Comprehensive Plan

Stonington's very successful 2018 Comprehensive Plan has resulted in millions of dollars of investment in the Town.

In April 2026 we are beginning a public process to update this plan to reflect current conditions and changing community priorities, incorporate many of the plans and data that have been collected over the past eight years, and identify future needs. This process will result in a clear, actionable roadmap to guide decision-making, investment, and growth over the coming years.

The Comprehensive Plan Committee is leading this effort in coordination with the Hancock County Planning Commission. Along with members of chapter-specific working groups, the Committee reviews data, analysis, and draft recommendations, and works to ensure the plan reflects local values through ongoing public engagement.

Members of the planning Committee include Robin Alden, Donna Brewer, Audrey Cooper, Broc Eaton, Frank Gotwals, Carla Guenther, Evelyn Duncan, Becky Hardy, Julie Moringello, Samuel Robbins, Mike Steinharter and Henry Teverow.

Please join us at one of two public visioning session. A gift card raffle will be drawn at the end of each event!

May 5th at 6PM in the Stonington Town Office only
May 19th at 6 PM via ZOOM only https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89961709441?pwd=xv6cL4X47SchndvnzeMUP214j8u3XN.1

Visioning sessions are a key early step in the planning process. These sessions provide an opportunity for residents, property owners, and community members to share priorities, concerns, and ideas for the future of Stonington.

What is a Comprehensive Plan?
A comprehensive plan is a roadmap that outlines where a community is now, where it wants to go and how it wants to get there. It's a guiding document that helps shape the future of a town and guides growth and change according to a community's vision.

What are the main reasons to have a comprehensive plan?

Eligibility for federal, state, local, and private funding.
Allows a community to be proactive (instead of reactive) to issues and changes that arise over time.
Provides an opportunity to think regionally, especially regarding growth.
Provides a legal basis for ordinances.

What is a comprehensive plan NOT?
A comprehensive plan does not mean zoning or land use regulation.
A comprehensive plan does not have regulatory power, it only suggests strategies for accomplishing community goals and objectives.

The whole story
A Comprehensive Plan is a large, in-depth document that municipalities publish for a few different reasons. First and foremost, it is a plan for the future of a municipality, setting goals based around where residents envision their community five, ten, or twenty years in the future. It takes into account current and past trends, the history of the community, and what its residents want to see changed or preserved. The plan shows what the community wants so that Town officials can do their jobs the best way possible. A Town's best work is the work that addresses real problems identified by real townspeople, and a Comprehensive Plan can provide a great reference point for that.

Town's also publish Comprehensive Plans to get funding to complete large scale projects beyond the reach of taxpayer support. State and federal grant programs that require a Comp Plan have allowed Stonington to complete work on the Hagan Dock project, the Moose Island Causeway, many updates to Colwell Ramp, improvements to the Fish Pier, broadband internet, and planning for sea level rise.

Our current Comprehensive Plan, approved by voters at Stonington's Annual 2018 Town Meeting, is available for your review here.