My last post has triggered some very interesting comments and excellent suggestions for Peoria. As a Heart of Peoria Commissioner, I’d like to invite everyone who commented and anyone else with an interest in the new Land Development Code (LDC) for the Heart of Peoria area to attend the public hearing which begins tonight.

For those of you who don’t know, the Land Development Code is being proposed as a replacement for the current zoning ordinance just for the Heart of Peoria area. If you’re not sure what the boundaries of the Heart of Peoria area are, you can click here to see a map. The Planning and Zoning committees are holding joint hearings on the new code so that you can, as the city’s press release says, “voice support and concern, and educate [yourself on] what the Land Development Code means to business, development, and property owners within the Heart of Peoria Area.”

The hearing will start at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 419 Fulton St. The LDC is a large document and thus the hearings will span multiple meetings, so you’ll have more than one opportunity to comment on the code. After adjourning tonight, the hearing will reconvene on Nov. 29 and Dec. 6 at the same time and place. If further meetings are necessary, they will be added in Jan. and Feb. 2007.

The LDC is available as a free download from the City of Peoria’s website and the Heart of Peoria website. I hope you can all come out and go “on the record” with your support, ideas, concerns, and suggestions. Your input is crucial to making this code successful for Peoria.