Strategic Planning Work Session

1 City of Cedar Falls Strategic Framework Updated May 13, 2025 Vision Cedar Falls is a welcoming and safe community, with a small-town feel and big-city amenities, and a strong sense of connection that creates the magic that makes it home Key Focus Areas Enhanced Recreation Amenities Providing recreational and cultural amenities for the community to create lifelong memories, attract and retain new and existing community members, and provide for healthy and active lifestyles for people of all ages and abilities Well Maintained Infrastructure Strategically investing in modern infrastructure that meets the current and future demands of our growing community Thriving and Connected Neighborhoods Fostering accessible neighborhoods where all can live, work, and gather through community-driven planning and thoughtful development Strong Local Economy Supporting a healthy and diversified local economy where individuals and businesses, both large and small, invest and grow High Performing Government Serving the community with responsive, reliable, and highly functional city government in a fiscally responsible manner Organizational Mission A hardworking team delivering high-quality services to enhance the quality of life and ensure the safety of our community Organizational Values  Teamwork  Stewardship  Compassion  Adaptability  Integrity  2 Strategies Numbers in parentheses identify the number of stickers placed on the grouping. Verbatim Council ideas are included as sub-bullets in each category. Enhanced Recreation Amenities  Implement Parks Master Plan Recommendations (6) o Build new, larger skatepark o Build a new skatepark (or at least get a plan for fundraising/timeline) o Splashpad ASAP o Expand “place to play” to all parks o Replace outdated playgrounds in all parks with new, inclusive equipment o Fund Cedar City and North Cedar Dog Parks o Build integrated public amenities on the water fronts, adding outdoor gathering and recreating spaces o Develop a concrete plan for a new/expanded recreational facility and, potentially including turf amenities (indoor and outdoor)  Create dedicated recreation staffing (1) o Dedicate experts in recreation to programming and facilitating city amenities  Renovate the Hearst Center o Complete Hearst 2.0 o Remodel/Expand the Hearst Center  Identify opportunities for Cedar City o Explore the ideas/concepts the ISU students created for Cedar City Well Maintained Infrastructure  Fund and Implement the City’s Capital Improvement Plan (6) o Plan for the future – don’t defer maintenance o Repair all deficiencies as quickly as possible o Monitor road surface conditions proactively o Maintain city property as if it were our own – make it magical o Maintain and add to trails and sidewalks o Update Union Road o Make Greenhill/58 intersection safe Thriving and Connected Neighborhoods  Pursue changes to city code that will promote connected neighborhoods (5) o Allow commercial in neighborhoods via zoning code changes o Mix retail and service in neighborhoods o Prioritize people over cars in street design o Build sidewalk infill in missing areas, connecting all areas in a walkable way o Revise code and align development incentives to encourage and enable connectivity between neighborhoods, tree plantings, and more creative development priorities  Promote neighborhood education and engagement (1) o Program sponsorships for neighborhood collaboration (i.e., civic competitions between neighboring areas)  3 o Use pilot programs to show neighborhoods what it would be like to have more amenities (parks, businesses, etc.)  Encourage green spaces and trees (1) o Require green spaces in distribute fashion, providing feature destinations around town o Keep planting trees, free trees, prairie for citizens  Develop and adopt pre-approved housing plans o Pre-approved housing plans o Design/purchase pre-approved housing plans  Support housing development o Adopt subdivision plan o Promote and support housing development Strong Local Economy  Expand community partnerships (3) o Partner with GCV to attract innovative business and industry to CF o Use Grow Cedar Falls as a second Shane focused on small biz o Develop an entrepreneurial incubator with UNI, CFCS, and private education entities o Support/partner to add quality childcare o Partner/support food co-op  Revise zoning code (2) o Streamline zoning o Update, review, and refine zoning code o Redevelop our zoning code to better meet modern development needs and provide more flexibility in developments  Operationalize the Development Taskforce (2) o Convene development taskforce o Implement outcomes of the development taskforce o Implement a development taskforce/review process to identify possible zoning and process changes to continually improve our development process  Develop and deploy development incentives and strategies o Develop a formal economic development strategy that encompasses local small business support as well as industry and commercial development opportunities o Promote industrial parks o Incentivize additional development of place-making in a dispersed fashion (mid-town, mall redevelopment, etc.)  Create additional economic development capacity within city staff o Create position and budget FTE for additional city economic development position High Performing Governing  Enhance communication and transparency through proactive communication and engagement strategies (6) o Be proactive – call on groups, call on citizens, campaign for ideas o Respond to citizen emails, calls, etc. o Attend neighborhood meetings o Host quarterly/monthly town hall meetings with rotating council invitees o Schedule recurring coffee with a council member programs similar to coffee with a cop/city  4 o Formalized community communication and reporting based on the goals, strategies and actions identified in the strategic plan  Support city workforce (1) o Invest in tools & FTE to support the city o Adapt to needs of city staff/support city staff (focus on pay and benefits) o Implement more downline staff ideas  Evaluate options to optimize city organization and structure o Review benefits of Manager Council style of government o Evaluate and potentially reorganize departments o Re-establish a department focusing on recreation and civic engagement (Parks and Rec or Human and Leisure)  Update online services o Update web portal o More fees and permits when feasible online  Identify opportunities to reduce expenditures o Reduce expenses on controllable costs to prevent tax increases