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Girdwood Area Plan
 Description
The Girdwood Area Plan (GAP) is a functional plan and an element of the Anchorage Comprehensive Plan. As such, it is intended to provide broad policy guidance for land use and development.
The current GAP was adopted in 1995. This Plan captured the attitudes and aspirations of Girdwood residents and landowners in Chapter 5. The GAP’s land use plan and policies reflected the community’s standards and desires for future development, as captured in Chapter 5’s primary goal statements:
- Perpetuate Girdwood’s small-town atmosphere
- Preserve Girdwood’s natural environment
- Provide a variety of year-round recreational opportunities
- Provide facilities and services to maintain and enhance the quality of community life
The GAP Update will carry forth the community’s goals from the 1995 Plan while building on ways to implement these goals through objectives, policies and strategies.
The GAP is being updated for several reasons:
- Municipal code calls for comprehensive plan updates every 10 years and a full rewrite every 20 years.
- Several new plans and studies for Girdwood have occurred since the 1995 plan was adopted.
- Updated demographic data is available for Girdwood.
- The Girdwood Board of Supervisors (GBOS) requested an update to address changing land use trends in the community.
Planning staff is currently working on a GAP Technical Brief, which will summarize the plan’s implementation since adoption, outline changes and new trends in land use, and update demographics and other relevant actions taken since the 1995 adoption. This technical brief will be combined with data and findings from the public participation process to serve as the foundation for the GAP revision draft.
The updated GAP will provide general land use and development guidelines for future growth in Girdwood. The updated plan will continue to:
- outline general strategies for land development
- determine location and installation of major public facilities and services
- provide guidance for use of municipal lands
- continue to conserve and protect natural resources and environmental features
 Community Participation
The public involvement process along with the Technical Brief mentioned above and additional research will provide the basis for the updated plan. Here are the chief public involvement elements:
- A community survey was conducted by GBOS and the Planning Department in March 2007. See Survey results here.
- A Community Advisory Committee (CAC) made up of Girdwood residents has been established to assist the Planning Department staff in updating the plan.
- Stakeholder interviews have begun with local, state and federal agencies, user groups, and major landowners.
- Community meetings will be scheduled this fall to garner community input on themes from the survey, stakeholder interviews, CAC discussions, and research.
 Plan Update Timeline
| Survey |
March 2007 |
| Planning and background research |
began January 2008 |
| Technical Brief and summary of current plan |
June/July 2008 |
| Community Meetings |
Fall 2008 |
| Public Review Draft |
Early Winter 2008 |
| Public Hearing Draft |
Winter 2008-2009 |
| Plan Adoption |
Late Summer/Fall 2009 |
 Documents for Review
Girdwood Area Public Survey Results—2007
The Peterson Economics Report and Market Analysis for Glacier-Winner Creeks in Girdwood
Alaska Mountain Safety Center's Avalanche Study for the Glacier-Winner Creek area in Girdwood
April 2006 (final) Crow Creek Neighborhood Land Use Study: Plan and Appendices
1987 Girdwood Area Plan
Title 21, Chapter 9 - Girdwood Regulations
 Some documents require Adobe Acrobat reader ver 5.0 or higher. They may take several minutes to open.
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