City of Bowling Green, Kentucky

Planning, Design Review, and Engineering

Infrastructure Planning

By planning ahead, we make sure our transportation system will keep you moving in a safe and efficient manner. The City of Bowling Green, along with other regional and state agencies, are working hard to find solutions to our regional transportation problems and improve the planning process for future transportation networks. Various studies have been conducted implemented to help produce a transportation system that will help meet the needs of our fast-growing community.

For further information regarding collaboration among local agencies regarding transportation planning please visit the Metropolitan Planning Organization website.

Additionally, the Division is responsible for the City’s annual New Sidewalk Program that is intended to foster development of a “walkable” city by providing sidewalks in areas where none exist. Public Works is the proponent for, and provides general oversight of a program in which city staff, other public agencies (e.g. utilities), and neighborhood associations collaboratively advance the vision of increasing opportunities to travel throughout the community. For more information on the program details and/or candidate projects visit our New Sidewalk Program page.

Design Review

In an effort to ensure that new development is designed in a manner to meet adopted regulations as well as have minimal negative impacts to the surrounding properties, Planning and Design staff work closely with the building permit office to review all submitted building permits and associated designs within the city limits. Additionally, staff works with the City-County Planning Commission during the planning phase as new sites are identified for larger commercial and residential subdivisions to review proposed streets, stormwater infrastructure, and any potential impacts to traffic that is generated by the development. 

Staff relies on nationally adopted design and construction standards as well as local regulations for land use, road/infrastructure design, and traffic management. For more on local development regulations and standards see the City-County Planning Commission of Warren County website.

Engineering

Licensed professional engineers and one professional land surveyor are on staff within the Planning and Design Division and are responsible for identifying and ultimately designing projects that will improve and meet the needs of our growing community. Staff oversees the inspection of our city streets annually and manages the Annual Street Resurfacing Program to ultimately identify paving needs for our resurfacing contract. 

Additionally staff will often survey and design projects that have been identified through the New Sidewalk Program, Annual Storm Mitigation Program, or other capital improvement programs. Roadway widening and traffic management improvements such as new signalized intersections may also be designed in-house. Staff will provide design administration to any projects that are awarded to outside engineering firms. 

In addition to the planning and design functions with respect to the City’s infrastructure, Planning and Design staff also respond daily to citizen requests regarding right-of-way issues, stormwater runoff, and traffic concerns.