Making a plan

To help identify priorities for the City of Prairie City, a strategic planning meeting was held to get public input. More than 20 people packed tables Oct. 24 at the community center to discuss three main topics: beautification, development and mobility.

Chris Janson, Andrew Inhelder and Jason Miller of MSA Professional Services led the discussion to better define the direction citizens would like to see the city take.

“We do this a lot for strategic plans as well as a lot of other projects that involve community engagement,” Janson said. “Usually there is always some type of education process. In this case, we’re looking to get some ideas the council can use to create a strategic plan with MSA’s help. We’re having this as an opportunity for individuals to come and be a part of this process to contribute their thoughts and opinions related to the growth of the community.”

By definition, a strategic plan is a short-range plan, usually for two years, which identifies the city’s core mission and vision. What are the goals, what are the priorities, what do needs to get done in the next two years, Jason explained.

“It will provide a systematic process which the community anticipates and plans for the future. A more focused comprehensive plan,” Janson said. “(It will) focus in on what the council has control over and what type of goals they have for the city over the next two years. It is also an important step before capital improvement planning (CIP) which is about a five-year plan, which cities do to talk about infrastructure investment. Also, it goes into annual budgeting.”

To begin the process, the city created an online survey. With questions on services and amenities, where tax dollars should be used, infrastructure, safety and Prairie City’s future, it gives an additional avenue for citizens to have their voices heard. The survey is available at surveymonkey.com/r/PrairieCityStrategicPlan.

At the meeting, groups were formed to learn the strengths and weaknesses within the city along with areas of opportunity Prairie City has. Several points were mentioned throughout the process spanning all three categories including lack of sidewalks, need for business development, having close access to Des Moines and having a small town feel.

“You start to see there are some ideas that are new to you and other folks and there are others that are on the top of everybody’s mind,” Janson said.

Other areas of concern mentioned were the appearance at the bison area, vacant residential buildings, street maintenance, lack of senior housing and programming and lack of rental properties and apartments. On the positive side, citizens noted the schools, progress with the bike trail, welcoming entry signage and the Neal Smith National Wildlife Refuge.

All comments were noted, Janson said, and will be reviewed at the next city council meeting Nov. 14. The final results from the survey will also be included in the strategic plan.

Contact Jamee A. Pierson at 641-792-3121 ext. 6534 or jpierson@newtondailynews.com