Boonville’s Planning and Zoning Commission has adopted a new comprehensive plan for the first time since 2003, updating the city’s guide for improving the community.
The comprehensive plan identified weaknesses in the city, including sewer, transportation, and zoning infrastructure. Rural cities often apply for grant funding to help foot the cost of improvement projects, but after the COVID-19 pandemic, those programs lost additional stimulus funding.
Jennifer Bowden worked on Boonville’s updated strategic plan as part of the Mid-Mo Regional Planning Commission, and she said the reduction in funding has made grant applications more competitive.
But Bowden said having a plan strengthens the chances of receiving certain grant funds by demonstrating there is an imminent need. Boonville’s strategic plan identified aging sewer infrastructure, which can’t be deferred for long.
“So, grants really become kind of a first line of defense to try and keep rates down for people whenever you’ve already gotten to that point,” Bowden said.
Grants aren’t just a one-way street for funding, though. Cities usually have to match part of a project’s total cost. Bowden said Boonville has enough of a tax base to finance the upfront costs of a grant-backed project, while smaller communities can struggle to meet those requirements.
Alongside sewer updates, the comprehensive plan found residents need a more walkable city outside of downtown. Boonville City Administrator Kate Fjell said commercial developments and the high school on Ashley Road have increased demand for sidewalks.
“That for people who maybe don’t have vehicles, [it] can be more difficult to get around town, particularly if you’re trying to get to a grocery store,” Fjell said.
The way Boonville roads connect to I-70 has also created problems, stretching the city away from a grid structure and limiting development. But the solution isn’t simple: Fjell said the first and only attempt to involuntarily annex the land surrounding those roads into Boonville did not pass a local vote.
“So since then, we’ve sort of shied away from continuing to do involuntary annexation,” Fjell said. “It’s much easier just to develop as opportunities present themselves.”
The comprehensive plan’s vision for Boonville includes a zoning map where unincorporated areas between I-70 highway access roads are annexed as residential and commercial districts. Recently, Fjell said the city annexed a portion along Jackson Road to help a softball and baseball complex develop.
“Well, they needed the city’s sewer and water, and so they wanted to annex into the city,” Fjell said. “So, for us, that’s a good place to go because it gets us a little further to squaring up our boundaries.”
Fjell said Boonville City Council is on track to endorse the plan on Sept. 21, which will help guide budget talks beginning this December.
