HUNTSVILLE — What do you want Walker County to look like in 30 years?

This is the question that the Houston-Galveston Area Council seeks to answer through a regional plan. The plan is being funded through a grant from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. H-GAC represents a 13-county region including Walker, Montgomery, Liberty, Chambers, Galveston, Brazoria, Matagorda, Wharton, Fort Bend, Harris, Waller, Austin and Colorado.

At a meeting held Thursday night at the Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center, many civic leaders and private citizens came to discuss the plan and what it means for Walker County.

Several residents wanted to know who asked for the plan, if the government was going to be involved in local affairs and what the cost of the plan might be to Walker County.

Meredith Dang with H-GAC said the plan is being funded through the HUD by a grant and there is no cost to individual counties.

“We were awarded the grant and now we're finally starting to be able to hear your input,” Dang said.

Amanda Thorin with H-GAC said Thursday's meeting had the highest turnout of any county visited in the process.

“People are very engaged with lots of good questions and good participation,” she said. “We hope all future meetings look a lot like this. When you engage with the public, there are always questions about processes that are new. We were happy to come here and be a part of answering questions people might have.”

Mayor Mac Woodward and council members Tish Humphrey, Joe Emmett, Ronald Allen and Lydia Montgomery were in attendance, as well as Pct. 1 county commissioner B.J. Gaines. Many members of the Sam Houston Tea Party attended as well.

Walker is the northernmost county in the 13-county region, and as such, has different needs than coastal counties or urban counties like Harris.

Liz Drake with H-GAC led Thursday's meeting and questioned attendees about their vision for Walker County.

“We're identifying the things you like about your community and learning what you want to build on,” she said. “There is no plan until we get your info and we understand what your priorities are. The plan is going to look at current conditions in a few areas like housing, economic development and healthy communities.”

Drake said the key part of the plan, however, is not looking at current conditions but future.

“It's really much more focused on what our region will look like 30 years from now,” she said. “One size does not fit all. What works here is not going to necessarily work in other counties. The plan wants to tailor strategies that are specific to each community.”

There are common issues all counties face, Drake said, such as availability of good jobs and affordable housing. Transportation issues were also discussed.

Some of the questions the plan seeks to address are, how do we create good jobs and prepare people to be part of the economy of the future? What are the best ways to invest in transportation and infrastructure? How do we protect important resources like water, air, farmland and forests? How do we build safe, healthy and attractive neighborhoods?

Drake said the regional plan does not seek to replace any plans already in place, but complement a local community's existing plan.

“It lays out a menu of choices that can be put into place based on each community's needs, priorities and aspirations,” she said. “It does not require local governments to adopt policies or measures. We hope that at the end of this two-year process there will be a lot of good information to help communities plan, but there are no mandates. It's essentially a blueprint.”

Drake said population growth in the 13-county region is outpacing that of anywhere else in the country. Not planning is planning to fail, she said.

“You have to think about what kind of growth you want in Walker County,” she said. “Why now? I'm probably stating the obvious by stating that the 13-county region is one of the most diverse and fastest growing in the nation. Walker County could add about 17,500 residents by 2035.”

Currently, 6 million residents live in the 13-county region. By 2040, as many as 10 million residents could live here.

“Walker County is showing some fairly significant growth,” Drake said. “What are the ways in which we can prepare for that growth and maintain quality of life? Change happens whether we plan for it or not. The guiding theme of the plan is sustainability.”

Anyone can share ideas for the plan at www.ideas.our region.org.