Council looks to set priorities
Weekend meetings will give new group a chance to lay out ideas and goals for upcoming term
The direction of the city government for the next four years will be hashed out this weekend.
City council members, elected to terms in October, will take part in meetings this weekend to lay out ideas and develop strategic priorities for the group in the coming term.
That in turn will guide policy and program development until at least 2021 or sooner, if council members agree to update or augment the plan in the meantime.
What might be accomplished over that time and where city hall should target its efforts over that time will be debated this weekend.
“We’ll all be going in with an open mind, and let the process take its course,” said Mayor Ted Clugston, who during the campaign said he hoped to see less publiclyfunded construction and a focus on city finances in the coming years.
“We’ll look at the last strategic plan ... see how we did or didn’t. I don’t expect there to be a huge change in priorities, but there may be changes in (what we see as) goals.”
The previous document was written after meetings of new councillors shortly after the 2013 election. It outlines six extremely broad priorities, such as economic development, infrastructure, social wellness, civic profile, fiscal management and city governance.
Each had sub-goals and key performance indicators. For example, support for downtown improvement grants was listed among other programs under economic development.
Goals also included completing major construction projects, including final portions of a flood berm system, set to go to tender this fall.
An escalating plan to replace aging infrastructure stemmed from another priority, as did a plan to boost recreation and business opportunities on the riverfront. Targets for city services and other measures are born with the list in mind.
For several years now, background documents provided with items that arrive at council explain how the item pertains to one or more priorities.
A new document will similarly be used as a broad guideline for staff when they develop policy options and programs.
Developing the strategy will be a current council group that includes one member new to government, two returning aldermen who served before 2013, three entering their second consecutive term, and three multiple-term council veterans, including Clugston.
First-term councillor Kris Samraj said he’s helped develop strategic plans in his private career, but on a much smaller scale.
“It’s a chance to get all the councillors in the room together, hear their ideas, and hopefully some patterns and trends will emerge,” he said. “We’ll focus on those things we have in common together, and prioritize them.”
Coun. Robert Dumanowski — in his sixth term — told the News this week that council must still be cognizant of financial challenges outlined in the Financially Fit budget review. That plan, adopted in late 2016, seeks to erase a multi-million-dollar revenue gap with targeted cuts, cost containment and tax hikes.
During the election most candidates expressed economic development as a key issue facing the city, especially diversifying not only the economy but also city revenue from the energy division.
Fiscal management, lessening tax increases and improving results of energy and power generation business units were also popular platforms generally supported by voters.
The actual document may not be ready to be publicized for a month or more, but Clugston said he’d like to reveal some facets of the plan at the annual “State of the City” address later this month.