Wednesday evening will be the final opportunity for Lathrop residents to offer their input on the update to the document that could shape Lathrop’s future planned growth for more than a decade.

Wednesday at 6 p.m. inside of the council chambers at Lathrop City Hall, located at 390 Towne Centre Drive, the planning commission will formally consider the environmental impact report for the proposed general plan update and the general plan update itself – discussing the item before deciding on whether to forward a favorable recommendation on to the Lathrop City Council.

It will be up the council to formally adopt the general plan update and the environmental impact report that accompanies it.

While Lathrop has grown more than fourfold since it incorporated more than three decades ago, the city is still operating on the original general plan. With the lion’s share of Lathrop’s development coming in the second half of Lathrop’s life – derailed temporarily by the collapse of housing prices and the accompanying economic downtown – the process in drafting an update will for the first time reflect the massive growth that the city has since its inception.

The consideration tonight by the Lathrop Planning Commission marks the beginning of the end of the process that has taken years to formally complete. The consultant hired by Lathrop to govern the process – who was similarly tapped by Manteca to serve the same role – held a variety of steering meetings and public workshops to allow the public’s input into the process and to ensure that the document reflected the values of the city as it grows.

Traditionally general plans are updated every decade, but with the majority of Lathrop’s growth occurring in roughly that same time frame the timing will help govern the way the city unfolds over the coming decade.

For additional information visit the City of Lathrop’s website at www.ci.lathrop.ca.us.

To contact Bulletin reporter Jason Campbell email jcampbell@mantecabulletin.com or call 209.249.3544.