Regulating Big Box Stores: The Proper Use of the City or County’s Police Power (2005)
Topics: Comprehensive Plans
An introductory article by a land use lawyer about the importance of Comp Plans. Should you wind up in court fighting a developer or a town board, a detailed Comp Plan can make the difference between winning and losing. Although not all states give them the same weight, Comp Plans are an important statement of land use and community values, a bedrock expression of your town’s local legal right “to regulate for public health, safety, and welfare.” By establishing criteria for future land use, it can lay a legal basis for the rejection of a monstrous, ill-advised, big box development. Also included in this article are Comp Plan guidelines and terminology.
