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Pahrump citizens have an opportunity to participate in a survey that will help the Regional Planning Commission shape the region’s Master Plan.

The deadline for the survey was initially set for April 10, 2020, but because of the government shutdown due to COVID-19, the deadline has been extended until May 8, 2020.

The Nye County website states this about the importance of the survey: “The purpose of the survey is to gather input, opinions, and ideas from residents on current and future town issues. The results will be used in the development of the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission Master Plan, which is currently being updated by the Pahrump Regional Planning Commission. A master plan is a guide to help shape local land use and other community decisions. It will prepare the town for changing needs and will allow for informed decisions about transportation, housing, infrastructure, recreation, land use, the economy, and overall quality of life.”

The survey is comprehensive and divided into several sections and subsections. Section I, titled “Vision - Growth and Population”, lists six scenarios ranging from “do you want increased growth” to “do you want a population decrease.” Survey respondents can give a response to each question ranging from 1-totally agree to 5-totally disagree. Section II addresses Economic Growth and Vitality.

This section has questions regarding what types of growth you would be interested in seeing or conversely not seeing. Section III addresses Town Qualities. In this section are questions that will help the Planning Commission in developing a cohesive vision of what characteristics the town will have in the future.

Section IV is the most extensive section of the survey. Titled “Future Land Use,” this section is divided into four sub-sections.

Your answers in this section will help determine how land use is controlled and managed for the next several years. Survey respondents answer each question on a scale of 1 to 5, 1-none, to 5-significantly more. Section A is for Residential, section B is Commercial, section C is Industrial, and section D covers Culture and Recreation. Section V is New Policy Development – Town Image.

In this section, there are questions regarding signs, walking and biking trails, housing density, and public transportation, among others. The last part of the survey portion, Section VI – “Promoting the Town”, asks how you would want to see the town promoted to other areas. The survey ends with some questions regarding your demographics and asks for input on future funding areas to improve Pahrump. There is room to submit additional comments in this section.

Planning at the regional scale is critical. As our economic, land use and transportation patterns have evolved over the last century, the role of planning has extended beyond urban areas to include rural areas.

In most parts of the country, the political boundaries established by municipalities long ago are no longer relevant to businesses’ or residents’ activities, to say nothing of environmental concerns such as air and water. Some consider regional planning a nuisance or an infringement on their freedom. But finding what the residents want for their area is critical for proper planning into the near future.

Participating in this survey is an opportunity for residents to share their opinion with the Regional Planning Commission easily. All too often, a few vocal residents speak up loudly at county commission meetings regarding whatever is essential to them that day. They don’t necessarily represent a majority of our residents.

Most residents are content to go about their daily lives and are too busy to attend meetings. The higher the number of residents that fill out and submit this survey, the more accurate consensus of what residents want for this town in the future can be determined. You can download the fillable survey from the Nye County website at NyeCounty.net

Tim Burke is a businessman, philanthropist, educator and Pahrump resident. Contact him at timstakenv@gmail.com