At its July 29 meeting, Springfield City Council unanimously approved a resolution adopting its 2019 priorities, which will guide and empower the City’s elected officials and staff as they work on the City’s behalf.
“During a retreat in May, City Council identified several important priority items and related objectives that we believe will provide general guidance for the application of municipal time and resources and support the future betterment of the Springfield community,” said Mayor Ken McClure.
The priorities are:
Quality of Place
Those features of physical environment and qualities of life that make a location a desirable, competitive and economically vibrant place to live
Objectives
- Create an image campaign that communicates to and empowers citizens to get engaged with Quality of Place efforts
- Invest in projects that improve livability for Springfieldians; including the beautification of City property, roadways and entryways
- Revitalize Springfield’s neighborhoods
- Invest in quality multi-modal transportation infrastructure
- Attract and retain Springfield’s talent
- Review work of business community visioning group related to quality of place
- Proactively promote activities that instill community pride
- Foster activities that promote a clean, safe and friendly neighborhood.
Legislative Engagement
The deliberate formation of a positive relationship with local and regional legislative delegates to affect positive outcomes in legislative policy.
Objectives
Objectives
- Partner further with our region’s cities and organization to create a unified legislative voice
- Serve as a subject matter trusted source for municipal issues
- Work closely with the Missouri Legislature’s newly formed Local Government Caucus
- More formally recognize the efforts of Springfield’s legislative delegation
- Focus annually on the City’s top and most impactful priorities to ensure a clear legislative priority message.
Fiscal Sustainability and Accountability
The ability of a municipal organization to adequately meet its primary service delivery needs and financial commitments over the long-term, while also preserving a healthy financial condition based on municipal association best practices including accountability and transparency.
Objectives
- Review new revenue opportunities to meet future capital and operational needs
- Determine the most reasonable means to grow existing revenue sources
- Encourage ideas for improving operational efficiencies
- Fully project and address deferred maintenance needs
- Examine enhanced cooperation opportunities with Greene County and other government entities
- Develop performance and financial accountability measures
- Prudently maximize idle funds investment options
- Enhance fiscal transparency through website functionality.
Economic Vitality
A sustainable economic climate that fosters low poverty, affordable options for quality housing and wage levels that allow the opportunity for people to participate in quality of life endeavors.
Objectives
- Enhance Springfield’s potential as a regional tourism hub for both traditional and sports tourism
- Improve the efficiency and value of the development process
- Review and refine the City’s annexation strategy
- Enhance efforts to revitalize Springfield’s neighborhoods
- Review the provision of alternative forms of energy that are desired by business prospects
- Strategically market and apply a targeted use of economic development incentives for big impact projects
- Leverage the benefit of private, public, educational and medical partnerships
- Make proactive investments in public infrastructure for those areas with the highest potential for development and redevelopment
- Be a partner to help close the skills gap within our community
- Improve the community’s attractiveness to business site selectors
- Align development interests with the priorities of place, design and safety
- Successfully complete the review of the City’s land use plan and effectively implement the outcomes.
Public Safety
The effective delivery of police, fire, 911 and emergency management service, including prevention efforts and protection from events that could endanger the safety of the general public from significant injury/harm or damage, such as crimes or disasters.
Objectives
- Actively review the application and benefit of new public safety technology
- Address quality of life issues, with special emphasis on reducing chronic nuisance properties to ensure clean, safe neighborhoods
- Strongly encourage the empowerment of neighborhoods to identify and community needs and concerns
- Increase crime prevention and public education efforts
- Make efforts to reduce traffic accidents by emphasizing the Education, Engineering and Enforcement approach
- Continue to utilize, promote and recommend alternative sentencing approaches where relevant to reduce warrant-related activities
- Place additional emphasis on the diversity of staff
- Work with community partners to determine the root causes of mental health issues
- Continue to focus on reducing public safety response times
- Review alternative approaches to enhance compliance with municipal court orders
- Transition from a complaint-based code enforcement approach to a City-initiated approach.
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