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BRANSON NEWS: Branson West residents are being asked to help the city develop a plan for its future by taking an online survey.According to the city of Branson West’s Comprehensive Plan survey on the Southwest Missouri Council of Government website, Branson West has partnered with CJW Transportation Consultants (CJW) and the Southwest Missouri Council of Governments (SMCOG) to update the Comprehensive Plan for the community. A comprehensive plan serves as a guide for the community’s future goals, development, and land uses for the next 10 to20 years. By answering the following questions, you will help guide the city’s future.Branson West City Administrator Roger Calkins said the survey will act as a roadmap for the city going forward.
“We’d like to get everybody on board, going the same direction and pulling the same direction, so that when we get to where we’re going, everybody’s happy,” Calkins said. “We’ve partnered with CJW Transportation and Consultants, as our engineering firm, to help lead us with this.”Calkins said the survey is user friendly and very accessible for residents and also those who work and do business in Branson West. “The survey itself is very easy. It’s very accessible,” Calkins said. “It’s point and click. It’s not hard to get through. Branson West is a small community. Just over 400 people, but we have a large impact on the area. So we want to partner with businesses going forward too.”After the results of the survey are back, that is when the real work begins, Calkins said. “When we get the results back, we’ll dive into it, you know, really tear it apart. Compare what the people think should be going on as to where we are and then once all this information is together it’ll give us an idea of where we need to be,” Calkins said. “Like I said, it’s a roadmap.”The survey asks questions about services and infrastructure the city offers, roads, transportation, recreational activities and amenities. In the survey the city is also asking for residents’ input on economic development and what business sectors the citizens want the city to encourage within the city.
“Where would you like to be in 20 years? Where do you see the city going? What do we need to get there? Those (are the) kinds of questions asked,” Calkins said.Calkins said Branson West needs to find a way to build the community and develop the city to retain residents to the area. “As far as growth in the community, I think residential property and commercial property need to go hand in hand. We need to find a way to keep more residents in this area so that we have a larger pool of people to pull from for job opportunities here locally,” Calkins said. “This is a beautiful area. It’s a great environment. The people are just wonderful to be around. They’ve accepted me with open arms! But we don’t have the housing in Branson West to sustain a large move forward in the commercial industry. So the commercial and the residential need to go hand in hand, I believe.”Calkins said the city is on the edge of something amazing and input from those that work and live in the city will help it get there.“The input of the citizens is greatly appreciated and very important to the survey. Branson West is on the edge of something great! We’re looking at expansion in several different areas,” Calkins said. “We have our infrastructure in place and this gives the citizens the opportunity to give us their input! We don’t want to go out and make decisions without the input of the citizens of Branson West.”The survey will close on Sunday Sept. 12. The information gathered in the survey is confidential and will never be used to identify respondents.For more information contact Roger Calkins, Branson West City Administrator at CityAdmin@BransonWestMO.Gov.To take the survey visit smcog.org/bransonwestsurvey.
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