Jonesboro, AR – JonesboroRightNow.com – As the City of Jonesboro races toward a population milestone, officials want to give residents the choice to decide which direction they want the place they call home to go in.

That is the idea behind “Plan Jonesboro,” a 30-year comprehensive planning effort that kicks off Feb. 12, with a public open house at the Earl Bell Community Center from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. The Earl Bell Community Center is located at 1212 S. Church St.

Communications director Donna Malone said Jonesboro is expected to grow to 100,000 people quickly, and city officials want to make sure they come up with a plan as the growth comes.

She explained the event will be less of a formal lecture and more of a “brainstorming” session. The format is designed to be informal enough to encourage conversation between residents and consultants but structured enough to stay focused on the city’s future.

“It gives people the opportunity to talk to one another on a topic that is driven by just conversation. I can envision the kinds of conversation that one might kind of stumble into over coffee,” she said.

The city will also have grilled hot dogs at the event, encouraging everyone to come.

The primary goal for Thursday is to help city leaders and the project’s planning firms, DPZ CoDesign and Crafton Tull, differentiate between what residents want and what the city needs.

Malone described the current infrastructure challenges as a “chicken and egg” scenario. As the city moves toward the “Destination 100k” benchmark, figuring out what the biggest needs are is important.

“There’s a wants and needs list, just like we do in our own lives,” she said. “What’s the most important thing? How do we prioritize? Because you can’t do it all at once, and so you have to have a priority.”

Thursday’s event is Plan Jonesboro’s first step. The input gathered this week will drive the agenda for a more intensive, multi-day community workshop scheduled from March 30 to April 3.

While Thursday will be used to gather ideas, the spring workshop will dive into the specifics of neighborhood investments, parks, industry, healthcare, and more.

When asked if the final 30-year plan would be a binding document or merely a suggestion, Malone said that while the plan provides a necessary roadmap, it must remain flexible.

“You do plan as much as you can, but things don’t always work out exactly like you think they’re going to,” she said. “I’ve never ever seen a plan in my whole life that goes exactly according to plan. So you have to be willing to shift.”

Malone urged residents to view this initiative as their chance to protect what they love about Jonesboro as the city continues to grow.

“It’s important to get all of the citizens who have any vested interest at all. Get your opinions and your wants, needs, and ideas into the master plan,” she said.

Read more about the “Plan Jonesboro” initiative by clicking here.