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Glossary

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General plan

Plan adopted at the city, county, or regional level, written to guide local growth and land development currently and over a long-term period, 10-20 years after adoption. The plans should be reviewed, and possibly updated every 5 years. It covers a range of topics, including public and private land development proposals, zoning, expenditure of public funds, availability of tax incentives, cooperative efforts, green measures for sustainable practices, and issues of great concern, such as farmland preservation or the infill in older neighborhoods areas. It is also called a comprehensive plan, land-use plan, or master plan.

Geographic scale or levels

Size or scope of an area or activity, categorized as local (ward, district, parish, neighborhood, city, county, or region), state, territorial, or tribal.

Greenway

A linear open space established along a natural corridor (e.g., an urban riverside corridor along a city waterfront or and an ecologically significant natural corridor that provides nature study and hiking).