3.0. SR 02-17-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Strategic planning focuses on the critical issues, opportunities, and problems identified by a community. It offers leaders a chance to look beyond day-to- day concerns, and even year-to-year issues like municipal tax rates. One of its most appealing features is that it helps distinguish the truly important decisions from those of temporary impact. For this reason, some have concluded that strategic planning is a new name for long range planning. However, while long range planning, strategic planning also identifies today's options. Sometimes the benefits are "hard" ones, such as 3,000 new jobs, a broad-based forum for strategy development, or significant energy savings for residents. At other times, the benefits may take less tangible form -for example, consensus on one controversical issue. The bottom line is that strategic planning is designed to improve the competitive position of a community. Strategic planning is not a panacea. It requires an investment of money and effort, and its benefits are not always immediately obvious. But it----~-a positive alternative to business as usual. Additionally, strategic planning is not intended to replace other types of planning and related activities, such as budgeting. Instead, strategic planning, is designed to help integrate activities, assuring that a common purpose and a common sense of direction guides such activity. Such a process should give a community a clearer picture of its own unique identity. Although variations are possible, the basic steps of strategic planning are as follows: (consult Attachment A for accompanying schematic showing process direction) 1. SCAN THE ENVIRONMENT An environmental scan is used to identify issues which are critical to a city's future. Critical issues can be identified by review of certain information during an environmental scan. Types of information to review during an environmental scan include population, demographics, growth, age distribution, household size, education levels, income levels and trends, school population, average size of the employer, cost and availability of financing, employment by sector, and unemployment levels. Other elements of the government which may need review in an environmental scan are fiscal health, citizen's perception, intergovernmental relations, capital improvement plans, public infrastructure, just to mention a few. Each item should be reviewed from three overall perspectives. * Past, present, and future. What has happened in the past? What is the current situation? What is likely to happen during the identified time frame? * What is happening nationally? Internationally? Within the State? In the Metropolitan Area? Within the County? In the City?