COPPERAS COVE, Texas (KXXV) — “We’ve lived here for 20 years, but it looks the exact same way as it did 20 years ago – at least in town,"Wayne Knutson, a resident of Copperas Cove, said. "I am excited for it. I'd like to see what Copperas Cove turns into over the next 20 years."
With rapid growth in the Central Texas area, smaller communities within it are taking control of what that growth will look like.
“It’s come and gone," Knutson said. "We’ve seen businesses come in, and I think that maybe an analysis – maybe just ask people what kind of new businesses they want to see in the area."
That is what the Economic Development Corporation (EDC) did. The EDC sent out an input questionnaire to hear residents' visions for the future.
“We need the residents to feel like they are a part of what’s going on. We need to do a little bit of defining ourselves as a community, of what we want to be,” Fred Welch, with the Economic Development Corporation, said.
The questionnaire is part of a much larger project focused on ways to drive and improve economic growth in the community.
The EDC hopes to target retail attractions, small businesses, expand parks and amenities, and invest in infrastructure. Still, the end goal is to craft a plan that not only strengthens what the community already has, but also paves the way for new opportunities ahead.
“This isn’t the end," Welch said. "The thing about future plans is that they’re a 3- to 5-year guideline. You're constantly updating. As we move along, we will have to continue to gather input."
Welch said the next steps are small group meetings with stakeholders. A firm is also creating a plan proposal, and they hope to have it presented in the next few months.
