After a year and a half of public hearings and workshops, the city's new comprehensive plan, the reworked document that will guide new development in the future, will have its first vote.

The Albuquerque/Bernalillo County Comprehensive Plan will go before Albuquerque's Environmental Planning Commission Thursday from 1 p.m. to 8 p.m. at City Hall.

The commission is tasked with looking at the updated comprehensive plan, a more than 500-page document, and making a recommendation to the City Council. The commission will likely take public comment and discuss the plan over several meetings, as the planning department staff recommends a continuance of the meeting until Aug. 25.

The comprehensive plan is a vision guide for development. While it primarily covers land use, it also addresses other topics including transportation, environmental and cultural resources, economic development and housing.

Karen Hudson, the planning commission's chair, said it's hard to know what to expect from the meeting, especially when she's unsure how many people will sign up for public comments.

"It’s very complicated and it’s not something we’ll probably make a decision on in one hearing. But you never know," Hudson said.

A staff report explains the plan and lays out how future population growth should be accommodated in the city. The writers of the plan — mainly city staff members who took into account input from the community and other agencies — expect Albuquerque to grow by 40 percent, or 300,000 new residents, by 2040, based on models by the Mid-Region Council of Governments. Click here to read the full article.