Gwinnett 2040 Unified Plan - Gwinnett County, GA

Pond led the comprehensive effort to update Gwinnett County’s Comprehensive Plan (referred to as the “Unified Plan”), which integrates many of the County’s functions including Transportation, Economic Development, Housing, Land Use, Water & Sewer, and Community Services.

Planning Accomplishments: 

• Draft plan completed in aggressive nine month schedule. Previous version of plan completed in two years.
• Successful integration of multiple County initiatives. The final plan demonstrates through a policy framework how all these initiatives work together to reinforce Gwinnett’s future vision.
• The plan document is designed and organized to encourage accessibility and user-friendliness. Text is minimized while graphics and maps are deployed throughout to reinforce and educate the reader. Overall, the plan is structured as a narrative to tell a story instead of being a mere reference documents.

Technical Accomplishments

• Development and deployment of “Opportunity for Change,” a unique process and mechanism combining community engagement and technical analysis to help guide the creation of a Future Development Map.
• Use of traditional marketing focus groups comprised of young adults to understand perceptions and values related to housing, community amenities, and Gwinnett County.
• The Future Development Map was refined to promote redevelopment, recognition of nodal development, and the “Vibrant Communities” designation which identifies those parts of the community where housing choice and options should be prioritized.

Community Engagement Accomplishments

• Over 80 engagement and outreach events.
• The engagement process included a variety of techniques including traditional community meetings, stakeholder committees, pop‑up events, intercept interviews, and assorted speaking engagements.
• Development of brand and social media engagement through Facebook to maximize plan participation and outreach.
• Customized and focused engagement techniques to reach out to traditionally underserved communities such as the Hispanic community, Asian community, and young families. This included aforementioned intercept interviews (at Hispanic and Asian-oriented shopping centers, grocery stores, parks, and playgrounds), targeted speaking engagements (such as the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce), and even radio interviews. Spanish Language Radio Interviews were conducted at La Raza, Vida Atlanta, and La Que Buena.