The Chesterfield County Board of Supervisors adopted a new comprehensive plan in October. Titled Moving Forward - The Comprehensive Plan for Chesterfield County, the new plan will serve as a guide to future growth and development. The plan is the culmination of several years of hard work by county staff, the Planning Commission, county residents and other stakeholders.

In addition to the typical components of a comprehensive plan, such as land use and transportation, the new plan guides important efforts relative to revitalization, economic development, the environment, and historical and cultural resources. Among these, revitalization is perhaps the most significant new initiative for Chesterfield County.

For several decades, the county concentrated on responding to the impacts of rapid growth by providing new facilities and services farther away from existing infrastructure. This focus funneled attention away from maintenance and modernization needs of existing facilities, causing a lack of physical parity between older and newer facilities. This has resulted in established communities having public facilities of lower quality than those of newer communities. The result is most apparent among the county's schools.

The new comprehensive plan emphasizes investment in the county's established communities and their public facilities and infrastructure. Maintaining the vitality of these established communities is important for all county residents and businesses. By bringing older schools and other facilities up to par with newer ones, the established communities will become more attractive to new residents and businesses, bringing even more reinvestment into these areas.

This is just one of the many initiatives that the new plan identifies as important to the county's future. The plan is a long-range guide for development and growth decisions and reflects county values. Though the plan is adopted, much work remains to carry out its recommendations. Doing so will require the ongoing input and support of county residents and businesses. The plan's most important role is to enhance for future generations the already outstanding quality of life that Chesterfield County residents enjoy today.

For more information about the comprehensive plan, visit  www.chesterfield.gov/plan  or contact the Chesterfield County Planning Department at 804-748-1050.

• The next Board of Supervisors meetings will be held on Nov. 28 and Dec. 12. Dates for 2013 will be set on Jan. 9 during the board's organization meeting. Meetings take place in the Public Meeting Room, 10001 Iron Bridge Road. Sessions typically begin at 3 p.m., break at 5 p.m., and then resume at 6:30 p.m.
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• As the holiday shopping season continues, Chesterfield County is reminding residents of the extremely beneficial impact they have when they decide to shop locally. Supporting local merchants means supporting your community. The tax revenue generated by shopping locally helps Chesterfield County to continue providing quality public services. Everyone can help if they choose to "Shop Chesterfield!" Even small purchases over time make a big difference. For instance, if each Chesterfield County household redirected $25 of the money they spend each week to county businesses, it could generate $1.5 million in revenue for local public services. 
• On Dec. 5, one of Kroger's largest stores in the mid-Atlantic region, a 123,600-square-foot Kroger Marketplace, will open at Stonebridge, located at the site of the former Cloverleaf Mall. The grocery store represents the first phase of the development of an 83-acre, mixed-use project on Midlothian Turnpike. Three of the six other buildings that are part of phase one also are under construction. By the final phases, it is anticipated that there could be a 400,000-square-foot, $100 million redevelopment along one of the county's key business corridors. The developer is Crosland Southeast, a private developer based in Charlotte, N.C., and its equity partner is Hutensky Capital Partners of Hartford, Conn.
• After months of public outreach, surveys, focus groups and planning, the Hull Street 360 project, a coalition of the city of Richmond, Chesterfield County and Virginia Local Initiatives Support Corporation, held a public workshop on Oct. 23. As the meeting evolved, it was evident that the project was highly important to the residents of this very diverse community. Participants included residents, Neighborhood Watch leaders, representatives from GRTC Transit System and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Participants took a visual tour of the project area through posters and displays that showed the improvements anticipated during the next few years. Officials answered questions, took suggestions and got valuable feedback.
• Two new large corporations are boosting economic development in Meadowville Technology Park. The 1 million-square-foot Amazon Fulfillment Center is now complete and goods began to ship to consumers in October. The online retailer has hired about 750 people so far, and expects to fill more seasonal jobs during the holiday season  Capital One's new data center, worth $150 million, is under construction and, along with Amazon, will result in more than 1,100 new jobs in the county and nearly $3 million a year in revenue. Meadowville, at its build-out, will look like a campus of high-tech businesses employing an estimated 7,200 workers and have a private investment totaling $2.9 billion and 14.9 million square feet of office and industrial space.
• On Dec. 11, 12:30 p.m., the Whistle Stop Train Tour will stop at the Ettrick Train Station to celebrate the new Amtrak Virginia service connecting Norfolk to Amtrak's Northeast Corridor. The event is hosted by the Virginia Department of Rail and Public Transportation, Amtrak, Norfolk Southern Railway and CSX, in cooperation with the state and the county.

• The regional James River Advisory Council's 20th Annual James River Parade of Lights will be held on Saturday, Dec. 8. Boats decorated with thousands of lights will cruise the James between Richmond and Henrico and Chesterfield counties. Multiple viewing sites, several of which provide additional entertainment, make it easy for people throughout the region to view this spectacular holiday tradition on the James. Admission is free to all sites. There will be multiple sites in the city of Richmond, Chesterfield and Henrico counties. For more information, including directions, visit  jrac-va.org or call 804-717-6681.
• Tune in to Chesterfield County's 18th annual children's holiday safety special on Chesterfield LIVE! Monday, Dec. 17, 7-8 p.m., on Comcast of Chesterfield channel 17 and Verizon FiOS TV of Chesterfield channel 27. This family-oriented, one-hour special will feature representatives from Chesterfield County's Police Department, Emergency Communications Center and the Department of Fire and Emergency Medical Services. Children may email safety-related questions to pa@chesterfield.gov by Dec.14. Five lucky participants will be randomly selected to win a gift card. Or to ask a question during the live show, call 915-0700.Children should get permission from their parents or guardians before emailing or calling.