Council discuss findings from goal setting retreat

During Tuesday evening's regular meeting, the Sidney City Council discussed the preliminary finding from their goal setting retreat last month, but decided to hold off on taking action until after they receive input from the community.

On April 21, the council convened for a special meeting in the meeting room at the Hampton Inn located at 635 Cabela's Dr. to discuss and prioritize their long-term and short-term goals for their new city manager as well as city staff.

The retreat was facilitated by Nebraska Extension, with Don Macke, co-director for the Center for Rural Entrepreneurship acting as its moderator. Extension educator Connie Hancock and rural sociologist Randy Cantrell were also present for the retreat.

Prior to the retreat, the council, along with City Manager Ed Sadler, City Clerk Geri Anthony and City Attorney J. Leef filled out a survey identifying what they saw as Sidney's major accomplishments, issues, concerns, trends, opportunities and its significant initiatives or programs.

The council also identified in the survey what they felt were their short-term goals, to be considered for the next two years, and their long-term goals, which could be implemented within the next three to five years.

External stakeholders representing the city's economic development community were also interviewed as part of the survey.

Using the results from the survey, councilors each identified their individual top three short-term and long-term goals for Sidney, and then voted from that list which they felt were the priorities.

The preliminary findings from the retreat were presented to council during Tuesday night's meeting to allow them to make any changes or additions before finalizing as city administration and staff prepare to tackle the upcoming budget for the next fiscal year.

During the presentation, Sadler said he tried to get the list of priorities down to the three to five that received more than one vote during the retreat.

"Anything with one or less really wasn't making your priority list," he said. "I was trying to make it clear so that any member of the public who sees this, who reads this, understands which of the goals that you truly want the staff to focus on."

Sadler said he also tried to leave enough in the findings to give the public "a sense of where you were intending this goal to go without having specific projects enumerated that you have not necessarily voted on."

"This is meant to give the public, anybody who would pick this up, to know that this is where the council is putting their money and their mouth," he said.

According to the preliminary findings, the council's top long-term goal, which received four votes at the retreat, is economic development, which includes focusing on Industrial Park and Business Park as well as attracting new businesses and executing a target economic development study and plan.

City streets and utilities both received three votes at the retreat, while city recreation resources and city public facilities each garnered two votes.

In short-term goals, economic development topped the priorities list with five votes. Broadening the city's long-term financing options was the next priority with four votes, followed by city streets with three votes and parks and recreation strategy and development receiving two votes.

After the presentation, councilor Joe Arterburn said he wanted the option for the list to be something with which they can continue to take input from the community. Sadler said that it could be, as things that could happen in the coming months might change the dynamics of the council's priorities.

"Things can change," he said. "I guess the only thing that I will ask from council is that if you go and add one to the plate, that you scrape one off of the plate."

Mayor Mark Nienhueser suggested that they leave the discussion open for now and publish the preliminary findings on the city's website.

"We can see what we'll get for comments, and then finalize it at the next meeting," Nienhueser said.

Councilor Mark Gallaway was in support of publishing the list online.

"I'd like to give the public a chance to see it," he said. "That way, people can look at the long-term versus short-term."

The preliminary findings from the goal setting retreat will be made available at the City of Sidney website at cityofsidney.org. Public comments will be collected until Friday, May 20, to give council a chance to review prior to their next regular meeting, which is scheduled for Tuesday, May 24.