An action plan will guide priorities for achieving goals and policies of the Plan.

Look for the following Step 3 work products: