By Sara L. Smith
VIEW Staff Writer

GRAND BLANC TWP. — Instead of grabbing for a huge bundle and thumbing through a massive stack of papers to find something, residents will soon be able to check on a host of local ordinances through the mere click of a mouse.

Township officials approved the first reading of a proposed digital zoning ordinance at meeting on Sept. 11. The measure should become effective by November.

Now, instead of searching through a hoard of papers supplied by the township to verify information pertaining to a myriad of local zoning issues, residents will be able to surf through countless pages and pages of documents through Adobe Reader on their home computers or wireless laptops, after simply popping a burned CD into the disc drive and voila, more than 250 pages of documents will be at their fingertips.

Any specific page or ordinance information that one would want can be easily downloaded and printed within moments, allowing for instant gratification.

This would be in marked contrast to sifting through pages of cumbersome documents before coming to the one piece of relevant information that one might require.

Rod Arroyo, the township’s planner, indicated that the digital method is much more efficient and highly beneficial to residents hoping to access pertinent zoning ordinance information.

He added that the software necessary to access this information is free and that most consumers would have it readily available to them. Free copies of the zoning ordinances disc will be available to anyone who wants one, though paper copies still may be purchased for $25 each, indicated Keith Edwards, community development director of Grand Blanc Township.

“It’s easier to use,” said Edwards. “Here are the rules.”

He cited the sheer simplicity associated with the digital format as being conducive to getting some zoning projects completed more easily. The ordinances, are not any different, however.

Officials plan to unveil the digital method in a special presentation at a statewide conference next month.

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