The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
Tools to analyze decisions
[ By Kendra Walker ]
The Mt. Crested Butte town council is working with their new town manager Isa Reeb to develop a Strategic Plan and Master Plan that will help guide and influence the town’s decision-making process moving forward.
During a March 30 work session, Reeb explained that the Strategic Plan is a written document used to prioritize initiatives, resources, operations and projects. The plan is supported by a vision (why the town exists, its core values), guiding principles (how you want the town to behave when no one is looking), strategic goals (overarching goals for the town) and action items (specific check-box items to update annually).
The Strategic Plan then influences the town’s annual Master Plan, which provides a framework for working on the town’s growth and public improvements.
Both the Strategic Plan and Master Plan help guide all decision making, explained Reeb. For any decision or issue, she said, you can ask, “Does this meet the goals that we’ve outlined in the strategic plan and the vision outlined in the master plan?” Reeb also suggested that once both plans were in place, the council could create a Decision Checklist, similar to what the town of Crested Butte uses. The checklist serves as a tool to guide discussion and decision-making during council meetings. “When you have all of these things laid out you can start looking at the overlap and influence of each decision. You have to look at them all simultaneously. These are tools for you to analyze decisions,” said Reeb.
During an April 6 work session, the council and Reeb worked on a strategic plan and drafted up a vision, guiding principles and strategic goals. Among the town’s strategic goals are leadership, environment, housing, transit and infrastructure.
On April 20 the council finalized the Strategic Plan and will now begin developing goals and outcomes for the Master Plan. Ideally, the Master Plan will be finalized before September when council begins meeting with regional partners to develop a Regional Comprehensive Plan. “So we’re more in alignment when we go into those regional discussions,” said Reeb. “If we have those goals set out the conversation will be much more effective.” Typically, the town’s goals will likely align with the other entities but the implementation might not, she explained. “It’s really important that we understand the implications of each decision within the larger context and this Master Plan allows us to do that.”
