Community members will have a major opportunity Tuesday to review the most up-to-date draft of Albert Lea’s new comprehensive plan.

During the final community meeting of the comprehensive plan process, Brad Scheib, project manager with Hoisington Koegler Group Inc., will present highlights of the plan, and then people will have the opportunity to give feedback.

“We just want to encourage people to come out because this plan changes the direction of the community in some respects,” said Albert Lea City Planner Bob Graham. “It presents some new concepts that will affect not only this generation but future generations.”

Albert Lea’s last comprehensive plan — which takes into consideration many aspects of the community including housing, the downtown, traffic flows, and parks and recreation — was made in the early 1970s.

Because the plan will give direction to many of the future decisions to be made by the Albert Lea City Council and other city commissions, it is important for people to come give their input on it, Graham said.

“It’s at the point that we really need the public or else we’ll have to assume that they agree, which may not be the case,” he said. “We need people to tell us now what they think — what they like and what they don’t like.”

Revising the plan has been in the works since last fall.

The Albert Lea Steering Committee will meet Monday for any last-minute reviews, and then after the community meeting Tuesday, a final document will be prepared. Then it will move through the adoption process.

To be adopted it has to be approved by groups such as the Albert Lea Planning Commission and the Albert Lea City Council. There will also be several public hearings.

The community meeting begins at 6:30 p.m. at Skyline Plaza.