Council set to focus on strategic plan in 2019
With the holiday season over and everyone back to work, Chestermere city council is set Full steam ahead with the strategic plan in 2019.
“Our strategic plan does indicate what we’re looking to achieve in the first quarter of 2019,” said Mayor Marshall Chalmers.
“The transition of CUI to a new way of doing business will be very front and centre,” he said, “We’re committed to again finding the best path forward.”
The work to find that best path forward continues to take up a lot of council’s time and focus as they work through the options and information for that transition.
While it is one of their top priorities, continuing to build on what they started in 2018 and listening to what the community wants to see going forward continue to be important to the Mayor.
“We continue to reach out to the community on various topics,” said Chalmers.
“The new seniors housing task force that we’re getting up and running, the Mayors round table on Amazing Chestermere these are all initiatives that we’re going to be pushing forward,” he said.
“And there’s a lot of dirt moving to the west,” said Chalmers.
The city and council’s ability to focus on these new priorities comes from one of council’s successes in 2018, hiring the new CAO, Bernie Morton.
“That was really our number one challenge going into 2018,” said Chalmers.
Council’s challenge was to take the time find the person had all the skills, knowledge and abilities to analyze the challenges and opportunities facing Chestermere and with council take the city in a new direction
“We accomplished that in 2018 and of course Bernie started Aug. 1,” said Chalmers.
With the hire, the city was able to pivot from an interim CAO with the mandate of providing stability to the city to a permanent CAO tasked with realizing council’s strategic plan for the city.
“It really is his mandate and what’s driving his direction is the strategic plan,” said Chalmers, “he needs to look at what council’s priorities are and then set his people afoot to achieve those.”
The new view that Morton has brought to the city has already had an impact.
“His job is to put his lens on it and find the efficiencies, which he did in delivering the 2 per cent reduction in taxes,” said Chalmers.
“And we’re not finished yet,” he said.
By Jeremy Broadfield, Staff Writer
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