Following last month’s Centralia Planning Commission special meeting to discuss the city’s comprehensive plan update specific to the downtown area, Centralia Community Development Director Emil Pierson told the Centralia City Council during last week’s council meeting that city staff are planning a pair of concurrent open houses later this month.
All Centralia residents are invited to the open houses, which will be held at both Kitchens No. 1 and No. 2 in Fort Borst Park on Thursday, Sept. 19, from 5 to 7 p.m.
The kitchens are located just past the park’s entrance on Fort Borst Park Road east of Thorbeckes Wellness Center.
“What we wanted to do was invite everyone in the community to come for one evening between those two hours, and come comment on our city’s comprehensive plan and our climate resiliency plan,” Pierson said. “That’ll be in one of the kitchens. And then, we’ll also be having our transportation master plan and Westside Connector open houses in the other kitchen.”
He added the topics being discussed will shape how the city grows over the next 20 years.
“The Westside Connector is a huge transportation project that will absolutely affect the whole community,” Pierson said of the longtime proposal to create another south-north route west of Interstate 5.
Lewis County Public Works Department staff will also be on hand for the Westside Connector open house on Sept. 19, according to a county news release.
During the open house, officials will present preliminary plans and exhibits for stage one improvements on North Scheuber Road from Mt. Vista Road to Galvin Road.
A type, size and location study update for a new Chehalis River crossing will also be discussed along with another aspect of stage two — creating the Westside Connector project’s north link from Galvin Road to the intersection of Ives Road and Harrison Avenue.
Additionally, a questionnaire will be made available to the public at the open house to allow attendees to respond to specific project questions and provide their own comments and questions pertaining to the project.
To learn more about the Westside Connector project, visit the Lewis County Public Works Department’s website at https://tinyurl.com/2p9r75sa.
A city’s comprehensive plan is a 20-year vision establishing goals, policies and implementation strategies surrounding a community’s growth. It focuses on land use, population and employment growth.
The Washington State Growth Management Act requires that all cities and counties update their comprehensive plans periodically, and Centralia’s is due for an update by June 30, 2025.
In November of 2023, the Centralia City Council approved a public participation plan for its comprehensive plan update process which has been ongoing ever since.
To learn more about the 2025 comprehensive plan update process and view documents related to it, visit https://tinyurl.com/578mxvr8.
