POULSBO — It’s been more than 10 years since Poulsbo completed its initial comprehensive plan as required by the state’s Growth Management Act.

Since the current plan is past its expiration date, city officials are taking aim at necessary updates. But before they do, they’ve asked the state for a refresher course.

The Washington State Department of Community, Trade and Economic Development (CTED) along with The Planning Association of Washington will present a short workshop on local planning from 6-9 p.m. Jan. 24 at city hall in the council chambers.

“The course is something CTED has sponsored for quite some time and now it’s coming to Poulsbo,” said city Planning Director Barry Berezowsky.

The city council, Planning Commission, city staff and anyone else interested in learning more about the comprehensive plan update process are invited to attend the seminar, Berezowsky said.

“It’s a chance to learn a little bit about planning under GMA,” he said.

The first speaker, Phil Olbrechts of CTED, will explain the legal implications of the act and how recent court decisions and other legal decisions have shaped the act since it was first passed by the state Legislature. In addition to tackling the legal issues related to GMA, the course will outline the process of updating the comprehensive plan.

“It will have a specific focus on what it means to go through a significant revision of your comprehensive plan, which is what we are proposing to do,” Berezowsky said.

Perhaps more than any city board, the Planning Commission will play a pivotal role in the comprehensive plan update, he said.

“They’re our first line of review. Everything will be filtered through them,” Berezowsky said.

However, instead of having the commission work in isolation and take input from residents, he said one of the city’s goals is to have members of the Planning Commission and city council involved from the beginning.

“We may have them together in small groups on topical issues such as affordable housing, economic development and general land use questions,” Berezowsky said.

By having the decision makers involved in the process from the beginning, the newly created document should better reflect the community’s wishes, he said.

If the course helps get the entire city council on the same page, then it will have been a success, said Councilman Ed Stern.

“Any one element (of the comprehensive plan) can be overwhelming, so a large part of it is knowing where we are and where we’re trying to get to,” Stern said.

Even though it has been 12 years since the city last updated its comprehensive plan and its population has since tripled, Stern said the city hasn’t lost its sense of identity.

“People are saying don’t screw up Poulsbo, so that means we haven’t done it yet,” he said.

With that in mind, it is important for city officials to continue balancing the challenges associated with growth and the city’s long-held identity to keep Poulsbo, Poulsbo into the future, Stern said.