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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2001 09-04 Workshop CITY OF MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL STRA TEGIC PLANNING SESSION / WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September 4, 2001, at 5:30 P.M. City Council Chambers Roll Call: _X_ Tammy deWeerd _X_ Cherie McCandless _O_Ron Anderson _X Keith Bird _X_Mayor Robert Corrie Issue #1 Discussion and presentation by John Luthy on developing a strategic plan and planning process for the City of Meridian Presented Meridian City Council Workshop Agenda - September 4, 2001 Page 1 of 1 All materials presented at public meetings shall become property of the City of Meridian. Anyone desiring accommodation for disabilities related to documents and/or hearings, please contact the City Clerk's Office at 888-4433 at least 48 hours prior to the public meeting. CITY OF MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL STRA rEGie PLANNING SESSION / WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September 4, 2001, at 5:30 P.M. City Council Chambers Roll Call: -L Tammy deWeerd X . Cherie McCandless o Ron Anderson ~Keith Bird ,X' Mayor Robert Corrie Issue #1 Discussion and presentation by John Luthy on developing a strategic plan and planning process for the City of Meridian /reJhvI~t:0 ,or{}ce55 Meridian city CooneH Workshop Agenda - September 4, 2001 Page 1 of 1 AU materials presented at public meetings shall beccme property d the City of Meridian. Anyone desiring accornmcx!ation for disabilities related to documents and/or hearings, please contact the City Clerk's OffICe at 888-4433 at teast 48 hours prior to the public meeting. CITY OF MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL STRA rEGIe PLANNING SESSION / WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September4, 2001, at 5:30 P.M. City Council Chambers Roll Call: __X_ Tammy deWeerd _X_ Cherie McCandless _ O___Ron Anderson _X Keith Bird _X_Mayor Robert Corrie Issue #1 Discussion and presentation by John Luthy on developing a strategic plan and planning process for the City of Meridian Presented Meridian City Council Workshop Agenda - September 4, 2001 Page 1 of 1 All materials presented at public meetings shall become property of the City of Meridian. Anyone desiring accommodation for disabilities related to documents and/or hearings, please contact the City ClerI(s Office at 888-4433 at least 48 hours prior to the public meeting. { ** TX CONF I'. f ION REPORT ** ( AS OF SEP 04 '0i .1:05 PAGE. 01 CITY OF MERIDIAN DATE TIME TO/FROM MODE MIN/SEC PGS CMD~ STATUS 10 09/04 10=48 PUBLIC WORKS UF--S 00' 15" 001 244 OK 11 09/04 10: 49 2002882501 EC--S 00'23" 001 244 OK 12 09/04 10:50 2088845077 EC--S 00' 24" 001 244 OK 13 09/04 10=51 208 B98 5501 EC--S 0121'24" 1211211 244 OK 14 09/04 10: S2 8886854 EC--S 00'24" 001 244 OK 15 09/04 10=53 2083757154 EC--S 01' 19" 001 244 OK 16 09/04 10:54 8950390 EC--S 00'23" 001 244 OK 17 09/04 11:05 CHERIE MCCANDLES ----5 00' 00" 000 244 BUSY THIS DOCUMENT IS STILL IN MEMORY -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- IfHh: ~fa--vi~),"',:f- lIetf.a.r HUB OF TREASURE VALLEY A Good Place [0 Live CITY OF MERIDIAN MAYOR Roben D. Corrie ClTY COUNCIL MEMBERS Ron Anderson Keith Bird Tammy deWcerd Cherie McCandless 33 EAST IDAHO MERIDIAN, IDAHO 83642 (208) 888.4433 · Fax (208) 887..48)3 City Clerk Office Fax (208) 888-4218 w~ Ill/1I'lIYv' r)/ ~ rJ; , '" P !//iJ/ pp_ yfrtlte~l tJ-ff pye -1~{ . (prO 1h~ NOTICE OF SPECIAL WORKSHOP rJ;:liV, ~ Lft. roct jO'f)/11/ p b~ MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL LEGAL DEPARTMENT (208) 288.2499 · Pv: 288~250J PUBUC WORKS BUILDING DEPARTMENT (208) 887.2211 · Fnx 8S7~1297 PLANNING AND ZONJ'NG DEPARTMENT (208) 884.5533 · Fax 888.6854 SA t:"J /C\ J(./Yt;~ r ;.:J~/~ t. /3;// IZ /L"~ /1- 6; /3//1 In(j[f~ SA~ rf. 0C{.rt/.I. 13 rill~d w. T (rn... IL. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Meridian will hold a Special Workshop at City Hall, 33 East Idaho, Meridian. Idaho, on Tuesday, September 4th, 2001 at 5:30 pm. The Meridian City Council will be The public is welcome to attend. discussing procedures and process for strategic planning for the City of Meridian. DATED this 30th day of August, 2001. d~~~t~CLERK 4 ~ ~'f"\~ ..t.=...~ 3;,\~r ~. ~t~ ~l.~;~~t~1,:~t}.;.. ~ ..." i"t~~ "f ( Meridian City Council Special Joint Meeting with Ada County Highway District September 4. 2001 The special joint meeting of the Meridian City Council and Ada County Highway District was called to order at 4:30 P.M. on Tuesday September 4, 2001 by President Keith Bird for the City of Meridian and by Commission President Judy Peavey-Derr for ACHD. Members Present: Keith Bird, Cherie McCandless, and Tammy de Weerd. Members Absent: Ron Anderson. Other Staff Present: Gary Smith, and Will Berg. ACHD Commissioners Present: Judy Peavey-Derr, David Wynkoop, David Bivens, and Sherrie Huber. ACHD Staff Present: Katey Levihn, Brian Harris, Jerry Schweitzer, Steve Spickelmier, and Kent Brown. (inaudible discussion amongst group) Peavey-Derr: --Katey is going to go over this. This is in regard to construction on Overland and Franklin. We have asked staff to do (inaudible) work to do Overland in one piece and Franklin in one piece. As you'll see, we had planned it differently but we think this works better with the opening of the high school. We think we can push budgets around and items around and make it work. So. Lets have Katey go through it and see what you think. Bird: Can I read this first, Judy? Peavey-Derr: Sure. If you folks agree, then we've got this scheduled for our agenda tomorrow night. Bird: Council will open up the meeting between the Ada County Commissioners and the Meridian City Council for a special joint workshop, September 4th at 4:30. We'll open and let it be known that De Weerd, McCandless, and Bird are here. Okay, go ahead. Levihn: Thank you, City of Meridian. First of all, what I've handed out here is how we currently have the Franklin and Overland Road scheduled. (inaudible) talking about how we're proposing changing. Just to refresh your memory, the way their currently scheduled in the 5 year work program, is to do Franklin Road, East First to Nola in 2003. Then if you go to the lower left, Overland from Meridian to Locust Grove in 2004. Also Franklin Road from Nola to Eagle in 2004. Then do Overland from Locust Grove to Eagle in 2005. As our president said the ( Meridian City Council Joint 'Ivorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 2 Commissioners asked us to take a really good hard look at trying to open Overland Road from Locust Grove to Eagle in 2003. You know, (inaudible) to five lanes with our construction completed then. Hopefully, in August in time to be substantially complete by the time the school opened. I just wanted to let you know what we currently had planned and what everybody was looking. The slide show is done for the presentation tomorrow which is (inaudible) September 5th decision for our Commission to act on tomorrow if you all agree this looks right. Yes. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: Oh, that's okay. Peavey-Derr: We're just getting to the good part. Levihn: We're just getting to the good part. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Mayor Corrie arrives Bird: I already took care of our paper, Mayor. Corrie: Do what? Bird: The opening, I already got that. Corrie: Good, thank you. Levihn: I was just explaining this handout is not on the presentation. Its what we currently have scheduled on Overland and Franklin Roads. We have Franklin up here on the west side in 2003. Then the east side of Franklin, west side of Overland in 2004. Then the east side of Overland in 2005. Of course your high school is opening in 2003. So, our commission requested that staff take a really good hard look at trying to accommodate the opening of Overland from Locust Grove to Eagle in the summer of 2003 in order to be widened to 5 lanes and completed by the time the high school opens. Wynkoop: I might interject that Katey has been very diplomatic (inaudible). They have worked really hard (inaudible). Peavey-Derr: I think, much to your credit, they kind of did the impossible --. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: So, the first thing the Commission asked us to look at was Overland from ( ( Meridian City Council Joint \1vorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 3 Locust Grove to Eagle opening in 2003. We went through and did that. I do have back up because we were having technical problems earlier so I'm going to hand it out while Brian tries to help me there. I apologize for that. We'll talk from here. If you go to the second page - (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: -- what we're going to present to the Commission tomorrow night, again with your concurrence is, option 1 which is building and just moving the Overland Locust Grove to Eagle portion up to 2003. We looked at that and staff went on and found there were some difficulties with that which we'll move there. I'll explain to you so we came up with an option 2 which is completely re-sequencing the four roadways. So, go to the next page, option 1 Overland, Locust Grove to Eagle and continue on. The next page shows a little chart like this. We have looked - What we have to do is look with our preliminary design that's already been and upgrade it in order to get this designed soon enough so that we can get right-af-way acquired. I'm not sure why we've (inaudible). Okay. Get right-af-way acquired. So, what we would end up with is the section over on the right. We need 90 foot of right-af-way, 5 lane roadway. The road itself would be 72 feet back to back. We would have a 7 foot attached sidewalk which meets all of our current policy standards. Then down at the bottom you'll notice that we, staff recommends and the Commission agrees to stripe bike lanes on there which will all tit in that right-at-way section. Huber: Katey, whafs the lane width on that suppose to be? Levihn: Well, Steve, I believe Steve, isn't it eleven and a halt or twelve? Spickelmier: Twelve. Levihn: Twelve. Now, what you're getting is the whole thing here. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: We got different colors here. Levihn: Back to back means from the curb to the curb. Bird; I was going to say because, yes, you've got to change the color because 203 is --. What I've got on here says 203 but what you showed up there said --. De Weerd: I'll get that. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) ( ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 4 Levihn: Can we move on? Or try on? Okay and go to the next slide. So, you're getting all of the slides. These were suppose to be hidden. Keep going. Not that we're hiding anything but --. Okay- (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: It was just a lot of detail. What we've got here is what the sequencing would look like with just moving that lower right hand eastern portion of Overland Road. We'd end up with this diagonal arrangement. You can see the 2 purples in 2003, Franklin Road to the west, Overland to the east. Then of course the opposite in 2004. Overland on the west and Franklin on the east. Next one. So, the pros of doing this option are it would satisfy your request for substantial completion (inaudible) from the school district is 8-29-03. That's the last Monday in August. We'd be able to get the Overland and Locust Grove intersection completed as a part of this project. Currently it's scheduled to be a part of the Locust Grove overpass. But we would pull that out and do that intersection. There's a minor cost savings there because of using existing plans. The problems with this is having moved things up, it impacts our 2002 budget by nearly a million dollars, if all we do is move this road up. It gives us a very compressed schedule on Overland Road which has increased pressure on us to meet the schedule and one significant schedule delay or a series of little hiccups would mean we may not be able to meet that school date. The diagonal schedule like I showed you, the kind of criss-cross complicates traffic and emergency vehicle routing during construction. It also complicates construction because those 2 miles take 14, 15 months to do instead of a year. We might not have enough time to do the 2 sets of roads in 2004. We have an anticipated slight right-of-way increase to accelerate our appraisers and negotiators. So, staff looked at all of that and decided there was enough problems with just moving that one road that we would look at re-sequencing the whole 4 mile roadway. This is the one we ended up recommending. We end up with this 2 mile schedule. All of Overland, now from east of Meridian to Eagle in 2003. Then all of Franklin from Meridian to Eagle in 2004. This will show what it looked like. There's Overland 2003, Franklin 2004. We would get the overpass provided it fits with ITD's arrangement in 2005. You will notice that the intersection in the lower left there of State Highway 69 and Meridian, it will take enough significant update on the design to match ITD's current roadway that we would have to pull that intersection out and probably do it in 2005. But, you see the intersection in the middle of the purple, the Locust Grove one, we would separate out a Locust Grove contract and build it with the Overland Road. So, you would get clear from east of Eagle to east of Meridian built at the one time. Then on Franklin Road we go from East First, again over to Eagle. The pros of doing this again, it satisfy your request to have the road open for the school. It improves the construction sequencing and traffic and emergency vehicle routing. I understand, I've only been here two and a half years, but that Meridian has requested in the past that we build in 2 mile segments. So, this will be meeting that requirement. You would get 4 miles of road, the 2 on Overland and 2 on Franklin completed in 2 ( ( , Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 5 years instead of 3; 2003 and 4 instead of 3, 4, and 5. A little bit of Franklin would hang over actually into 2005 but it would actually be completed. ITO has recently informed us they plan on doing a little more work on Meridian Road, just south at Overland. This would not conflict with them since we would be done in 2003 instead of the 2004. As I said, the Overland and Locust Grove intersection would be completed and we have this minor cost savings. So, the cons are it does still impact our fiscal year 2002 budget. It's dropped to half a million because we would move Franklin, East First to Nola into 2004. So, it kind of offsets some of the Overland work. We would also propose in 2002, putting in a temporary signal at Franklin and Stratford for your fire station since we wouldn't get to that work until 2004, instead of 2003. We have the same constraints here. It really does put a lot of pressure on us to complete Overland. So, one delay, if it's a significant one, it effects the schedule. We may not be able to meet it although we do our best. The right-at-way cost increase, somewhat. That's from Overland Road again to accelerate the acquisition of it. Of course Franklin, East First to Nola, which was scheduled to be built in 2003 is now going to be in 2004. But instead you get the 2 miles on Overland. Then this totally effects our 5 year work program. We have to look at shifting other dollars around in the 3 or 4 years. Some of the things we have to consider, and I'll just run through these quickly just so you know the constraints we're under. The design has to be completed in 7 months on Overland for both sections. Like I said, we have to live with our preliminary plans, just modifying them to improve the roadway width and get the sidewalks and the bike lanes in there. We do have a very specific sequence that we need to do timely. What that is, is we have to do the structures; and this holds for either Overland or Franklin. We would probably come in and start doing the structures. By that I mean the bridges and the culverts where there's water. They have to start on December 1 st of the year they're scheduled to start and be done by March 15th because ot the water in the canals and the restrictions. Then there may be a month or 2 of gap. There may not, depending on how our right-of-way acquisition goes before we could do the roadways and the intersections. Again, Overland and Meridian intersection would follow a little later probably in 2005. On Overland Road again, we have to use the existing studies traffic and air quality. Those kinds of things. We would try very hard to hold only changes not effecting the schedule to be allowed. Our public involvement process, we would still plan on having one. It would just have to be very quick and modified to get it done. We do have the issue of Idaho Power putting in their major transmission line along the north side of Overland. It would require significant formation with them and us and possibly some help from you on that. On Franklin Road, the design consideration of course it allows a little bit more time. The western section from East First to Nola is already under design. Our right-of-way acquisition, we would have more than one year on one hand, on the schedule, but on the other we would have to divert resources to Overland Road. So, it's kind of a trade off. Nola to Eagle, it's currently scheduled to start the design this October and it would follow its normal routine procedure. This is more for our Commission; we do have the net budget in and (inaudible) 5 year work program impacts. The fiscal year 2001, we've already gone ahead and started the survey ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 6 on Overland Road from Locust Grove to Eagle in order to meet this schedule. So, that $50,000 is just for the survey. 2002 we have to find roughly half a million. 2003 a little over 900,000. 2004 another million. Then 2005 this frees up about 1.7 million because, all the complicated switches we're talking about here between the Locust Grove overpass and re-sequencing Overland and Franklin. In our 5 year work program analysis, and we're just starting the update on that. A little difficult to say exactly where the (inaudible) project would land until we go through that process because of course we've had other changes occurring in this last year. What it would look like would be a logical thing to do right now is, in 2004, we have currently scheduled that large intersection, East First, Waltman Meridian and Central to be done. If we're finishing up on Franklin and everything what would be really, seem to be logical would be to move that to 2005. That would balance those last 2 years. Like I said, I'm not sure that that would happen but that's one possibility. In the 2002 budget, we think we can work that out internally. Then the 2003, we'd have to again do the overall 5 year work program analysis. Overall, the changes in and of themselves without considering the Idaho Power pole relocation work or any of the other projects that are going on, essentially balance out to zero. Slightly increase right-of-way cost; slightly decreased design and you know a small amount for the signal at Franklin and Stratford. That's pretty much the end. The next light I think is the decision time for the Commission for tomorrow night. One other point of information. We did contact Wendell Bingham at the school district and their construction is essentially going to be complete before 2003. They want a year to allow the sod to settle in. They've got a little bit of road asphalt to lay in the summer. But, it looks like; we were concerned at one point about construction interference between our roadway being torn up and the high school. It looks like that can be solved and the school district are willing to work with us on those times and we need to you know, interfere a little bit with some of the aspects. With that we're open for questions or comments. Bird: On the bike lanes out there, are they going to be located right next to the roadway like they are on Pine and all that? On Overland? Levihn: Yes, they're in the roadway, striped. De Weerd: I know you have a policy of detached sidewalks and that's kind of something we like to see you get back to. Can you do a wider sidewalk and just have the bike path there, rather than in the road? Bird: In the road? Levihn: With the limited (inaudible) stay with the 90 foot right of way, if we go back to this one chart. If we followed our policy we would have the 7 foot attached sidewalk. So, you get the wider sidewalk plus the bike lane, but not the detached sidewalk. ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 7 (inaudible discussion amongst Council) De Weerd: All right. But that is the policy where its detached rather than attached. Levihn: We have either. We have both sections, a 90 foot and 96 foot in the policy. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: Steve, if you have any more to comment on the design, just jump in. De Weerd: Can you do detached on one side? These arterials - Bird: Even if you attach it, if you widen it Tammy, you've got the right idea and put the bikes up there. I don't like that bikes down on --. I mean, it's horrible. You go down Pine Street and you're --. You know we swerve out into the other lane to get it. I suggest that you go look at any high school and see how many bicycles are parked there. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Brown: Kent Brown, (inaudible). I think most of you know me. What's going to be there will be a wide sidewalk and plus the bike lanes. There are numerous studies that the best one's been done is probably (inaudible) on bicycle facilities. Where you have bicycle facilities that are attached to sidewalks, that's when you get the most casualties on bicycles because with them part of a sidewalk, the bicycle is suppose to be like a pedestrian. What happens on those, especially in situations where you don't have a median down the center of the road, where you have a left turn lane which is what this is going to have, right? What happens, the bicyclist gets on that, the guy that's out and making a left hand turn, he's not watching to see if there's a bicyclist over there on the sidewalk. He's watching to see when he gets a break in traffic. Now, remember, they're going to go across two lanes. So, suddenly he gets a break in traffic. He makes his left turn and there's the bicyclist. When they're in the road, when you get a class A bicyclist, and they're acting like cars then he has more of a tendency to see it like a car and to see that bicyclist. But there's a lot of studies. The best one I know of was done in Palo Alto California where I personally spent quite a bit of time and there are a lot of bicyclist and that what it showed . You have those bicycle pathways, they're not part of the road, that's when you get the most casualties on bicycles. What is going to be designed in this situation, you will get both. You'll still have a wide sidewalk there so the class B or C bicyclists, or kids, they can get up on there and they can be like a pedestrian. But, if you want to treat bicycles like vehicles, our state law, if you put them in a bicycle lane, it should be in the road. ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 412001 Page 8 Bird: I just hope you make them wide enough --. I mean, this out on Pine, you've got a wide -- . Your handlebars are practically outside of the lines. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Brown: It'll be 6 feet (inaudible). Bird: Yes. Huber: Yes, one area, because I think we really need to emphasize the compressed schedule. I don't know about you guys but my experience when there's a compressed schedule is sometimes when things don't go as smooth as you'd like. So, we've identified one potential area ot concern. We hope that maybe you guys can help us a little bit too. That is getting utility poles moved. We're concerned that that's a potential hang up of not keeping on schedule. We kind of briefly went through some areas today. So, if you can help us in any way on that we would appreciate it. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Corrie: (inaudible) the power company yet on that? Peavey-Derr: Katey have you talked to the power company? Levihn: We did. We had our assistant manager of engineering and he has spoken with them and they are very willing to work with us. We just cannot begin our right-af-way acquisition until our design is farther along. But, they are willing to work with us and if we have to they're also willing to kind of (inaudible) .in and out depending on where they can get right-at-way acquisition to try to minimize the relocation of those poles. They're just not (inaudible). (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Unidentified Speaker: I think the ACHD Commission as a whole is determined as much as possible to speed these 2 projects up just as much as we can because of the volume of traffic and how fast everything is growing and the high school. But, we will be taking the vote on this tomorrow evening between these 2 options; option 1 and 2. I would be very interested to know if the City Council has a preference between them. De Weerd: I really do like that (inaudible) Bird: I Like option 2, too. De Weerd: I think it just makes a lot more sense getting it done all at once and not having the conflicting --. I really do believe what Katey said, it really would ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 9 interrupt our emergency services and we'll have chaos on both sides of the freeway. It just, to me, makes a lot more sense. It is indeed a high priority I think with the city and having that school go in that roads are concurrent with the opening of the schools and minimizing the impact of the congestion that's going to happen over there and the disruption that (inaudible). We've already seen the disruption as it right now, having that road closed for (inaudible) between Locust Grove and Eagle, doing the utility work. It's the city. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: We know who's doing that. It's called a sewer. De Weerd: We've already seen a lot of the impact that it's going to have. So, I think getting it done in one final swoop is going to have the least amount of impact on the residents in that area. Peavey-Derr: To follow up with not only the residents. We had a brief discussion as soon as the decision is made that Larry Sale, our business contact will immediately go to the businesses, which there's not too many along there and get them on board. Look at what issues they may have to try and get those resolved. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: -- They'll be running out there grabbing Larry's hand. Peavey-Derr: Kissing him? Oh, good Larry will be happy. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: Really you don't have that many people to purchase --. There's not that many landowners between there. You know, you've got one or 2 developers that own quite a bit of that frontage, from Eagle on in that I would think would be happy to do some donating. (inaudible discussion amongst group) Corrie: Yes. I haven't had any problems with option 2 except for one thing. This intersection. You're going to have 5 lanes going through that intersection. It's a terrible one now. If you can see your way at all, some way to get that boosted up because if you've got 5 lanes, high school kids everybody taking this road here, that intersection is going to be a death trap for a lot of (inaudible) (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: Its bad right now. ( Meridian City Council Joint Workshop with Ada County Highway District September 412001 Page 10 (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: We do plan on having temporary measures, like that's the turning lane there to help out with that need. We just plan on that. It just wouldn't be you know, completely redone. Wynkoop: I think the problem is that if we try to put that back into the project with Overland, then it's going (inaudible). (inaudible discussion amongst group) De Weerd: I was just going to add to that concern, I know you mentioned as an option, Corporate Park for 2004. That is such a mess. We have always been "hoping that would be bumped rather than bumped back. That's effecting 1-84 traffic and everything else too. I know you have a lot of juggling to do with budget. WE can sympathize with budget work. But that intersection gets nastier every day and its certainly going to be one of our safety issues. one of the things that really drove us to put City money into the Locust Grove overpass is because of a lot of the issues being caused over here and on Eagle as well. Whatever you can do to keep that in there or cause the larger (inaudible) 2003. Wynkoop: The idea was broached by Commissioner Eastlake at another meeting today. I'll discuss that at another time. (inaudible discussion amongst group) Bivens: I think there was a plan to see if we couldn't get a double right turn lane at that intersection to help out. The right-of-way doesn't belong to who we thought it did. So, I'm not sure that it's going to work. That would help quite a bit. Levihn: As you know, all of our decisions take a long, long time, 5 years from beginning to end. Development is further ahead of us than we can manage to catch up. It takes us a while but in our humble opinion, we really are dedicated and thankful to staff for doing what they have done because we think this is a vast improvement over what was originally planned and it will save a lot of headache and grief to everybody. Corrie: I think you'll make EMS very happy with this. I sit on their board of directors. That's the biggest concern they have, was Franklin and taking this all the way. We were having a terrible time. This will be a cakewalk for them (inaudible ). (inaudible discussion amongst Council) ( Meridian City Council Joint yvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 11 Wynkoop: However we sequence this, we're going to all get lots of comments about why they're just building these roads forever because its going to seem to the public that it is taking forever. Bird: I think people in Meridian will be out here taking pictures believing, we're finally getting some roads go up in Meridian. It was 10 years to get North Locust Grove. De Weerd: Well, and having Overland which has a huge impact residentially as a priority versus Franklin is a very good move forward Meridian and its residents. We appreciate staff coming up with that and working to try and make sure it gets there. Levihn: If, by chance, you folks are in total agreement with this and we could use some help, would it be wise of us to drag along Mayor Corrie and have a meeting with Idaho Power to see if we could have some support on this? Bird: You bet. De Weerd: We'll give you Mayor Corrie. Corrie: Yes - Levihn: Would you mind helping us there? Corrie: I would be happy to. Levihn: If there's anything you can do that would be wonderful. Bevins: I think it would be very advantageous if we do that at the same time. Kind of like they're doing on North Locust Grove north of Fairview. They're moving the lines, they're doing the construction the whole thing. (inaudible) (inaudible discussion amongst group) Bevins: That's what irritates the folks that I've talked to. (inaudible discussion amongst group) Wynkoop: -- at their schedule to one location. Then a year later because of the road, move it (inaudible). We're talking about large poles. De Weerd: I know at our comprehensive plan meeting that was a huge concern (inaudible) these efforts, roads and utility work and all of it. (inaudible) (inaudible discussion amongst Council) ( Meridian City Council Joint vvorkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4, 2001 Page 12 Levihn: I know we aren't able to ask you to vote on this but I think the general consensus is approval of option 2. That gives us enough leeway to proceed tomorrow night. We were going to go forward on this and we had our meeting on this today. But we didn't want to do anything that we didn't pass by you first which would dramatically effect you like this would. So, we're thanking you very much for your time and the extra consideration tonight. Peavey-Derr: Plus we want brownie points. Bird: You've got it. Levihn: So, we know you have a meeting- (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Levihn: We know you've got a meeting in just a few minutes so if there isn't anything else we'll get out of your hair. Thank you very much for (inaudible). Bird: Thank you. We really appreciate this. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: We really appreciate it from all of you, from everybody, staff and Commissioners. You guys, this will help us out one tremendous deal. Levihn: Thank you. Peavey-Derr: (inaudible) that those 2 mile sections like, especially on Overland, realize we get the school one done. The one to the west would probably take another 2 months, 2 to 3 months to finish. I mean because of the importance of being the school. So, the year long that we show could be 13 to 14 months. Bird: That's okay. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: Thank you guys very much. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: You bet. (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: We appreciate it. Yes. You don't have to get beat up anymore. \ Meridian City Council Joint v'/urkshop with Ada County Highway District September 4,2001 Page 13 (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: Mr. Mayor, I move that we adjourn our workshop with the Ada County Highway District. McCandless: Second. Corrie: Motion made and second. All in favor say aye. MOTION CARRIED: THREE AYES, ONE ABSENT WORKSHOP ADJOURNED AT 5:04 P.M. (TAPE ON FILE OF THESE PROCEEDINGS) APPROVED: q I 2-f7; tJ I DATE APPROVED ;' HUB OF TREASURE VALLEY A Good Place to Live LEGAL DEPARTMENT (208) 288-2499 · Fax 288-2501 PUBLIC WORKS BUILDlNG DEPARTMENT (208) 887-2211 · Fax 887.1297 MAYOR Robert D. Corrie CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS Ron Anderson Keith Bird Tammy deWeerd Cherie McCandless CITY OF MERIDIAN 33 EAST IDAHO l\tIERIDIAN, IDAHO 83642 (208) 888-4433 · Fax (208) 887-4813 City Clerk Office Fax (208) 888-4218 PLANNING AND ZONING DEPARTMENT (208) 884-5533 · Fax 888-6854 NOTICE OF SPECIAL WORKSHOP MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Meridian will hold a Special Workshop at City Hall, 33 East Idaho, Meridian, Idaho, on Tuesday, September 4th, 2001 at 5:30 pm. The Meridian City Council will be discussing procedures and process for strategic planning for the City of Meridian. The public is welcome to attend. DATED this 30th day of August, 2001. JdL-_~~1 St WILLIAM G. BERG, J . - CrTY CLERK ( -RECEIVED ( SEP - 4 20u1 Strategic Planning othing can make the eyes glaze over faster than an announcement that the organization is preparing to undertake another strategic planning process. Throughout most organizations there will be lamentations and gnashing of teeth at the mere mention of an annual planning activity. "But we just did a plan in 1981, why do we have to do another plan so SOON?" Or, "All we do is plan, plan, plan. The last seventeen plans are sitting on the shelf, gathering dust. Why is THIS plan going to be any different?" And so it goes. Has strategic planning become so laughable in public agencies? Top managers, executives and elected officials~still seem convinced that planning has merit, and certainly, there are many professionals who are exceptional plan- ners. But quite apparently, the most common theme is "Why do we have to do this? It is a waste afthne." Strategic thinking and planning is one of the most critical elements of public management. It is therefore one the key success factors that must be built into the fabric of every organiza- tion. The capability to think and plan strategi- cally is also one of the principal Legacies that every responsible manager should leave within a work team, no matter how large or small. However, it is important to understand that strategic planning is a process and not a pro- gram. While the central elements of a plan can @]ohn F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved be taught, it is the process of collaboratively planning and implementing that pays the great- est dividends. What Exactly IS Strategic Planning? As noted above, strategic thinking and plan- ning is NOT a progralTI. It is a process that must be learned, practiced and taught to others. While it looks generally the same in public and voluntary agencies, planning has a different overall purpose in private business. First and foremost, planning in government must be issue driven. In most cases, there would be no need for public agencies if there were not issues or problems that created com- munity needs in the first place. Law enforce- ment is a perfect example. If there was no crime, there would be no need for police offi- cers. The same is true with fire departments, public works departments, emergency medical services, health departments, social services, etc. Even those agencies that provide general services, such as tax assessment and collection or general administration cannot effectively plan unless they strive to address identified is- sues, challenges, or needs. How else would internal process improvement occur? Even in the most general administrative organization, there must be some intent to improve effi- ciency, responsiveness, or quality of work pro- duced. In this context, it is important to re- melnber that the general activities of an organi- zation are not strategic -- they are operational. In strategic planning, it is critical to think stra- tegic i1nprovement and achievenlent- of both operational and long ternl strategic aspects of the community and each agency.. -. ( Strategic Planning every unit within an agency that has a specific purpose or mission should have its own plan. Planning lnllst be guided from the top, but be actively pursued at all levels. Senior managers must set the tone, establish planning as a prior- ity, provide proper training, and launch the process, but encourage planning throughout the organization. Why do we plan in the first place? Very sim- ply, it is to improve. Or, to maintain estab- lished standards that preserve an acceptable level of quality. There 2. Lack of Under- that address issues related to performance, pro- of a core development pro~aI? for all employ- ductivity, community, and personal well being, ~es. Done pro~erl~" wIthm. one or two plus any required statutory services. It must employee generatIOns there wIll be a culture focus on the most critical problems impacting of planners ,:ho un~erstand the process and the community or client base and seek the most val~e of con~muous .Improveme~t through ef- effective and efficient means to address them. fectlve planning and implementatIon. Though this sounds fairly simple, it is astound- ing how few agencies have thoughtful planning processes and how few have created a planning environment that involves the entire employee base, clients and the community. During the past few years, a pattern has be- come clear regarding why strategic planning fails. Here are the most prominent reasons for outright failure or less than desirable outcomes. 1. Too Much Top Down Planning All too often, senior management teams launch into planning programs that involve only de- partment or division managers and rarely in- volve ALL employees. In fact, every em- ployee must be involved with planning, and @lohn F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved 3. Unclear Missions Every unit within a public agency must be able to clearly state its missio~, yet many cannot do so. If a work tealn, bureau, section, or division does. not clearly understand its mission or why it exists, it will be challenged to sustain the de- sired level of progress, productivity, or quality. 4. Too Many Planning Formats In many municipal and state governments, there is no central planning format, with which all employees (not just senior managers) are familiar. More progressive agencies have sought proper training in strategic planning, developed a sound format, and have installed it as a key element of how that agency does busi- ness. In one state we found over one hundred planning formats among state agencies! No wonder people are confused. To be successful, there must be one planning format, much like there is one budget format that is followed by 2 all agencies within that state, city, or county. 4. Goals and Objectives Are Poorly Stated There is almost a total misconception as to what constitutes a goal or an obje~tive. Out of seventy-five to one hundred plans reviewed each year, less that two have properly stated goals and objectives. Virtually all are stated as actions or strategies- and NOT as true goals or objectives. 5. Objectives Are Not Quantifiable While goals can be generally quantifiable, an-. nual objectives must be measurable and time specific. An objective is not "To positively im- pact the immunization rate among school-aged children". Or, "To rebuild all the bridges in the County." These are not quantifiable, and it is impossible to know what these statements mean in terms of increasing immunization rates, decreasing preventable childhood disease in school populations, or reducing the number of unsafe bridges. 6. Failing To Raise Key Organization Issues Strategic planning involves both the external and internal environment. Far too often, there is focus on issues within the client base or in the community, when tile most significant is- sues are internal. Contemporary strategic plan- ning must consider both dimensions. Without concern for how the organization is performing and developing, it will struggle to achieve its program goals or accomplish its mission. 7. Not Blending the Mission With Current Issues An organization's mission must have some root in the issues it addresses. Otherwise, why does it exist? To do what? The organization's rai- son d'etre must correspond to the issues, chal- lenges, and identified problems in the served community. If it does not, the mission must be revised or the organization may have outlived its original intent and should be eliminated or @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning assimilated. 7. The Planning Format is Too Cumbersome Keep it simple. In the format we have devel- oped, there are only eight elements. All em- ployees are trained in the process and are deeply involved from the outset. Section, bu- reau, and even division level plans can be com- pleted in less that five to seven' pages, empha- sizing clarity, brevity, and virtually no narra- tives. It is important to remember that strategic plan- ning is not a panacea for program development or performance. It is a process for improve- ment and it is the agency's challenge to clarify those issues and challenges that need remedia- tion. Planning is NOT just a senior manage- ment responsibility, but needs to be understood and carried out by personnel at all levels. And finally, it is not a one-shot annual process that is completed, then shelved for the rest of the year. In an environment that is "pre-framed", that is, structured through years of policy, statute, and tradition, properly conducted planning accrues many benefits. Regardless of why programs were originally created or their purpose, a thoughtful planning process will make signifi- cant contributions in many areas, such as: . Develops a greater degree of internal coop- eration and collaboration. · Encourages creativity and innovation. · Ensures a more efficient use of resources. · Creates a sense of team and mutual aCCOlTI- plishment. . Reduces confusion about roles, responsibili- ties, and accountability. 3 · Serves as the basis for evaluating employee and program performance. · Accelerates an agency's ability to solve iden- tified issues and challenges. · Clarifies and showcases an agency's intent and use of funds. · Serves as the basis for funding requests and the allocation process. · Ties the budget to program performance. With this range of benefits, strategic planning could very well be the most important Legacy that could be left within a public agency. By teaching the process to all employees, there will develop a culture of strategic thinkers who consistently seek measured improvement. As noted in future articles, the foundation laid by strategic planning is critical to developing a leanling organization. Experience has shown that it is the nature of the planning process that is generally to blame for its reputation and for the rampant lack of enthusiasm. What is truly remarkable is that virtually anyone in an agency can explain the problems with planning and why it doesn't work, or why it creates such resistance. The key is to examine the factors that could be al- tered to make planning a vital element of pub- lic management. During the past decade, we have been able to experiment with many forms of strategic plan- ning. Not only do I believe a new form of thinking and planning is an essential legacy for virtually every public employee, I believe it holds the key to effective public. agency opera- tion as service demands escalate. I also am convinced that an entirely new form of strate- gic planning must be introduced to public agencies. Crafted properly, this new form of planning would: · Encourage employees to work ON rather than merely IN the agency. @]ohn F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning · COlnbine elements of operations and strate- gic planning. · Provide a vehicle for continuous improve- ment and development. · Be an adaptive, inclusive, dynamic process involving all employees, starting with sound training in strategic planning tbeory and practice. · Offer a forum to provoke thought, creativity and consistent internal review. · Represent the organization's mission, vision, and operating philosophy. · Provide the means of evaluation personal and program progress, performance and success. · Offer a clear 'road map' for continuous im- provement. The itnpact of a properly developed and inte- grated strategic planning process is enormous. The challenge is not have senior managers con- duct the planning and write the plan. This is done by many agencies or elements of an or- ganization. The most significant concern is HOW the planning is undertaken and whether ,it is done in a manner tl1at gains the outcomes desired by employees, administrators, and the public. Again, the question is, "What do we hope to gain from strategic planning?" Cer- tainly it is not merely a doculnent that sits on the shelf as a representation that planning du- ties were accomplished. There is more to it than that. I would hope that at least the follow- ing could be expected as major contributions gained from the process: · More focus on tangible, measurable out- comes and accolnplishment. · Clearer direction and sense of purpose. · More options for collaboration and connec- tion with the community. · A strong, durable foundation and an organ- ized system to promote continuous improve- ment. · Constant promotion of thoughtful change and progress toward goals that address ilnportant community issues. 4 With so lnuch to gain, it seems curious that there is not lnore empllasis on strategic plan- ning in public administration programs. What little planning instruction there is seems antiquated and not relevant to the challenges and needs of modern public agen- cies. Contribution engenders legacy. Being able to identify challenges, analyze their cause, develop prudent strategies, and suc- cessfully implement them provides the kind of continuous improvement and progress ex- pected from public organizations. But so few people think in terms of Legacy. Most man- agers and supervisors have been captured by the operational aspect of their work and focus on task completion. What about the final re- sult? What will the ultimate contribution be? And, more importantly, what impact will each manager have on the employees he or she supervises? Will they learn and grow? And will they become creative, insightful planners who can also analyze, strategize, and implement quality programs? The plan- ning process embodies more than the simple tasks of establishing a mission, creating a vi- sion, and agreeing on general agency or pro- gram goals. It is a process of investigation, lean1ing, and implementing in a collaborative environment, so the entire organization pro- gresses and evolves. Some time ago, I was working in a western state with a large county that wished to com- plete a strategic plan. I offered to introduce my system, but was met with a good measure of skepticism. The County Administrator expressed concern that "We have spent a considerable amount of money on consult- ants over the past two years trying to com- plete a strategic plan. We have eaten hun- dreds of pastries, consumed gallons of cof- fee and used two trees' worth of flip chart , paper, but never completed a plan. OUf peo- ple are tired of meetings and are pretty con- fused about whether strategic planning is really worth the trouble." Though initially this may appear humorous, it is a sad and ac- curate commentary on the experience of many public organizations. The processes are too complex, take too long, and are not @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning based on sound training that teaches the es- sence of public sector planning. For the record, after proper training and direction they were able to complete an exceptional plan in less than five months, with involvement froln the majority of2,000 employees. There is an interesting psychology to planning that in many ways both guides and contami- nates the process. Since we were children, we have been taught to be action-oriented. Even though it may sound trite, virtually everyone has heard the words, "Get off your rear and do something! 11 Or "Don't bring me problems, bring me solutions!" Action has become a cen- tral characteristic of the American culture and pervades aU levels of business and government. This is certainly not a bad thing, and has been one of the driving forces behind the success of our way of life. Early in our career we learn that action is ex- pected and that being busy is highly acceptable. Young eluployees are taught, by word and deed, that action plans and lito do" lists are a sure-fire way to become successf~1. But these same individuals are then asked to think strate- gically. They are asked to describe the most significant issues that the agency or work team faces and to list those goals and objectives that will guide the organization to higher levels of achievelnent. Most find this difficult because they have always been involved in the activity planning associated with day-to-day operations and have been guided for years by admonitions to II do something. II Strategic planning has therefore become skewed toward operations planning, and many of the plans we see are 15% strategic and 85% operations. Why is this important? Because strategic planning is a sequential process of thinking that is pattenled after the scientific method. It is based on deductive reasoning, 5 and is a process that must be learned. In every planning exercise we ask participants to review key organization issues. In virtually every situation, all issues are stated as solutions, in- stead of true issue statements. "We need more COlllputers" Or "We need more staff to get the job done"; "The department needs more police cars to lneet community needs." "We need to raise the immunization levels." And so forth. Issues must be stated as a problem that relates to A) The organization's mission, or B) The or- ganization's intent to fulfill its obligations. If the organization's mission deals with child health, then issues related to child health need to be stated in statistical terms in order to re- veal problems or issues. The issue/problem is that "Immunizations have dropped from a high of 88% in 1995 to less than 67% in 2000." Or, "During 1999, 346 children under the age of 12 were seriously injured in automobile accidents due to not wearing seatbelts." By stating the statistical data, the issue, or probleln, is re- vealed and stated in clear, understandable terms. The solution will be stated later in ac- tions and strategies, but not in a problem state- ment or the section dealing with issues and challenges. People also tend to focus on solutions when writing issues/challenges (or problem state- ments), and when writing goals and objectives. Th~ugh addressed lnore specifically later in this article, it is worth mentioning that the psy- chological tendency is to write goals and objec- tives as action statements, and NOT as true goals and objectives. Without exaggeration, I would say that 95% of all goals and objectives are written as actions and/or strategies. As explained earlier, this is due to the almost innate tendency to focus on activities or solutions and not ultimate out- comes or achievements related to an organiza- tion's mission. A goal is not "To implement a new LAN-based accounting system by July 2001 If; Or "To move toward a more technical workforce before the end of 2002." The first is an action, the sec- @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning ond, a strategy. Neither is a goal. It is clear that people tend to think in action terlns, which is not bad, but can be frustrating when trying to think strategically or create a strategic plan. Understanding how people think is very impor- tant to the planning effort. Planning coordina- tors or consultants must realize that human na- ture plays a significant role in identifying, 'Cate- gorizing, and articulating the organization's mission, vision, values, issues and challenges (threats), goals, objectives, and actions/ strategies. Knowing that people always plan first in action terms rather than in outcome or achievement terms will help when deciphering initial work done by employees. The secret is to understand basic human nature and that adults have been inculcated for decades to think in action terms. Through proper training, employees will begin to recognize the differ- ence between action planning and strategic planning and will be able to easily convert ac- tions to properly worded issues, goals and ob- jectives. Based on what we have seen across the coun- try, it is time to change how public agencies approach planning. Most of the essential ele- ments are in place but there are variances in perspective that confuse and frustrate. Both format and content need consistency as well as substance. If a meaningful legacy is going to be created, planning must be taught to all em- ployees, have a single, simple format, and be- come a cultural process. It can no longer be the sole province of senior managers or ad hoc "strategic planning" teams. It must become an enduring facet of the organization culture and one that provides direction, clarity of purpose and rationale for new programs and services. As a foundation, I would suggest the fol- lowing: All strategic planning formants should. . . 1. Have a separate, stand-alone plan for each section, bureau, division or depart- 6 ( ment within an organization. Every ele- ment of the larger organization that has a specific mission should be expected to cre- ate a brief but detailed strategic plan. I be- lieve in accountability, and I am amazed at ,the lnany program elements that cannot ar- ticulate their mission or clearly state the most pressing issues their programs need to address. 2. Be no longer than three to six pages for each element. There is no reason for a sec- tion or bureau plan to be longer than three to six pages. Lose the narrative -- it is unnec- essary and cumbersome. Prepare concise, clear, and direct plans for every part of the organization. Once completed, they can be assembled into an overall agency plan that has an executive summary. If every organi- zation element has a plan, it will have ac- countability. It will also have the basis for evaluating performance and productivity. 3. Deal with issues that impact that particu- lar organization element. In otller words, what issues or challenges are present that relate to the mission? Remember, public agencies for the lnost part address issues in the community, state or entire country. Is- sues create needs within the community and it is these needs that public agencies are there to address. If there were no potholes, crime, disease, fire, accidents, etc. there would be no need for agencies to address them. The strongest part of a public sector plan should be the articulation of issues and challenges because they define and justify why that agency or program exists. If there is no justification, it should not exist -- it's that simple. 4. Resist including a lot of operational ac- tivities. A major failing of lnost strategic plans is that they include a lot of actions and tasks that should be kept in an operational plan. These two plans are corollaries and somewhat sequential. A strategic plan should provide the basis for the operational plan, because the operations plan is an ac- @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning tion plan that seeks to accolnplish strategic goals and objectives. It is fine to include some operational actions under objectives, as long as the plan does not become a de- tailed operations plan. 5. Focus on improvement and productivity. As noted earlier, these two factors are the basis for making a difference in the com- munity and in the organization. In terms of leaving a Legacy, there is the combined benefit of establishing a sound strategic planning process as part of the culture and bringing about significant measurable im- provements in productivity, service, and identified issues. There would be no rea- son to plan if there were no need to nTI- prove. 6. Measure improvement in clear, quantifi- able outputs and outcomes. Everything can and should be measured, and the easi- est place to start is with outputs and out- comes. Remember that outputs are gener- ally countable, as in the number of licenses distributed, classes given, immunizations administered, miles of road paved, etc. An outcome is often the result of one or more outputs, such as the reduction of the inci- dence of reported cases of measles in school age children. The number of immu- nizations given is the output, and can be counted; the outconle is the reduction in disease incidence within the community. Outputs are often considered primary ele- ments of operating plans, whereas out- comes are more strategic. Public agencies could achieve enormous success if they fo- cused on understanding and measuring both outputs and outcomes, based on iden- tified issues within their sphere of respon- sibility . 7. Deal with both internal and external is- sues. This is a major departure from his- toric public planning. However, modern strategic planning MUST deal with both internal and external (community) issues. It is natural to focus on only external issues 7 and challenges because they define why the agency exists in the first place. But, without examining the agency, section, bureau, or di- vision for internal problems and concerns, only part of the strategic thinking and plan- ning process is complete. Be courageous- take a hard look at how the program, division or department operates. Is it efficient and effective? Does it have chaffing points and internal disharmony that erodes morale, re- duces trust, and stifles progress? Don't be afraid to hold up the Inirror and take a hard look -- it will pay significant dividends. Simplicity in planning is always a virtue. Long, elaborate plans do no more to clarify strategic intent than plans no longer than seven pages. I have seen bureaus with forty or fifty employees and budgets of $5 to $10 million with strategic plans of less than ten pages. An entire depart- ment plan should be a composite, or overview, of the most salient points that have been q.erived from division and bureau plans, so in turn may be only twenty pages. If separate section, bureau, and division plans are compiled it?-to one binder, it may indeed be large, but will be comprised of many individual plans that stand alone and deal with specific operating elements of the overall organization. Each independent plan has clear mission and vi- sion statements, a well crafted operating philoso- phy or value statement, a list of key issues or problems the organization is facing and a set of six to twelve properly written goals that establish clear direction. A list of measurable annual ob- jectives with planned actions under each allows the reader to know exactly what is intended to be accomplished during the year. Clear, concise and powerful, this kind of strategic planning will accomplish more than long, involved plans that integrate a variety of operational actions into planned strategic outcomes. A plan for a government agency must be a practi- cal doculnent that serves as a guide for the or- @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved '. ( Strategic Planning ganization and a map to help constituents un- derstand what the agency is facing, where its major challenges are, what goals have been es- tablished, and what actions will be taken to achieve measured annual objectives. Through- out, there is the assumption that improvement will occur and that identified problems and needs will be successfully addressed. Having only seven or eight sections, a plan using this new format will be concentrated and deal with important matters. It will not deal with a vari- ety of non-related, operational issues or activi- ti es . Though a sensitive subject for many elected and appointed officials and staff professionals, I feel the greatest challenge is teaching public employees how plans are written, and the dif- ference between a goal, objective, action or strategy. Fully 98% of all plans reviewed each year (up to 100 per year) have improperly writ- ten goals and objectives. Over the past tw"enty- five years, we have found that less than two percent of supervisors and managers at any level actually know the difference between and issue, goal, objective, and action. The same is true of mission and vision statements. Virtu- ally all mission statements are hybrids com- prised of missions, visions, and value state- ments all mixed together. The reason for this is not mysterious. Very few, if any, graduate and undergraduate public administration or public affairs programs offer sound courses in strate- gic planning that has its foundation in govern- ment. There are also very few (if any) courses available on the market for practicing public administrators that offer accurate training in strategic planning. And, those that are offered tend to focus on overall plan content or fonnat and not the proper articulation of the key ele- ments. One legacy that can be left by this book is to clarify these terms and give examples of properly crafted plan elelnents, particularly those mentioned above. 8 There does not seem to be as much confusion about lV/lat goes into a strategic plan as there is about how each section is actually written. As with many things, articulation of intent and process is where people differ and where there has been significant divergence over the past forty years. In my view, the Rand Corporation provided the best guidance in strategic thinking and planning during the early 1960s. Planning offered by this very sophisticated organization was clear, concise, and relevant to government. But it was also offered in very few venues that would enable it to be imbedded into govern- Inent culture, and so had minimal impact on general planning expet1ise. During the inter- vening years, a hodgepodge of planning theo- ries and styles have emerged, most with gene- sis in business theory and with little relevance to public sector challenges or culture. There are only seven or eight sections in an ef- ficiently stated plan. The first three- Mission, Vision, and Operating Philosophy (or Values), should take only a half page. These should be followed by a properly articulated list of the Illost significant issues and challenges the sec- tion, bureau, division, department or agency is facing. Next is a listing of long term goals, fol- lowed by a list of 'any major 'strategic initia- tives' that the organization wants to get on the radar screen for decision makers and the budget office. Finally, there is a list of the an- nual measurable objectives that relate the tnost important achievements planned for that fiscal year. Each objective is followed by a list of actions/strategies that will be undertaken to ac- complish the objective. As explained earlier, a _ @]ohn F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning well-crafted and concise organization plan will take an average of three to six pages. The reader will understand very quickly the mis- sion, vision, values, major challenges, long- term goals, annual objectives, and actions. Plus, if there are any major initiatives that need to be undertaken, they will be reviewed and briefly explained. Again, every element within a public organiza- tion that has a distinct reason for existence should have a plan. More critically, every ele- ment should understand its mission and be able to clearly describe what challenges it ad- dresses, what improvements it plans to make and how it intends to make them. Even if the organization is a standard service, such as park- ing control, or parking lot maintenance, it will have issues and challenges that may involve its client base or its own internal efficiency. These provide the basis for improvement and can be addressed in goals and objectives. The message for public agencies is that every unit needs to be involved with planning and have a stand-alone plan. The Mission The Mission answers two questions- "Why do you exist?" And "What do you do?" In no lnore than three sentences, two if possible, the tnission must answer these questions'. The most common mistake is to combine elements of vision and values into Mission statements. The Mission must be clear, concise, and straightforward. It must help the reader under- stand what the agency, division, department, or bureau is there to do and generally, what it does. It does NOT have personal pronouns, such as We or Our. Example #1: Mission Human resource Development The HR Bw"eau provides training and develop- ment leadership to support and enhance the Departnzent's overall continuous ilnprovement efforts, as well as the growth and development of individual employees through consultation, advocacy, technical support, and innovative) 9 effective and efficient training progranls. Example #2: Mission Highway Operations and Programming To provide the department and the public with a realistic and reliable five-year schedule for developing highway improvement projects that effectively and efficiently utilize available transportation funds. The section establishes and directs project scheduling, guides and ana- lyzes project submission, communicates poli- cies and procedures, coordinates staff review and management/Board approval of all project funding requests, and maintains concise re- cords of all funding decisions. The Vision A vision for a public agency is different than those found in private business. Many of those seen framed on the walls within large and small corporations are gralld statements of accom- plishment and futuristic idyllic conditions. Many public agencies have fallen into the habit of offering similar visions that never come true, and lose their energy virtually before the ink has dried. How many times have agencies gone through the planning process and created beautiful, sweeping visions that no one be- lieves can be accoluplished? Visions in public agencies must be practical and based on a real- istic assessment of what the future will bring, in terms of challenge and opportunity. While it may be fine to articulate a grand outcolne as a vision there better be substance behind it and a , high likelihood of completion. Basically, a public sector Vision is a praciical statement about the future and the organiza- tion's role in it. It is an opportunity to look for- ward- to check prospective viewpoints and to clearly explain what the organization sees com- ing. The future and vision should not be judged as positive or negative- it just is what it is. A key element of the Vision is a statement that briefly tells what the agency will do to meet the challenges it foresees. A third ele- ment may describe the desired outcome, such as "Crime free streets within ten years", but the @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning first two elements are luore critical. It is essen- tial that public vision statelnents be thoughtful assessments of the future, based on sound re- search and professional judgment. It is also im- portant to review for the reader the general plans the agency has to meet the future as described. The reader wants to know. His or her tax money is supporting the program and there is little pa- tience for grand statements or flowery language. Like the Mission, the Vision contains NO per- sonal pronouns. Example #1: Vision General Services During the coming decade, the section will ex- perience increased work volume, more demand for diverse and complex services, and greater centralization in an environment characterized by limited resources and a trend toward service integration. General Services will continue to be the leader in acquiring and utilizing technology to achieve greater efficiency and cost- effectiveness, and will invest in professional training to develop expertise to meet the growing business needs of the department. Example #2: Vision Risk Management To plan for and mitigate the negative conse- quences of any County decision, omission, proc- ess or action by using whatever means feasible to control the chance of financial loss, and by man- aging and minimizing all financial losses that do occur. The department specifically directs the administration of all self-insurance and third party insurance programs, worker's compensa- tion, liability, property losses, accident investiga- tion, claims subrogation, safety, loss prevention, wellness programs and litigation management. Qperatin2 Philosol!!!Y Terlned "Values Statement" in many plans, I of- fer the term Operating Philosophy because I be- lieve it connotes a statement about what a team believes about its work, attitude, and behavior. It reviews how employees treat each other and their clients. It is a much stronger statement than one that lnerely lists values. While based on a set of 10 values, it is also based on a set of identified ad- jectives that the work team feels best describes them and the organization. A good test is to ask, "If SOlneone from outside the organization (section, bureau, division, etc.) were to de- scribe this team, what adjectives would you want them to use?' And, 'As a team, what do you believe, and what are you committed to?" The Operating Philosophy is the ONLY section in the strategic plan in which personal pro- nouns are appropriate, because it is a personal statement by the staff in that particular element of the agency or the agency itself. Very few organizations take the time to discuss their Operating Philosophy! While the tradi- tional method is to convene a 'focus group' to identify values, defining the organization's Op- erating Philosophy takes more thought and re- sults in clear behavioral standards and expecta- tions. I term these 'covenants' because the team agrees on them and establishes them as a cen- tral element of the group culture. By itself, taking time to establish a philosophy that de- fines how the team acts and serves the public is an important and far-reaching legacy. Below is an exalnple of one bureau's listing of adjectives that the members feel define it as a work group. It also became the foundation of its Operating Philosophy and had remarkable impact on the group's harmony and productiv- ity. Our Bureau demonstrates and/or believes in... o Commitment to managed change. o Belief in the value of every individual. o Contmitment to collaborate, communicate and cooperate. o Dedication to service, response, closure, friendl iness. o Deep belief in integrity, honesty, openness, courage. o Respect for diverse cultures, tolerance, work integration. o Concern for peop~e, property and preserva- tion of standards. @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning o Focused on con11nitnlent, initiative, pride, spirit, tean1work and excite111ent. As with the Vision, the Operating Philosophy should be a fairly concise statement that cap- tures the essence of the group's beliefs and cul- ture. It is rarely over three sentences long, but five sentences should be the limit. Long state- ments quickly lose their impact. Example #1: Operating Philosophy Office of Civil Rights We believe in a work environment and pro- grams characterized by consistency, honesty, responsiveness, discretion and trust. We are concerned, committed professionals who are straightforward, determined and adaptable in a rapidly changing environment. Above all, we respect our internal and external custont- ers, and nlaintain for them the highest possible standards of fairness and impartiality. Example #2: Operating Philosophy Division of Public Transportation We believe in being helpful, reliable, open, honest, accessible, responsive, and well in- formed. We are problenl solvers who believe in teamwork and personal comn1itment, and pay particular attention to. cost-effectiveness and fiscal responsibility. We have respect and ap- preciation for the public and are dedicated to providing safe, accessible, convenient and sen- sible public and private transportation choices for all who live in and visit out community. Notice how these work teams stated their be- liefs, as well as the adjectives that they feel de- fine the organization. For new employees, these statements provide very clear parameters for the culture and belief system, as well as es- tablish clear expectations. Yet, it took only a few sentences which are not oyerly flowery. Most importantly, it is THEIR statement about their work unit, and THEY believe it. While another may read these and suggest changes, it is best to let each work group create their own Operating Philosophy because they have to live with and by it. Again, the process is more im- portant than the product. The work put into 11 developing an Operating Philosophy may be the best and most productive time you ever spend. Issues and Challen2eS Whether termed issues, challenges, or prob- lems, this section defines why the agency or work team exists and its focus ( other than statutory provisions that created it). It also will contain issues/challenges related to internal op- erating efficiencies or effectiveness that impact performance. When crafting the issues and challenges for a work team or larger unit, first consider the Mission and why the organization is there in the first place. There are many plans with issues totally unrelated to the Mission which confuses the reader and weakens the plan. Goals, objectives, and actions/strategies all flow from issues. If there are no issues or problems, there will be very few goals and ob- jectives. TIle New Strategic Plannilzg Issue Category Identification External Internal Tangibles Intangibles Tangibles Intangibles For public pla.ns issue and challenges MUST be identified in two primary dimensions - inter- nal and external, and within each the secondary dimensions dealing with tangible and intangi- ble issues. Internal issues are those existing within the or- ganization that impact efficiency, productivity, harmony, or overall effectiveness. External issues are the problems or negative situations existing in the community that relate to a par- ticular mission. In other words, a Bureau of Highway Safety should focus on problems as- sociated with accidents on the roadways throughout the state. In this instance, the best @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved -. ( Strategic Planning expression of an issue, problem or challenge -is statistical inforlnation related to the number of deaths and injuries occurring on the roadways. A County Assessor will focus on issues related to growth in service demand, local econolnics, internal efficiency, customer complaints, etc. Public health officials will offer issues and challenges that deal with the most critical areas of the community's health -- immunization lev- els, water and air quality, infectious disease prevalence, etc. Parks and Recreation will deal with the condition of equipment, service de- mand, lack of adequate facilities, etc., while Public Works will identify issues relating to traffic congestion, poor road conditions, infra- structure deterioration, growing service de- mands, equipment serviceability, etc. Every agency and each element within an agency will have specific issues and challenges that relate to its Mission. Some will overlap, which is good because it will tend to showcase the most critical problems having broad community im- pact. (Highway Safety and the state Transpor- tation Department have issues that are identical to the State Highway Patrol. However, they have different missions and capability, so will address the issues differently, and, we hope, cooperatively. ) I recommend this simple model when begin- ning to identify issues and challenges. It em- phasizes both the external and internal dimen- sions, but also encourages staff to look at BOTH tangible and intangibles. By this I mean that the tendency is to focus on the tangi- ble aspects of work, while neglecting the intan- gible. Both are critical, but the intangibles have the greatest ability to negatively impact entire organizations and communities. It is human nature to deal with tangible problems, and leave the more emotional and difficult "people issues" alone. New strategic thinking and plan- ning requires all four dimensions to be consid- ered when identifying issues and problems. Only by doing this will goals and objectives deal with all challenges facing the agency or work team. Again, the external dilnension deals with the 12 world outside the agency or organization. It deals with the community and with the issues that relate directly to the Mission. The internal dimension focuses on the organization itself and issues or problems that impact its produc- tivity, harmony, efficiency, or effectiveness. It cannot be overstated that within each of these primary dimensions it is essential to identify both tangible and intangible issues. Tangible issues generally concern people, facilities, equipment, funding, and anything that can be counted, inventoried, bought, sold, procured or repaired. Intangibles, on the other hand, are the most neglected area of planning because they deal with issues or problems related to morale, attitude, .trust, loyalty, public opinion, image, communication, cooperation, collabora- tion, leadership, commitInent, initiative, crea- tivity, and overall culture. This area is the most understated area of planning in both pri- vate and public sectors, because very few peo- ple know how to effectively deal with it. So, people tend to focus on the areas they can touch and feel and ignore the areas that cause the most harm to the organization. Much of this series of articles is dedicated to leaving legacies that build learning, cooperative, and harmonious organizations that openly review and learn from internal and external intangible issues. It takes courage to review internal and external intangibles, but to refrain from doing so will predispose the organization to continual problems and potential failure. As noted earlier, there is a tendency to state an issue or problem as a solution, or to state it in such general terms that it is meaningless. To write, liThe number of highway deaths and se- rious injuries is too high and must be reduced" is weak and virtually meaningless. An issue or problem statelnent must be stated in terms that 1) Concisely describes the issue or problem, and 2) Explains the ramification or depicts the @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning relevance of the situation. So What? Remember.these words. Any issue or problem statement that does not have inherent .clarity as to its relevance must be written in a manner that also describes why the issue is important. Statistics are normally powerful enough to re- flect the ramification or seriousness of the issue without additional words to answer, "So what? II Example #1: Issues/Challenges In 1999, 42 children were seriously injured or killed on the state's highways, while not wear- ing safety belts- a 37% increase over 1998. Example #2: Issues/Challenges There was an 86% increase in the number of school days lost fron1 1998 to 1999 due to illness from preventable childhood dis- ease. Imnlunization rates for preventable childhood disease stand at 68%, down from 82% in 1994, and 12% below mini- mum recommended levels. Example #3: Issues/Challenges There are currently 211 bridges in the state that do not conlply with existing construc- tion codes. This poses a potential safety problem for the public, has jeopardized federal funding, and n1ay increase the state's exposure to liability. Neither of the first two examples needs addi- tional information to explicate the issue or problem. For organizations that have good sta- tistical data, it is always advisable to use it to 13 showcase the most apparent issues, problems, and/or challenges the agency is facing. The last one is an example of an issue statement that uses statistics for clarity, hut has included potential ramifications to answer the question, "So what?" Merely reciting statistics may not clearly explain why the issue or problem is im- portant. Adding an explanation will both in- crease its value and educate the reader, which might make a big difference when it comes to budget allocation or public support. It is very important to NOT add a lot of additional detail or editorial comment. The statelnent lnllst be short, clear, concise, and very powerfully writ- ten. While there is a tendency to editorialize in an issue or problem statelnent, it is much more powerful if short and concise. What about the elements of the organization that do not have traditional statistics? There are Inany public agencies, divisions, bureaus or sections that provide general services that may be administrative in nature. Are issues and challenges just as relevant here? Absolutely! It merely requires a different way of looking at the operation to determine existing issues and challenges. What causes the most heartburn? What frustrates staff or clients? Is the opera- tion as efficient and effective as it can possibly be? With these questions are several issues that can be identified. Remember, an issue or problem can be either internal or external, tan- gible or intangible. Is the office as collabora- tive harmonious as we would like? What evi- dence is there that we are very efficient? I am consistently amazed by the number of or- ganizations that cOlnplain about the lack of op- erational data. Yet, there are various things that cause them great frustration, such as the number of telephone calls that interrupt their workflow. Data is everywhere. How Inany calls come in? How often? What is the aver- age length? How large is the backlog? How many minutes, hours or days does it take to re- spond to service requests? What is the cost per transaction? All of these are countable, and will provide a good basis for stating an issue or probleln. Even for those public organizations that do not traditionally keep data, it is there all @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning around them. Once the team gets into the habit of identifying issues, it can be guided into the practice of developing data to illuminate the problem and track the remediation process. f::;~i"c'C[~];'1"::C~~;j1~X~:1:7'-i'~~;~?l~:~;'Z::~!~j:}i'j~@~:2':;':i~i}'j .,..'..,.,'. --.~n.~.I.nC ,USIV.e<E>FOC,e.Ss...~."..,,~ .-.'. ~;J,;~~~,:':a':~~~~~:~1~&~~!ir,~::I~Ji11~i~{,if2b~;~E~l~",,~;,j I cannot over elnphasize that the process of is- sue identification is the best pl?ce to involve employees and develop a culture that focuses on continuous improvement. You can't im- prove if you can't identify issues or problems that need to be addressed and state them clearly. Get people involved with identifying issues related to why tIle organization is there. Employees at all levels see problems first-hand and enjoy being involved with this aspect of planning. Of all aspects of strategic planning, this is the area that attracts people and gets them involved. Building the habit of inclusion and participation will be the centerpiece of the planning Legacy. Goals and Objectives As mentioned earlier in this chapter, the Rand Corporation pioneered various styles of strate- gic planning over forty years ago, and provided training to the federal government. Unfortu- nately, even though this training was excellent, very little trickled down to state and municipal governlnent. During my travels in Inany states I have found less than 50/0 of reviewed state, city or county government strategic plans to have properly written goals or objectives. As described earlier, most are written as actions or strategies, yet termed 'goal' or 'objective.' Some Simple Rules: 1. Goals and objectives are NOT written alike 14 in the public and private sectors. These two sectors have entirely different purposes in society. 2. Goals and objectives always begin with the word 'To'. 3. For public agencies, goals and objectives seek to INCREASE, DECREASE (or re- duce) or MAINTAIN something. If you see any other word after the word 'To', you are reading an action or strategy. By the way, 'Improve' is a weasel word! 4. The critical questions are, "What is too high that must be reduced? What is too low that must be increased? Or, What is just right and is a standard we wish to (or must) maintain? In the public sector, EVERY ISSUE can be distilled down into these three questions, which provide the basic foundation for strategic planning and for goals and objectives. This why issue identification and the use of good data is critical to assemble before crafting goals and objectives. 5. Goals normally cover three to five years, but can be for twenty or more. Objectives are almost always annual, and tell what will be accolnplished (increased, decreased or maintained) during a specific fiscal year. 6. Goals are inherently quantifiable, but do not normally contain numbers or percentages. Tile litmus test for a goal is, if I asked you in five years if you increased, decreased or maintained something, will you he able to tell me yes or no? lfthe goal is "To in- crease immunization levels for all school age children,' or 'To reduce the number of deficient bridges that fall below current safety standards," the only relevant ques- tion in the future is "Did you or didn't you?" Objectives will tell by how much. 7. Objectives are measurable and are time- specific (usually one year or annual budget cycle). Always use numbers for measure- ment, and only use percentages if neces- sary. There will generally be one to sev- eral objectives for each goal, and they will reflect the n1easured progress toward the goal. For the above goal example, an an- nual objective would be 'To increase, from @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved . ( Strategic Planning 68% to at least 73%, the immunization lev- els for all school age children in the county, by 1-1-02.' For the bridge goal, an objective would be 'To reduce, from 27 to 22 the number of substandard bridges statewide by 1-1-02'. Actions and strate- gies would then tell how this will be ac- complished. Questions abound regarding tIle differences be- tween goals and objectives. Similar questions are raised about how actions or strategies relate to objectives. The following examples are of- fered to help clarify the differences and demon- strate the relationships. The problem comes from the human tendency to make every goal or objective an activity. As stated several times previously, a Goal is NOT an action, but a result or outcome. Why not consider it a significant achievement that re- lates to the original mission of the program in- volved? Let's look at some examples for a school district, 'then relate them to objectives. Examples: Goals . To increase the number of students who read at or above grade level. . To increase the District's overall perform- ance on the SAT. . To increase the District's overall perform- ance on the ACT. . To reduce the number of behavioral inci- dents resulting in expulsion. . To reduce the number of students leaving school before age 16. . To increase the ratio of graduates to total number of students entering high school. Taking anyone of these, the key question to test GENERAL measurability is, "Did you re- duce/increase/maintain the...?" The answer, based on gathered data, is yes or no. In the fu- ture, you will know if you did or didn't do what you said you would do. 15 Relating to an objective is easy, because an ob- jective is for one year and provides an incre- Inental progression toward established goals. Related Examples: GOAL( 3 to 5 years): To increase the number of students who read at or above grade level. OBJECTIVE: To increase, from 1357 to >1450, the number of grade school students who read at or above grade level; measured by 3-1-02. (Remember that numbers are better than percentages) ACTIONS/STRA TEGIES: . Convene a teacher task force to study why children aren't reading at their grade level; by 12-15-00 . Convene a parent study group to help ana- lyze this issue; by 12-15-00 . Initiate new reading program by 2-1-01 . Review and analyze test data; by 4-15-01 . Seek grant information and apply for grant funds to support additional efforts; initiate by 3-15-01 . Conduct a literature review for best prac- tices; by 5-1-01 . Create special parent study programs to promote reading; by 5-15-01 . Implement refinements and implement by 9-1-01 GOAL: (general example) To incr~ase the overall revenue and attendance of the County Fair. @lohn F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved Strategic Planning FY 2001 OBJECTIVE: To increase, from $2.37 to $2.5 million, the Fair's gross revenue, and increase, from 312,466 to 330,000, the total attendance; Meas- ured by 10-1-01. ACTIONS/STRATEGIES: . Expand top entertainment to five nights and invite Garth Brooks; initiate by 11-1- 01 . Analyze current marketing efforts and seek expansion to a radius of 500 miles; by 1- 15-01 . Develop a series of lottery opportunities to offer new options for the public; arrange by 2-15-01 . Convene a study group to explore corpo- rate involvement to bring in employee groups; begin by 3-1-01 . Rework all sales and marketing material; by 4-1-01 . Explore using more volunteer assistance to market the Fair in other counties; by 4-1-01 TIle goal is generally measurable and you will know if you have achieved it if asked in the fu- ture. You must have some ability to quantify its success or failure. A goal is NOT an ac- tion or activity but an OUTCOME that re- lates to the mission and to at least one issue. Objectives are VERY quantifiable and include numbers or percentages to help evaluate their success NEXT fiscal year. They are incre- mental progress toward a goal, which lTIay re- cur annually until you have reached a status you wish to maintain. Then the goal AND ob- jective is "To maintain..." There are many ?r- dinances and federal guidelines that establIsh standards that must be maintained. These will become maintenance goals or objectives. Actions and/or strategies are the activities you plan to incorporate to achieve the. obj.ectives this next year. They follow each ObjectIve and it is not uncommon to have 15 to 20 actions/ strategies. These are your "To Do's" and are a list of the operational actions you plan to un- 16 ( dertake with the funds you receive. Some years ago in a rugged northwestern state I was taking a group of highway maintenance workers through a planning exercise. The leader was a huge man, around 6' 7" tall and weighing at least 290. These were tough gu~s and I had to lead them through a strategIc thinking process to develop a decent plan.. Af- ter listening to my spiel for an hour, they in- formed me that they already had an objective, and proudly showed it to me. It was, "To pur- chase 500 gallons of yellow paint and move it to New Meadows by July first". They had numbers, a date and it began with "To". I real- ized I had to help them understand that this was indeed an action, because it did not increase, decrease or maintain anything, plus cost money and had the action, 'To purchase'. So I used the most important word in public se~tor planning-- Why? If you had the pain~, what problem would it solve? They got a bIt grumpy, but after some debate, see~ed to grasp what I was trying to say. They retIred to another rooln to deliberate and emerged five minutes later proudly proclaiming that they NOW had the objective and .were sorry for the confusion. The revised objective read: uTo paint yellow lines on fifteen miles of highway from Council to New Meadows before July first." They related that they now understood that purchasing the paint was an action and the real objective was to paint the yellow lines. I realized I was in trouble because I again had to ask the critical question, 'Why?' Recogniz- ing another action, I still had to help them dis- cover the real objective, and to understand that painting lines was only an activity to help achieve it. So...I forged ahead and asked the question. "Why would you do that? Wh~t out~ come will there be from the yellow lInes? @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved - ( Strategic Planning Boy, did they get mad! I thought they were going to throw me out in the snow, and they did in fact get quite verbal. In the middle of a tirade, the foreman loudly cOffilnented that, "You know, there have been a lot of accidents on that stretch of road, and... II I immediately interrupted, saying, "Oh.. . accidents? How many? Is that why you are painting yellow lines?" He glared at me for a moment, but then seemed to see the light. He gathered his men and quietly moved to the next room. A few minutes later they returned and sheep- ishly told me that they now understood what the objective was, and read it to me. "To re- duce, from 22 to less than 12, the number of serious injury automobile accidents occurring on Highway 95 between New Meadows and Council, by July first." Yes! A decent objec- tive. We then discussed that buying paint, painting yellow lines, doing shoulder and crown work, installing new guard rails, pruning trees on tight corners, etc. were all ACTIONS. They are the operations part of their work, and would enable them to achieve the objective. Whenever an action word is seen in a strate- gic plan as part of a goal or objective, ask WHY? Why are you painting, installing, convening, purchasing, hiring, developing, improving, training etc.? The answer will be the actual goal or objective. Strategic planning is one of the great legacies that must become part of every employee's 'tool kit' and an integrated facet of public manage- ment. It is not the sole province of managers and supervisors, but a style of thinking and op- erating that needs to be integrated into every aspect of a public organization. Done properly, it will provide a variety of positive outco~es that will invigorate a work team or entIre agency. At the very least, teachin~ this n.ew and more modern version of strategIc plannIng 17 will: a Clarify the mission, vision and future di- rection of each section, bureau, division, department or entire agency. a Promote broader and more relevant diagno- sis and internal analysis. o Illuminate the most critical internal and ex- ternal issues and challenges. a Motivate the organization to become issue driven- to help set priorities and work on what's important. a Provide the basis for decisions and pro- motes inclusive decision-making. o Create a system for improvement that en- hances organization performance. o Initiate more collaboration and cooperation internally and externally. o Increase quality, initiative and creativity. a Ensure more internal leadership develop- ment. a Produce an adaptive culture that can and will respond more efficiently. o Save an enormous amount of money and thne. To say the least, strategic thinking is a corner- stone for both creative leadership and adaptive, innovative organizations. By embracing a thoughtful new approach to strategic planning, the public sector will ensure many of the lega- cies cited in virtually all leadership literature- collaboration, insightful learning organizations, pride, clear direction, and a progressive spirit. A remarkable return from a small investment in planning. @John F. Luthy 2000 All Rights Reserved ", \, Strategic Planning About The Author John Luthy has enjoyed a distinguished thirty- year career serving in both governnlent and industry. He holds a bachelor's degree from Baker University, a master's degree in public health fron1 the University of Missouri, a nlas- tel" 's degree in public adnlinistration from Boise State University, and a doctorate from the University of Idaho focusing on organiza- tion development. John is considered a leading authority on public sector strategic planning, performance management, leadership develop- ment and the relationship between community development and long-term public agency suc- cess. During fourteen years in the public sec- tor, he served at the city, county, and state lev- els in director or senior management positions, in general administration, health, and hunlan services. Over the three decades he has served the pri- vate business and public sectors, John Luthy has assisted hundreds of organizations, includ- ing Fortune 500 corporations, closely held businesses, and city, county and state agencies, toward the goal of becoming more productive, cohesiveJ and responsive. He is the author of the acclain1ed Prepared For Challenge Or- ganization Development Series T~ which has guided hundreds of businesses and public agencies to higher levels of efficiency and per- formance. His March; 1998 feature article, Seven Dimensions of Employee Improverrzent and Development, and recent feature article Leaving A Legacy for Public Management magazine have received national and interna- tional attention. Dr. Luthy has been recog- nized in 'Who's Who In America' and 'Who's Who in American Education', and is one of the country Js most sought after consultants in the areas of public sector strategic planning, em- ployee nlotivation and perforn1ance, conlmu- nity planning, and organization development. This article 011 strategic planning is part of the Prepared For Challel1ge Public Leadership series that has been developed by The Futures Corpora- tion. All rights to this reprint are reserved to John F. Luthy, 2000. 18 RECEIVED SEP - 4 2001 '. { The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning -2001 CITY OF MERIDIAN DEVELOPING A STRATEGIC PLAN & PLANNING PROCESS FOR THE CITY OF MERIDIAN, IDAHO INTRODUCTION Over the past decade, there has been a growing trend toward local government autonomy and even greater independence from federal and state agencies. With the resurgence of the most current version of New Federalism, state, city and county governments will see even more encouragement from the federal government to join with local partners to develop collaborative communities that can offer broader services while solving more complex regional problems. While there may still be un-funded mandates to consider, and the corresponding impact on both available revenue and program capacity, there will also be a greater ability to join with local and regional leaders to address broad community needs. Planning by progressive public organizations such as the City of Meridian has been done for years, but rarely with the type of involvement and strategic purpose that is now required for continuous improvement and significant community success. Because public revenue is tight at a time when public expectations are growing, scrutiny is high, and services are being stretched beyond limits, strategic thinking and planning has become the single most important option for elected officials and public managers. Similarly, business leaders expect nothing less than clear objectives that can measure outputs and outcomes toward goals established to sustain community vitality. By learning and participating together in a comprehensive planning process and integrating that process into the existing fabric of City organizations, the City of Meridian will become even more cohesive, focused, collaborative, and financially diligent. Because few cities in Idaho have developed high quality strategic plans, Meridian will assume a more pronounced leadership role in establishing a quality strategic plan, a thoughtful planning process, and a culture that considers planning a key to program and agency success. 1 The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning -2001 THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS The Futures Corporation has pioneered a total strategic planning process for public agencies. Developed over the past twenty-three years, the process combines traditional strategic planning, operations planning, and improvement planning into a comprehensive process designed to make public organizations more efficient and effective. It is an inclusive process, with involvement by the Mayor and City Council, plus all Department Directors and key personnel from each program unit. In addition to employees, other public officials and involved professionals may also be invited to participate in the process. One of the central concepts of this process is to TEACH it to as many people as possible, so participants will begin to understand planning and use it in everything they do. Therefore, strategic thinking, inclusion, and cooperative planning are all essential elements of this process. RECOMMENDED ACTIONS Due to the value of planning to both budgeting and program operations, it is recommended that actions be scheduled over the next few months. Initial meetings could be held in January or early February and the process completed by April. The following are the key actions recommended for the City of Meridian: 1. Schedule a short presentation to the City Council to review the process and planning program, and answer any questions they might have. This could also be done in a short special but informal meeting of less than one hour. 2. Schedule one half day to meet with all Department Directors and key staff to introduce the process and explain what needs to occur. During this meeting we will also answer questions, establish project parameters, and develop an understanding of what the Directors and Mayor want to accomplish. 3. Schedule another half day (same day as above or the same week) to review the entire process with all staff and any additional personnel considered critical by the Mayor, Directors and City Council. 2 ( ( The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning ..2001 4. Have the Mayor and Council announce this as a major initiative- letting staff know this is very important to the City's long-term success and that there is support at all levels for an integrated, professional planning process. Prepare correspondence for the Mayor with approp~iate planning information- two hours. 5. Schedule and conduct a kick-off training session, or sessions for the Directors and staff. This is either a very intense one-day session to train the entire staff, or two or three daylong sessions to accommodate schedules. The Mayor and City Council should also attend the training. Two days. 6. Establish a "Strategic Planning Council" that willleam the process, help develop a planning and implementation schedule, and cO;J1sider the best approach to ensure efficiency and success. This Council will be permanent and will become the City's central repository of strategic planning expertise that will facilitate planning annually from here forward. It will receive special training during the first month of the planning process. Calculate one half to one day for specialized training and development. 7. Establish a Formatting/Editing Team of selected managers and staff that can design the look of the overall plan and. take it to a final version. No matter how small or informal, having this Team is very important, because its members will become internal experts who can lead the process on an annual basis. Importantly, members of this team come from all types of jobs. Their expertise is writing and editing, and development! presentation of written documents. They do not need to be senior managers. Calculate one half day of training and assistance over 6-8 planning weeks. 8. Schedule and conduct planning work sessions for each major department to launch the planning process and begin developing its first draft. Calculate a day and a halfper major department and combined sessions for smaller departments oft (meetings planned around staff schedules). Total time estimated at eight to ten days total. 9. John Luthy will meet with any separate departments or specific positions to provide assistance with the process of articulating their writing or plan development. On the average, this type of plan development assistance averages three hours per department. Often, John Luthy is involved with editing, particularly as part of teaching departments how to write good 3 ( The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning -2001 missions, visions, issues, goals, objectives, actions, etc. But, once expertise is developed, Dr. Luthy will assume a facilitative, or 'coaching' role as soon as plans are drafted. lO.All department plans will be compiled by the Format/Edit Team into a single draft document. It is edited (not for content), designed and prepared for printing. All departments see and approve the final prior to print. Examples of completed documents are shared by The Futures Corporation so this process is expedited. Final drafting & editing- estimated at 2.5-3.5 days. BENEFITS OF THE STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS By completing this planning process, the City of Meridian, its Mayor and Council and departments will have: . A more efficient, effective planning process, with more people trained in the newest and most practical form of strategic planning. + An opportunity for a more cohesive, collaborative, responsive and cooperative City government. + Identified the key issues and challenges that need to be addressed over the next several years, and established a plan to do so. . A new, concrete system of linking planning to performance budgeting, ensuring a stronger relationship between actual challenges, program services, and financial resources. + Established an internal group of trained planners and facilitators that can continue to create annual strategic plans and evolve the planning process to meet changing needs. + Identified an "agenda for improvement" based on real issues that need to be addressed in City government as well as within the community. Perhaps for the first time, everyone will be able to see a complete slate of challenges facing the City- internally and externally- and the actions proposed to address them. 4 ( The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning ..2001 · Created a stronger foundation for positive change and progress, based on clear issues and a means of prioritization that was not available previously. · Developed a stronger sense of team, mutual respect and collective purpose for all employees, the Mayor and Council, and constituents throughout the City. · Developed a template to guide future planning, as well as a systematic approach to linking strategic, operations and improvement planning. TIME SCHEDULE At this juncture, based on recent discussions, the project will take approximately four six to eight calendar weeks to fully complete. Assuming a start date in January or early February, a plan could be completed by late March or mid- April. Futures Corporation involvement could begin in January and should take, at a minimum, approximately three man-weeks or 15 days, and up to twenty days over the course of the project. Toward the end of the process, our work is normally of an editing and 'coaching' nature, with plans being finalized by internal facilitators, the Editing Team, and Department Directors. PROJECT LEADER John Luthy will conduct and/or facilitate all elements of this project. John is founder and president of The Futures Corporation, and Managing Director of the Executive Management Development Institute, both located in Boise, Idaho. He has enjoyed a very successful twenty-nine year career, half of which was in the public sector serving in city, county, and state government director or senior management positions. He is a nationally recognized expert in public sector strategic planning, leadership, visioning, and organization change planning. For over fifteen years, Mr. Luthy has provided programs and services in the areas of private-public partnerships, innovative financing strategies, grantsmanship, and strategic planning to hundreds of public agencies in sixteen states from New Hampshire to Washington State and public organizations from 37 states have attended his lectures and seminars. John is recognized in both Who's Who In America and Who's Who In American Education; he is a regularly published author in Public Management Magazine, and consults both nationally and internationally. He holds a bachelor's degree from Baker University, a master's degree in public health from the University of Missouri, a master's degree in 5 I' ( The City of Meridian, Strategic Planning -2001 public administration from Boise State University, and a doctorate from the University of Idaho, with specialization in organization development. REFERENCES Should references be desired, the following represent public organizations that have recently received strategic planning assistance and training from The Futures Corporation and John Luthy. Phil Kushlan, Executive Director Capital City Development Corporation 384-4264 Roger Simmons, Chair Ada County Commission 364-2333 Deanna Watson, Executive Director Boise City/Ada County Housing Authority 363-9714 Terry Harris, County Administrator EI Paso County, Colorado (Colorado Springs) 719-520-6417 COST Most strategic plans for cities as large as Meridian require 20 to 30 man-days to complete. This process has been abbreviated to expedite the process AND produce a quality product. Project fees are charged at a flat $1200 per day for all strategic planning work. Based on three to four man-weeks over two months, or approximately 15 to 20 days, project fees will approximate $18,000 to $24,000. Contemplating the strategic planning process, and what is perceived to be necessary to have a good experience and get a quality product, the following budget breakdown is offered. 6 ( The City o11vferidian, Strategic Planning -2001 Total prep time with staff & mgmt- Pre-planning & initial training- Planning work with Depts.- Final Writing & editing, - TOTAL ESTIMATED DAYS 1.5 - 2.5 days 3.0 - 4.0 days 8.0 - 10 days 2.5 - 3.5 days 15.0 - 20 days 15 to 20 days @ a base fee of $ 1200/day= $18,000 to $24,000 for the planning process, training, and all materials. This could be more or less depending on staff support, time spent with Departments, and time needed to bring a plan to written form (most writing will be done by agency personnel, with assistance). IF the process is properly executed, with commitment to proceed through a complete planning exercise, this is the minimum amount of time that will be needed. Also, work with the Departments includes time with individual Directors and senior managers to help them identify issues and challenges, and initiatives they strongly support. The entire process will be reviewed with the Mayor and Council as it unfolds and as plans are drafted. The Mayor and Council must be deeply involved with the strategic planning process. 7 ( CITY OF MERIDIAN MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL AND ADA COUNTY HIGHWA Y DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEM FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September 4, 2001, at 4:30 P.M. City Council Chambers x o Tammy deWeerd X Cherie McCandless Ron Anderson X Keith Bird X Mayor Robert Corrie Roll Call: Issue #1 Discussion of sequencing Overland and Franklin Road projects by ACHD Statt- Presented options for the project by combining the two mile stretch from Eagle Road to Meridian Road Meridian City Council Joint Workshop with ACHD Agenda - September 4, 2001 Page 1 of 1 All materials presented at public meetings shall become property of the City of Meridian. Anyone desiring accommodation for disabilities related to documents and/or hearings) please contact the City Clerk's OffICe at 888-4433 at least 48 hours prior to the public meeting. CITY OF MERIDIAN MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL AND ADA COUNTY HIGHWA Y DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEM FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September 4, 2001, at 4:30 P.M. City Council Chambers Roll Call: x V TammydeWeerd )( Cherie McCandless Ron Ande,r.;:on )( Keith Bird Mayor Robert Corrie Issue #1 Discussion of sequencing Overland and Franklin Road projects by ACHD Staff jJ/~SGd Meridian City Council Joint Workshop with ACHD Agenda -- September 4, 2001 Page 1 of 1 All materials presented at public meetings shall become property of the City of Meridian~ Anyone desiring accommodation for disabilities related to documents and/or hearings, please contaCt the City Clerk's Office at 888-4433 at least 48 hours prior to the public meeting. MAYOR Robert D. Corrie HUB OF TREASURE VALLEY A Good Place to Live CITY OF MERIDIAN LEGAL DEPARTMENT (208) 288-2499 · Fax 288-2501 CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS Ron Anderson Keith Bird Tammy deWeerd Cherie McCandless 33 EAST IDAHO MERIDIAN, IDAHO 83642 (208) 888-4433 · Fax (208) 887-4813 City Clerk Office Fax (208) 888-4218 PUBLIC WORKS BUILDING DEPARTh1ENT (208) 887-2211 · Fax 887-1297 PLANNING AND ZONING DEPARTMENT (208) 884-5533 · Fax 888-6854 NOTICE OF SPECIAL JOINT WORKSHOP MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL & ADA COUNTY HIGHWAY DISTRICT COMMISSIONERS NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the City Council of the City of Meridian and the Commissioners of the Ada County Highway District will hold a Special Joint Workshop at Meridian City Hall, 33 East Idaho Avenue, Meridian, Idaho, on Tuesday, September 4, 2001 at 4:30 pm. They will be discussing planning and servicing issues and items concerning both agencies. The public is welcome to attend. 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QJ > -- w :E I- Z o en u w c (V) o o N C ....... ::J CO Q) - 0) CU W ............... Q) > e (l) (9:i ....... -0 en Q) ::J ..c t) t) o C/) .. --.J ~ =1:1:: c: o -- +-I C. o ~ ~ ~ - -c co c c CU .0 1:: 0) Q) co > -- oP A A c -- - ~ c co '- LL 06 -c c co - s..... (l) > o t+- O c o -- +-' () 2 Q) +-' - en ::J c -0 o Q) ()..c () .. ~ ~ ~I C ~ ,,~ Q) ~ =1:1:: 5- ~ c: (l) 0 o ~ ~ .- 0:: t- o.. A A o CITY OF MERIDIAN CITY COUNCIL STRA TEGIC PLANNING SESSION / WORKSHOP AGENDA ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION Tuesday, September 4, 2001, at 5:30 P.M. City Council Chambers Roll Call: x o Tammy deWeerd X Cherie McCandless Ron Anderson X Keith Bird X Mayor Robert Corrie Issue #1 Discussion and presentation by John Luthy on developing a strategic plan and planning process for the City of Meridian ( Meridian City Council Special wurkshop September 4,2001 Page 2 Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 4. 2001 The special workshop for the Meridian City Council was called to order at 5:30 P.M. on Tuesday September 4, 2001 by Mayor Robert Corrie. Members Present: Mayor Robert Corrie, Tammy de Weerd, Keith Bird, and Cherie McCandless. Members Absent: Ron Anderson. Others Present: Gary Smith, Shari Stiles, Bill Nichols, Stacy Kilchenmann, Brad Watson, Ken Bowers, Mike Worley, Dave Bowman, Janice Smith, and Pauline Skeggs. Issue #1 Discussion and presentation by John Luthy on developing a strategic plan and planning process for the City of Meridian Corrie: -- the special meeting in which we'll have a presentation by John Luthy and strategic planning (inaudible) actions that we'll be taking. So, John you're up and ready to go. Luthy: Thank you Mr. Chairman, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Council. Let me give a quick review first of all then answer any questions you might have. I'm not sure if any of the department heads would have any questions as well. I'm just going to leave that up to you. First of all, thank you very much; I appreciate the opportunity to work with you on your strategic plan. The first strategic plan for the City of Meridian. Very, very quickly, some folks have asked about my background. Some of you already know it. I've been doing strategic planning for almost 30 years. I've taught seminars all over the United States in strategic planning mostly for city, county and state government. Over 40 agencies in this state have attended those seminars and the Ada County through their strategic plan and several other entities (inaudible) New Hampshire all the way to Bellingham Washington. So, I've been doing this for a long time from my headquarters here in Boise. So, I appreciate the opportunity to work with you all in this. Very, very quickly let me hand out to you just so you can have a (inaudible) also have some extra copies for the department heads if they would like some. I write extensively in strategic planning around the country. This is a pre-publication article, actually a reprint that will be coming out fairly soon. Let me very quickly say that the philosophy that I have about strategic planning is that this process is first of all very inclusive. I do not believe in top down planning. I think the departments have to be very deeply involved and as far down in those departments as possible. People need to be involved. They need to learn the process. I feel particularly strongly about this because as I've been doing this for so many years, I have people who went through the process 20 years ago who say it really was a career changing opportunity for them because for 20 years { Meridian City Council Special Vvurkshop September 4,2001 Page 3 ( since then they've been thinking strategically. Part of the process is to teach strategic thinking and I think that's very critical for a public agency. First of all I want you to know the philosophy that I have that this is an inclusive process. I also, very strongly encourage City Council involvement and even key people in the community's involvement if we can round some up and invite them to participate. Also, part of the philosophy that I have is to teach this process as we go. I believe in the teach a man to fish philosophy. I would rather teach the process, guide you through this first iteration, if you will, and then kind of fall back into a coaching mode which is what I tend to do around the country with most organizations. I've done organizations as large as 11 ,000 people. So, when some folks have said gee, have you ever done any big organizations, Yes, I've done some pretty big ones. I've done some pretty good sized ones here in this state but I've also done some very small organizations. Very focused, we're going to teach as we go, provide the materials, teach the process. I am going to invite and encourage as many people in the departments to attend the programs, the training programs as possible. So, we might have to do some scheduling miracles to get everybody involved but as far down as we can get, we're certainly going to invite those people to attend. It's a very focused process. The average plan for a department may only be 8 or 9 pages. We're not looking for a huge volume of paper. I don't believe in that. We want to stick to our knitting. We want to be very net. What we really want to provide the Council and for the department heads as an end result is a very, very clear goals, very specific issues based on reality here in this community, some specific objectives and actions that they want to take that then link to the budget. So, it should be very net. When you compile all those together you'll have something and I'll pass this around if you'd like to take a peek. This is one (inaudible). This is one for EI Paso County, (inaudible). You'll notice that the individual plans within there are very short. Of course when you compile them all and stack them up, it looks like a large document. What that means is that the individual departments will not be buried in paperwork. It will be a very simple process and it'll be a very net process. I want to encourage people or, perhaps make them feel a little more comfortable. A lot of people think they'll be writing a hundred page document in their departments at a time when they're very busy. That's not the case. We're going to keep it very, very focused. One of the things I'd like to say to you tonight and I always do right out, is that public sector planning is different than private sector planning and the public sector planning must be issue driven. Particularly with elected officials, you have to be concerned about the issues in your community. What we want to do from the department standpoint is be able to showcase those issues so you can make decisions based on the number of dollars you have to spend. So, planning and it says this in the article, you can take a peek at that when you have a chance. We have to make sure we're very good at articulating issues that are challenging you right now in the City of Meridian. We're looking for a little (inaudible) clear data. A lot of the issues are going to be data driven and they're going to be founded on some good, clear, crystal data. The reason for that certainly is that more and more public officials and department heads are going to be under more scrutiny, expectations are ( Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 4,2001 Page 4 ( growing. I don't think they're going to go into decline in the years ahead. I think we're going to see more and more expectations and greater demand on services. So, it's going to be very important in whatever plans we make are crisp and clear and founded on data. Everything's going to be measurable, clear, quantifiable, (inaudible) time specific so that when it comes time to making budget decisions, we know what it's going to cost. I would remind you that goals cost nothing, objectives cost nothing, what costs is action and strategies. I teach this very clearly because a lot of people have some very grand goals. But the rubber doesn't hit the road until you say how much is this going to cost us? We'll talk about that. We're going to tie this, I met with Stacy about 2 weeks ago. We're going to be making sure that this all links back to the budget. I'm a great believer in performance-based budget. Wherever I go around the country, I'll be in Philadelphia this next week doing a program for American Public Works Association, I preach wherever I go, performance base in everything. I think every program should be performance-based but again if we base everything on issue identification its easy to do. So, we'll be tying this to the budget and again we'll be tying it to the budget based on your budget process. Certainly not any process I will bring. So, we'll blend what I bring to what you already have so that it's very seamless. I said a bit ago, so I'll say it again, because I think its important, every department and if you have some of the larger departments have sections or divisions I would encourage those sections, the larger sections and larger divisions to also have plans so they would be like sub plans within a department. If you look at the EI Paso County, you'll notice that the sheriff's department had plans for each one of their major divisions as with some of the other major departments. Size will dictate that and we'll talk about that as we get into the department discussions in the next few weeks. The process, if I may very quickly, the initial actions that I've recommended that we take. I would encourage you all to announce this as a major initiative. I think it has to be announced. It has to be showcased if you will as a major initiative so that the employees and the folks in the community understand that this is something that we're going to do and its something that everybody has their shoulder behind. That's something that's important for the city. I will be meeting with the key department, or all the department directors on, I believe the 18th of September. We'll go through a Q and A, question, answer at that time. We'll go through the entire process, hopefully clarify the process, make any amendments we need to, start looking at schedules. We'll hopefully pretty much get out the gate on the 18th or shortly they're after. I will ask at that time, and I'll at least mention tonight, I would like to make sure we have identified the key people who will serve on Meridian's strategic planning Council. Everywhere I go, cities, counties and state agencies as well, I recommend that there be a strategic planning Council made up of department directors and other key people within those departments so that there is a group of people who will learn the process and will basically be the caretakers of this process over time. I will be encouraging between now and then, the identification of some of the key people who might serve on that Council so that we can get that going right after we have the meeting on the 18th. So. We'll have that. We'll establish that. We'll begin that, actually we (inaudible) ( Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 4,2001 Page 5 training that group will go through some special training. The next action which is the major action, actually 2 of the major actions is to begin scheduling training for all department personnel. As many as we can get into that training. Always its best, the more you can have there the better. I've had some organizations (inaudible) over in Oregon actually, I still don't know how they did this but the county commissioners shut down the county for an entire day and only had a skeleton crew. They had like 400 and some people attend a big training session all in one group. I'm not encouraging you to do that but we'd like to have as many people attend as possible. We're happy to do it in different increments and different meetings. We'll do it however it works best for the departments. The main thing is to make sure we have everybody attend training or as many people as possible attend the training. 20 years ago, 15 years ago I didn't emphasize training as much and I found that a lot of the planning processes dwindled, lost momentum and they didn't have any sustainability. So, we need to make sure we do this training. It's a critical part of the entire process. Once training is completed, we'll begin working with the departments to schedule the actual planning processes. Then I take the lead on that. I don't bring in anybody else to do it. I will take the lead myself. This is a process that I will do. I will begin scheduling with the departments and department personnel to start working on their plans and I'll work right there shoulder to shoulder with them starting to develop their draft plans. Many departments get out of the gate quickly and they finish their plans within a fairly short time. They have good data. They know how to put it together. I think you'll find that half your departments will have it done very, very quickly. Some might need a little bit more time, particularly with work schedules as I'm sure they are right now. I know that everybody's extremely busy. I'll work around their schedules. We'll schedule the --. We'll get the training over with and we'll begin the actual planning. After that starts, usually it only takes 6 or 8 weeks to have draft plans. Its up to the Council whether or not you want to see drafts but they certainly will be available. We will compile them in a draft book, if you will, from a master book as we go. The strategic planning team will kind of hold onto that. That's basically the process. Then we should be able to have the individual planning sessions beginning by, I would say mid October. I would say this whole process should pretty much be done by early December. Normally once it gets going it doesn't take that long to finish. Again, as you look through some of the example plans, the individual department plans, or the section plans are not that long but they're very specific. So, that's the process. That's the philosophy behind it. Any questions I can answer, I'd be happy to do so. The original proposal, I don't know if you have copies of it but if you'd like, I have copies of the proposal. Just so you have it for your files. (inaudible) (inaudible discussion amongst Council) Bird: She'll be back. Luthy: That's just for your files. That's the proposal which also lists the actions and has all the pertinent information in it. Any questions that I can answer? ( Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 4,2001 Page 6 ( Corrie: The meeting on September the 18th, will be the department directors and managers (inaudible)? Luthy: Correct. Yes. I would encourage the department directors to bring any of their senior folks along. That would be great. The more I think that we get early to discuss it, talk about it, I think the better off we'll be. Corrie: Any questions? Bird: I have none Mayor. Corrie: Okay. I'll probably give you a call tomorrow or Thursday (inaudible) I need to get to you. Also, some of these other things (inaudible). Luthy: All right. Corrie: I think the 18th (inaudible). How much time do you think we'll need? Luthy: It all depends on the questions, usually 2 hours is enough. Corrie: Okay. Luthy: Sometimes it goes longer. but normally 2 hours is enough to clarify and answer questions and kind of get it launched. Bird; Mr. Mayor. Corrie: Yes, Mr. Bird. Bird: (inaudible) was passed over my head but have we (inaudible)? Have we passed on this already? For this to be done? I don't recall any motion passing on this. Corrie: That's what I'm trying to see here. Bird: We talked about it but I don't recall - Corrie: We didn't. Bird: -- ever having a motion on it. If the poor guys going to go to work, we'd better make it official. Corrie: Yes. Stacy, do we have that? (inaudible discussion amongst Council) ( Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 412001 Page 7 Corrie: Not since you've been here, as far as the budget is concerned? Kilchenmann: Oh, it's in the budget. Corrie: That's what I was thinking. Bird: It's in the budget but we have not accepted a formal plan. Corrie: Well, we'd better get that done then. Bird: We can take care of that in the department reports tonight, can't we? Corrie: Yes. Bird: The only thing I question is I - its approximate fees? John, I don't like that. Can you say not to exceed? Luthy: Whenever I sign a contract, it's always a not to exceed the higher --. Bird: Now, when we pass it, if we pass it tonight what's going to be the not to exceed? 18,000? Not to exceed 18,000? Luthy: My guess we'll probably go higher than that. We'll probably go to the higher number. Bird: The 24? Luthy: I'd say that would probably be the safer number. Bird: Not to exceed? Okay. But to pass, we've got to do something like that. Luthy: I understand and that's fine. Most cities this size, it runs, I think I mentioned that in the proposal. Bird: Yes. Luthy: What we're trying to do this time and the Mayor and I talked about this is try to net the process out. Make it as tight as we possibly can so we're doing a little squeezing but I think that will be a safe --. Well, it will be a safe number. Bird: Okay. We need to do that tonight in the department reports. We can't do it now because we don't have a quorum. Luthy: All rig ht. ( Meridian City Council Special Workshop September 4,2001 Page 8 Bird: Thank you very much. Corrie: Thank you John. Got the other one? Luthy: Yes. Corrie: Yes. It looks like --. She said she may not be back until 7:00. Bird: Mr. Mayor. Corrie: Mr. Bird. Bird: I move that we close this special strategic meeting and workshop. Corrie: Do I hear a second? Without your second, we're not going anywhere. Okay. Motion been made and second to close the scheduled workshop with John Luthy. All those in favor of the motion say, excuse me, aye. MOTION CARRIED: TWO AYES, TWO ABSENT MEETIGN ADJOURNED AT 5:50 P.M. (TAPE ON FILE OF THESE PROCEEDINGS) APPROVED: [j, z~~ C!J7/ ~/ZtKJ/ DATE APPROVED , "\\,,,ttt!1..11fll/iJ ,\\'<.. - -M-f-or" 'If..'' ~,-\ -:t 'Or-. <,;1::.1 ~:':) ~~;~- ~.'~~ . ~ .,~.~;~ 'i~~ ,::." 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