Y’all, I’m hearing something crazy lately.  I’m hearing our NIMBY friends are *already* starting to try and undermine the Comprehensive Plan.  Trying to silence our community’s voices before we can even be heard.  Already!  It hasn’t even started yet!

You see, they are afraid of losing the control they’ve had over Worthington for years.  Worried that many of you are going to show up to the upcoming Comprehensive Plan public input sessions, and voice how you want our community to evolve and progress – and then, once the Plan is complete, they’re worried you’re going to hold our City to that Plan.  That’s scary to them!  And I get it, when you’re used to being able to force through midnight resolutions with no notice to residents, rescinding documents that involved input from hundreds of community members at the cost of thousands of taxpayer dollars like the special-interest PAC Worthington Alliance for Responsible Development did a few years ago, the citizens of Worthington getting the final say in our community is definitely scary. 

But that’s why I’m asking all of you to show up for the Comprehensive Plan.  The kickoff meeting is June 11th, and you can sign up here: https://worthingtontogether.org/get-involved/ .  Please do, because this community needs voices, all of our voices, and not just the well-financed, entrenched powers-that-be that want us to have high taxes and short buildings.  Think we need more multi-modal pathways throughout the community, so you can rollerblade around easier?  Get involved!  Are you of the mind we need more trees between Dairy Queen and the Mall, so the existing sidewalks aren’t scorching hot?  Show up!  HOUSING?!?!?!  Yeah you know the answer!  Hell even if you ARE a NIMBY, show up!

The Comprehensive Plan is only a community effort if the community shows up.  And we need everyone to show up and make their voices heard, so that there can be NO DOUBT that the results reflect the desires of our entire community, and not just the whims of a few well-heeled squeaky wheels (and I’m including myself in that group, too).  So plan on showing up not just on June 11th, but throughout this process to make sure your voice is heard.  Yes, we’ve had a ton of plans and surveys and whatnot over the last few years, and it does seem like we’re just spinning our wheels, but this should be the plan that unites all of our previous work, and brings us into the future with a vision and pathway to being better than we’ve ever been before.  So please, show up and stay involved in the Comprehensive Plan process. 

Because our community needs your voice to be complete.