WOODSTOCK — Prompted by worries about possible future ridgeline development, Woodstock selectmen last week met with an AVCOG representative to discuss updating the town’s comprehensive plan.

Town Manager Vern Maxfield said some residents had voiced concerns that the number of homes along the town’s ridgelines might increase in coming years.

Erica Bufkins, a planner with the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments, attended last week’s selectboard meeting, which was also attended by several members of the planning board.

Planning Chairman Keith Hadley said it would be good “to protect the town as we see it,” noting that while a single landowner building a house on ridgeline property might not be significant, a series of homes would be.

Planner Charlotte Nutt speculated Woodstock might be more vulnerable to such development now, as a possible cheaper alternative to home development happening in the nearby Bethel area.

Comprehensive plans provide policies and strategies to guide future growth and development in a town, according to AVCOG information. The plan includes information on population, economic conditions, housing, natural and recreation resources.

The most important component of the plan is a future land use plan, said Bufkins, which can then guide ordinance revisions.

Having a plan in place can also make the town eligible for grants.

Woodstock crafted its original comprehensive plan in 2003, according to Maxfield, but it hasn’t been updated since.

Bufkins outlined the process for creating or updating a plan, which she said typically takes one to two years. A committee usually consists of about 10 people who together provide many perspectives and a broad representation of the town.

AVCOG planners can offer guidance as the work progresses, she said.

After the plan is completed with regular public input along the way it is voted on at Town Meeting.

The selectboard generally expressed interest in moving forward with updating the comprehensive plan, but did not make a formal decision.