Rawlins Council Holds Series Of Outside Meetings For Discussing Visions of City’s Future

January 16, 2024 |

Photo – Goal Setting image – Courtesy istockphoto.com

The Rawlins city council is holding a series of meetings outside their usual chambers to discuss their visons for the city’s future.

During October 3^rd Rawlins city council meeting, Mayor Terry Weickum asked council members to create a list of goals they would like to achieve during their time on the board. Mayor Weickum said having a written list of goals will allow members to accomplish their objectives faster.

Mayor Weickum asked Vice Mayor Steve Sanger to describe the difference between a project and a goal. Vice Mayor Sanger said projects must fit within a larger overarching goal.

Vice Mayor Sanger said one of his goals is to have a city department run entirely on interest instead of tax dollars. The vice mayor said the council should focus on a small number of achievable objectives.

Vice Mayor Sanger said the council needs to ensure the individual projects they want to get done fit within the framework of a larger goal.

Mayor Weickum instructed the council to have their goals ready by the next council meeting.

During the following Rawlins city council meeting on October 17^th, City Manager Tom Sarvey said he received goals from three of the seven council members. City Manager Sarvey said after he receives the final four goals, he’ll meet with city department heads to work on making them a reality. Mayor Weickum said he would rather hold a public meeting with the entire council outside of town hall before consulting with department heads.

City Manager Sarvey said he’ll still need to meet with department heads after the strategic meeting is finished. Sarvey said he needs to ensure the city has money set aside to accomplish the council’s goals.

Mayor Weickum suggested they hold the strategic planning workshop some time in November. However, the council members were unable to align their schedules until December 16^th.

At the January 2^nd Rawlins city council meeting, City Manager Sarvey said the council had met once. Sarvey said another strategic planning workshop is needed to narrow down the council’s list of desired goals.

Sarvey said once the strategic plan is approved, he’ll work the goals into the city’s upcoming 2024 2025 fiscal year budget.

No date was given for the next Rawlins city council strategic planning workshop.