City of Dunwoody's Comprehensive Plan & Unified Development Ordinance

The Comprehensive Plan is a roadmap for long-range policy direction. It guides decisions about land use, transportation, economic development, housing, infrastructure and more as an important part of Dunwoody's continued evolution as a young and growing city.

Comprehensive Plan

In an effort to maintain its relevance and in keeping with the Rules of Georgia Department of Community Affairs, Chapter 110-12-1, Standards and Procedures for Local Comprehensive Planning, the City conducted a Comprehensive Plan Five-Year Update throughout 2015 and 2020. 

To review the current Comprehensive Plan, use this link: Comprehensive Plan 2020-2040

The City is now working on the next 10-year update to be concluded in Fall of 2025. The update coordinates the assessment of new demographic and economic data and trends, considers the current version of the Comprehensive Plan, and makes amendments based on community input.

The Comprehensive Plan is a policy document that assists decision-making and administrative actions in an effort to guide the City of Dunwoody towards the community’s preferred future. Subsequent to the original Comprehensive Plan adoption, the city has also adopted the Comprehensive Transportation Plan, Parks and Recreation Master Plan, Dunwoody Village Master Plan, the Georgetown/North Shallowford Master Plan, the Edge City 2.0 Study, and the Dunwoody Trail Master Plan as addenda, demonstrating the City’s continued commitment and efforts toward establishing an encompassing guiding policy document.

On Tuesday, July 22, the City of Dunwoody officially kicked off its comprehensive plan and unified development ordinance update at a public hearing at City Hall. At the hearing, the project team gave an overview of the project and how the community could get involved. You can find the presentation linked below.

Dunwoody City Council Presentation Slides - July 22, 2024

Unified Development Ordinance

The Unified Development Ordinance (UDO) combines all development-related regulations into one document. The process will simplify and streamline the development process to make it easier for users to understand and City staff to administer.

Here are the goals of the UDO:

• Assess existing codes from both technical and policy perspectives
• Remove conflicts to make the document internally consistent and easier to administer
• Create a modern and user-friendly document
• Make policy code updates so that it fully supports the Comprehensive Plan vision

How They Work Together

The Comprehensive Plan sets the vision and policy. The UDO implements both.

Here are the benefits to this approach:

• Provides streamlined, integrated engagement
• Prevents engagement fatigue
• Supports seamless implementation of comprehensive plan
• Encourages efficient use of public funds

Engagement Goals

To engage the Dunwoody community in this process, the City and project team will use the website for updates and online surveys for feedback. A pop-up event and public workshop were held in August and September 2024.

Engagement goals for the Comprehensive Plan and UDO include the following:

• Develop inclusive and accessible engagement and outreach activities for all communities in Dunwoody
• Diversify outreach methods to engage underrepresented groups
• Design activities that seamlessly collect input for both the Comprehensive Plan and the UDO Align engagement activities with the comprehensive planning’s goals

Project Team

City Staff
Richard McLeod - Community Development Director
Paul Leonhardt - Planning & Zoning Manager

Consultant Team
Caleb Racicot - Principal-in-Charge, TSW
Allison Stewart-Harris - Project Manager, TSW
Anna Baggett - Deputy Project Manager, TSW
Tia Maxwell-Farmer - Community Planner, TSW
Roxanne Raven - Community Planner, TSW
Eric Bosman - Kimley-Horn
Christy Dodson - Code Studio
Joe Cooley - Cooley Planning & Land Use Law

Questions? Please email Allison Stewart-Harris or Richard McLeod