The Lawrence-Douglas County Planning Commission’s process of envisioning how the community should grow in the next 30 years kicked off Wednesday with members of four major governing bodies lending their voices.

The meeting at City Hall included officials of the city, county and planning commissions as well as the Lawrence school board.

“This is the first time we’ve had those four bodies sit down and say what’s on their minds,” Planning Director Linda Finger said. “This is the foundation the planning commission needs to do its work.”

The process grew from planning commission concerns that rural parts of the county are urbanizing without proper standards to ensure they can efficiently receive government services like sewers, roads and law enforcement.

That creates a burden on government and other taxpayers, officials said.

“The full costs of living in the country are not being paid by people living in the country,” Planning Commissioner David Burress said.

Before planning commissioners got started, though, they wanted to know the priorities of elected officials.

There was broad consensus that rural Douglas County could use some more guidance in growth. There was less agreement how to get there.

“We have to respect personal property rights,” County Commissioner Jere McElhaney said. “A lot of these people don’t have 401(k) accounts, retirement accounts like people in a secure job. The land is what they have.”

Planning Commissioner Myles Schachter took a harder line.

“Everybody can’t develop a subdivision on their land,” he said.

McElhaney said he would be willing to look at increasing the 5-acre exemption, which basically allows property owners to build a home without going through the rezoning or platting process as long as they have 5 or more acres. Critics say the exemption creates road access and traffic problems by allowing unplanned growth to occur.

“But there will have to be trade-offs” if the exemption is modified, McElhaney said.

County commissioners said they were willing to take the lead in addressing road and sewer issues that accompany rural growth.

“Shakespeare said, ‘Readiness is all,'” County Commissioner Charles Jones said. “I think we’re ready to make some moves.”

Officials said they wanted to include planners from Baldwin, Eudora and Lecompton in the process. The leaders will meet jointly again in late January.