Village of Godfrey Board of Trustees
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GODFREY – Representatives from St. Louis planning firm PGAV Planners gave a presentation at Tuesday’s Godfrey Village Board meeting on updating the village’s comprehensive plan.
A comprehensive plan serves as a roadmap for a community’s future, ensuring its growth in areas of housing, economic development and more is guided in a strategic way over the next decade. The plan does not include specific policies or ordinances – instead, it provides general guidance on how village boards and committees should approach decisions that impact Godfrey’s future.
“Comprehensive plans are important for every community,” PGAV President Andy Strockoff said, adding they help see “what works and what doesn’t” for each community, guiding what to change and what to keep the same.
Godfrey’s last comprehensive plan was completed in 2021 by the village’s own Comprehensive Plan Steering Committee. PGAV was previously considered to develop an updated plan before a tie-breaking vote stopped their selection for the project. PGAV and Moran are now both being reconsidered to lead the village’s comprehensive planning efforts, resulting in the PGAV presentation Tuesday night.
Municipal Planner Kristen Harden with PGAV estimated the process would take about 12 months and consist of three phases: existing conditions, future land use, and “key results,” when PGAV’s research findings are revealed and the plan is adopted. Village officials, residents, and other stakeholders will have opportunities to provide input and feedback throughout the process, from the first phase to the last.
During the first phase, extensive research and data collection will be used in combination with community engagement to see not only how Godfrey has changed over the years, but also the challenges the village faces today. Members of PGAV will start this phase by taking walking and driving tours of Godfrey led by village staff to examine current conditions and find sites for potential development opportunities. PGAV also plans to use some traditional methods of community engagement, such as community surveys, pop-up events, and “stakeholder meetings” to gather community input.
Associate Director Adam Strout said the second phase, regarding future land use, will more closely examine where the village can and cannot develop. PGAV will create a “land use map” based on these findings which will help guide the village’s future development and zoning plans. He noted this phase is when the village gets to “be creative” as far as what they’d like to see developed in suitable areas.
During the final phase, PGAV will share “key results” from the research, data, and community input they accumulate throughout the comprehensive planning process. After one last opportunity for feedback from village officials and residents, the comprehensive plan goes before the Village Board for consideration and approval.
In addition to the updated comprehensive plan, PGAV also offered to perform a Zoning Ordinance Review for the village. Given the similarity of work involved, especially during the first and second phases of the comprehensive planning process, PGAV representatives suggested both services could be completed at the same time within the span of 18 months. PGAV was unable to provide an exact price point for these services without first conducting an audit to see how much of an update the village would need.
A full recording of the PGAV presentation and the April 15, 2025 Godfrey Village Board meeting is available at the top of this story or on Riverbender.com/video.
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