UPDATE: On Tuesday, October 18, 2016, the Village Board of Trustees voted unanimously to adopt the Comprehensive Plan, which is available for download. The Existing Conditions Report is also available for download.
The Village of Winthrop Harbor, home to nearly 6,700 residents, is situated along the shores of Lake Michigan in northern Lake County. Winthrop Harbor is bordered by the State of Wisconsin to the north, Lake Michigan to the east, and the Village of Zion to the south and west.
The Village's prime location offers residents and tourists access to beaches, 240 acres of forest preserves, and North Point Marina -- the largest marina on the Great Lakes. These destinations attract nearly one million visitors to the Village annually. In order to sustain its successful tourism industry and diversify sources of revenue moving forward, the Village needs to develop a long-term growth strategy.
With assistance from CMAP's Local Technical Assistance program, the Village will create a new comprehensive plan to develop this economic strategy and address issues related to housing, parks and open space, transportation, and community image and identity. The current comprehensive plan was last updated in 1995.
The comprehensive planning process includes three phases, each of which involves public input. The first phase analyzed the Village's existing conditions using information gathered from the steering committee, interviews with key stakeholders, a community workshop, economic and demographic data, existing plans and studies, and an online interactive survey. The second phase created a vision for the future of Winthrop Harbor by identifying goals and objectives based on findings from the phase one analysis and stakeholder input gathered at the community visioning workshop. The third phase will combine efforts from the two previous phases to create the comprehensive plan document. The plan will outline the policies, programs, and actions needed to achieve the community's vision for the future.
