Published: May 26, 2008 08:47 am      

Commission sets sights on Duncan’s future

Members to start updating city’s general plan

Mapping out the future for the City of Duncan requires more than just one board. It requires public bodies from all over the city.

The Duncan Municipal Planning Commission discussed groups and entities within Duncan that should be included as stakeholders in planning what updates and changes need to be made in Duncan. Commission members began making a list during Tuesday’s regular meeting.

The last time the Duncan General Plan was updated was in 1997. Members said it was time to update that plan and, to do that, more people needed to be involved.

Duncan Community Development Director Dana Schoening said, “We need to continue updating the general plans for the city. We need to focus on key groups who should be involved in the planning process.”

Some of the entities mentioned during the meeting were Duncan City Council, the Duncan Chamber of Commerce, Duncan Area Economic Development Foundation, Main Street Duncan, Duncan Public Schools, Dream Duncan’s Destiny, Oklahoma Department of Transportation, Red River Technology Center, Duncan Regional Hospital, Duncan Convention and Visitors Bureau, Cameron University, Stephens County, Association of South Central Oklahoma Governments and The Duncan Banner.

Planning out which groups should be involved in the planning process is only Step One, Schoening said.

In other action:

n New storage buildings could appear just off the Duncan Bypass, but it won’t be for a while.

The commission approved rezoning the property at the Duncan Bypass and 27th Street from A-1 General Agriculture to I-1 Restricted Manufacturing and Warehousing.

The property, which is 9.84 acres, isn’t the first property to be rezoned from A-1 to I-1. In 2003, the property to the east was rezoned.

“You can’t hardly see it that much from the road,” Schoening said. “It is a proper use of that zoning.”

n More rezoning was approved by the commission. This time, the rezoning was from A-1 to R-2 Two-Family Residential at the intersection of Elk Avenue and Chisholm Trail Parkway.

The 2.7-acre property is proposed to include eight duplex units and two single-family units.

Schoening said, “We’ve done a lot of rezoning on that side of the street.”

The majority of the rezoning in the area has been from R-3 Multiple Family to C-1 Commercial.

n Members approved the final plat for the Timbercreek Addition, Part 10.

On Oct. 15, 1999, the commission approved the sketch plat for the Timbercreek Addition. Part 10 is the last of the lots to have a final plat approved. The preliminary plat was approved April 17, 2007.

“We still have to do final inspections,” Schoening said. “It resembles a lot of what was in the preliminary plat.”