The Comprehensive Plan (often called the ‘Comp Plan’) is a guiding document for growth, development, and investment in Albemarle County. The Plan has recommendations for how and where the County should grow; supporting local businesses and industry, protecting and enhancing natural resources, providing transportation options for walking, biking, taking transit, and driving, and allowing and encouraging a variety of housing types.

The Comprehensive Plan is used to guide decisions on public infrastructure and funding, plans and programs, and review of some development applications.

For example, the Comp Plan is used to:

• Determine where new development should occur. The Comp Plan’s Growth Management Policy directs new development into the Development Areas (about 5 percent of the County’s land), while the Rural Area is intended to be used for agriculture, natural resource protection, and some homes.
• Inform local ordinance updates and creating new policies and plans. The Comp Plan may recommend updates to existing local laws (‘ordinances’), such as the Zoning Ordinance, or new plans for implementation for specific topics, such as the Biodiversity Action Plan.
• Make funding decisions for public projects. Plan recommendations are used to help inform the County’s budgeting for funding public capital projects, such as school expansions, sidewalks, parks, trails, and bike lanes.