Allegheny Forward

Allegheny County is updating its Comprehensive Plan, a bold, long-range framework designed to guide for growth and investments to help the county thrive over the next 25 years. This plan will shape the future of local communities by aligning land use, infrastructure, housing, culture, open space, and economic development priorities across all levels of government. More than just a vision, it will build upon existing planning efforts to deliver a clear set of actionable steps, grounded in collaboration and designed for real impact.

Allegheny Forward, the new plan, is a vision for the county’s future and an actionable roadmap to achieve it. It sets policies for development, conservation, and economic initiatives. Through 2026, Allegheny County will work to develop the new comprehensive plan and engage with the community to identify the issues the plan should address, the ways the county can address them, and how the county can best support its partners in addressing them.

Together, the Allegheny County community can create a more connected, resilient, and equitable county, now and for generations to come. Allegheny Forward will use stakeholder and public input to identify key issues and help set priorities for what this plan will address.

See County Executive Sara Innamorato's introduction to Allegheny Forward video.

Typical components of a comprehensive plan include elements like public facilities, recreation, environment, housing, economic development, public safety, and transportation.

About the Project

This plan will rely on community input to identify priorities. What are the most important problems to be addressed, opportunities to be targeted, and goals to be pursued?

To set priorities and generate ideas for improvements, the county is asking for residents' views through surveys, public meetings, and local events, and will hold work sessions with stakeholders such as partner organizations, community groups, and municipal officials.

Goals

Allegheny County is committed to creating a plan for all and delivering on the plan's promises. This means involving as many people as possible in developing the plan and creating connections to bring its recommendations to life. In late 2026, an action plan of goals and proposed strategies and improvements will be developed. As the plan is being developed, the county will:

• Involve citizens and stakeholders to help identify priorities and shape strategies
• Align how it does business to implement the plan
• Assist stakeholders in actions they can take to implement the plan

Phase II Summary

Thank you to everyone who participated in Phase II of Allegheny Forward. Whether through attending an event, sharing thoughts online, or contributing ideas, all input is helping to guide what comes next. As the Economic Development team reviews and summarizes all responses and feedback, there are already a few highlights to share:

• The Forward & Festive event kicked off the engagement period with a celebration alongside municipal leaders and community stakeholders
• Economic Development worked with municipal officials and staff, stakeholders, and residents at more than 26 events, including online public meetings, COG meetings, and community gatherings
• More than 900 people shared their perspectives through the online survey
• The places mapping activity sparked over 240 contributions, highlighting the most loved spots opportunities for improvements across the county
• 45 community members submitted their one big idea to help move Allegheny County forward

Phase III

Phase III of the comprehensive plan will analyze community feedback and determine how the collected input can shape the direction of the plan. With more than 1,000 unique contributions, themes will emerge and be included as part of this planning effort. With the established themes, Action Teams will be put in place to further analyze the themes.

Check back soon for a recap on Phase II findings, and next steps for Allegheny Forward!