Draft Strategic Plan
At a Special Council meeting on Tuesday, July 21, members of the public offered Council constructive input regarding the draft strategic plan. The feedback received through written submissions and the special meeting will be integrated into Council’s working sessions as the plan moves forward.
Due to concern from residents that the allotted time period to respond to the plan was not sufficient Town Council has made the following decisions:
1. To use the Special Council meeting as an initial response to the strategic plan;
2. To extend the written submission deadline to Monday, August 31; and
3. To engage the public in a working input session on Tuesday, September 22 at 7:00pm in the Wolfville Fire Hall.
A reminder that a copy of the draft strategic plan can be viewed by clicking on the link below, at the Wolfville Library or at the Town Hall. Written submissions can be emailed to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(Subject: Strategic Plan) or dropped off at the Town Hall by Monday, August 31. Further information will be made available in the coming weeks.
 Draft Strategic Plan1 (268.67 kB)
07-21-09 Special Council Minutes (July 21, 2009) (88.85 kB)
Please note if you want your feedback made public please use the “add comments” tool below.
__________________________________________________________________________
I never had a chance to read the strategic plan prior to the July public meeting. At that time, I must admit I was puzzled by the mission statement. However, after properly examining the document it makes perfect sense. So let's be clear. I originally thought "the Plan"was suppose to be a community driven endeavor but I now realize this "Strategic Plan" is Mayor/Council and Staff driven with some consideration given to resident's input. I am in favor of a tool, a strategic plan, something useful used by our local government to help identify issues and thereby improve on the quality of life for residents in Wolfville. One thing that came out of that July meeting and something that we can agree upon is that there is something about living in Wolfville that makes this place appealing. What or why we choose to live here is a good question? So, as a Wolfville resident thank you for allowing me the opportunity to provide some input on things that I am particularly interested in concerning our community.
1st. striving for better communication seems to be a goal for this municipality. Not everyone is well versed in the skill of communication. Being able to listen is a key. This is particularly important for the role of a municipality. I suggest practicing dialogue as oppose to monologue.
Under Goal #1 Enrich our community Sub-goal #4 Enhance social diversity. I will be interested in seeing how the municipality approaches the question of social diversity. Be clear in what you mean by a diverse population. If the municipal focus is mainly to concentrate their efforts in attracting immigrants to Wolfville as mentioned by one of your staff members at the july meeting. This is tunnel vision and there is already a problem. DEFINE SOCIAL DIVERSITY??
In addition, I totally support the idea of developing a plan to promote and put into action multicultual and neighbourhood events. These are the kind of things that foster identity and build community.
In response to developing an action list, someone mentioned revisiting existing services. I think that is a good place to start. For example: The transportation system in and out of Wolfville... overall. And more specifically - the local bus service is "vital" for some Wolfville residents. In my opinion, although adequate there is a lot of room for improvement. I suggest a committee spearheading roundtable discussions addressing transportation issues overall.
(Furthermore, last winter I watched as elderly people climbed over ice covered snowbanks to access the bus... (main location Baptist Church) I would like to know who is responsible for clearing a path to the bus? Who is responsible if someone slips and gets hurt? These are questions that could be discussed.)
I am also interested in why there is such a high turn over of small businesses in Wolfville. Empty storefronts in my opinion does not enhance or compliment our way of life. Do not wait until a small business closes and then ask yourself why.... Watching businesses close and people leave is not good business.... I am interested in the issue of affordable housing as well. And by that I do not mean ONLY homeowners. I am slighted and offended every time this municipality focuses their concerns primarily for homeowners... This municipality is suppose to represent ALL Wolfville residents... not just the select few... I recognize and understand that homeowners/property owners are important for the tax base in Wolfville.... But Lest you the municipality forget their are other Wolfville Residents besides homeowners. They also contribute to this community financially and should be acknowledged with respect. Perhaps when the municipality attempts to define social diversity, they might examine the meaning of home too.
I could go on but I will wait to see what the final results of your Strategic Plan will be and what you actually put on paper and more importantly into ACTION. I look forward to the next meeting in September. I really would like to see more community members attend these kinds of get togethers. I would like to see more people take an interest and attend a regular council meeting at least occasionally. That's another good question... How do you stimulate resident's interest (in local government) overall and thereby generate greater attendance... Thank you for your consideration in this matter. Judoth Aro
___________________________________________________________________________________
The Draft Strategic Plan of June 2009
As I said and wrote before our Wolfville has survived for decades and maybe even a century without a Strategic Plan. All of a sudden and with no reasonable explanation our Councillors and the Town Administration seem to need guidance and direction from a Strategic Plan. What is all the rush? I really wonder how they all could do their “jobs” in the past.
To make a point, I am very much in favour of the birth of a Strategic Plan for Wolfville’s citizens. However, such a plan needs to be phrased clearly and realistically, focussing and taking into account the citizens’ position and perception and not just - as done in the draft - the one of the Town Administration. In summary I am very disappointed with the content of this current draft. It does not seem to be worth the time and effort being put into this exercise.
The Draft Strategic Plan is the outcome of three sessions at the Irving Centre at Acadia University. These sessions were held during day-time hours when regular citizens were out for work and unable to attend. Obviously, there was no intention to involve the public into the drafting process. I even attended a public Council meeting where the Draft Strategic Plan became discussed amongst the Councillors, the CAO and an outside consultant who used Laptops while the audience was unable to follow and or understand what was going on. This was before the draft was made available on the Town’s website and as a hardcopy. To this Administration it still seems to be inconceivable to involve the public and “provide a better communication link”.
In the Introduction is stated “The plan provides an overview of the existing situational analysis of the Town of Wolfville..”. I could not find it. In the business literature you will find the SWOT approach determining the presence and standing in for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats. Where is an analysis of the current situation in Wolfville and when was this done?
The near future may hold immense tax increases to pay for upgrades (without federal and/or provincial grants) of our streets and the water and sewer pipes below the surface plus the upgrade of our sewage plant to the level requested by the government. All this would have to be paid by the citizens of Wolfville, which I regard too small a property-tax base. Have there ever been given some thoughts to the idea to surrender the municipality status of Wolfville to become like New Minas a part of Kings County? This might benefit all citizens of Wolfville at least from the point of view that future financial threats will be based on the much broader platform of Kings County.
Under Council Objectives I disagree with the content of some points and how they are phrased. In general, Goals and Objectives should follow the SMART approach in the business literature standing in for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound. I do not want to go into details here and now. Firmly, I believe that this whole part does not belong in a Strategic Plan.
The Vision statement “A vibrant and sustainable small university town which enriches our lives” is a very poor one. I have a major problem to clearly understand and grasp the only definitions of the parts “vibrant”, “sustainable” and “enriches our lives”. I have asked several people about those and each time I got a different answer and meaning. What enriches my life may and/or will not enrich the life of my neighbour.
A Vision Statement in general should be a high-level and more abstract statement, but still provide a clear and realistic picture with no ambiguity. Funnily and all of a sudden the perception of the citizens and not the one of the Town Administration was taken in this statement into consideration. I hope the “enrichment of our lives” was meant to address all Wolfville citizens and not just the lives of the members of the Town Administration and that this was not done by oversight or mistake. This part of the statement is phrased that nebulous that it would cover and/or excuse any poor and/or even stupid decision as well while trying to enrich the life of one or the other citizen but not the lives of all of them.
The Mission statement “To excel in the provision of effective and efficient government and work creatively with the community to achieve the vision” deserves the same critique. Where is a clear understanding and definition of “effective” and “efficient” government and what could actually be done or changed to become these adjectives excelled?
The Core Principles of Governance and Service Provision are not phrased as measurable goals and objectives and I could go through each of them with a very critical pencil. To take the first one as an example we could have endless discussions on the definitions and clear understandings of “ Wolfville aims to ensure ecological, social, cultural and economic integrity ..”. All these principles read well on paper. But I would like to have at least a clue on how the Town Administration is going to administer these principles with concrete actions.
The part Goal1: Enrich our Community with the Sub-Goals 1 to 4 I can live with despite the fact that the Objectives under each Sub-goal are phrased poorly, are incomplete and do not belong in a Strategic Plan, but may fit as measurable ones an Operational Plan and/or an Implementation Plan.
The Goal 2: Engage and communicate is the one everybody in the Town Administration talks about but nobody seems to understand its meaning and/or consequence. The Sub-Goal 1 sounds good to me but the Objectives under it do only partly tickle - if at all - this important goal. And they do not belong in a Strategic Plan. In the definition of the Sub-Goal 2 “Build on our existing working relationship with Acadia University” I would like for reality reasons to have the words “on our existing” being replaced by the word “a”. The Objectives here have to be rephrased as well and as measurable ones put into different plans.
The third goal Enhance the Organization seems to be phrased as the poorest of the three goals. I can accept the Sub-Goals 1 without the text in brackets (“living within our means”) and Sub-Goal 2 (with the add-on of accountability) as strategic goals but disagree with most of the Objectives here. As before, these Objectives should be put somewhere else. Just as one example, I doubt very much that the Objective “Develop a multi-year financial plan ..” will have any direct impact on Sub-Goal 1: “Achieve fiscal health of our Town”.
To summarize my comments:
• As in the past the much more important, valuable and short-term Operational and Implementation Plans are missing. A Strategic Plan without these add-on plans is worth nothing. Personally, I would have liked to see the development of an efficient Operational Plan first with an outlook for the next two to three years as a solid platform for the derivation of a Strategic Plan, if really necessary. Not the other way round. This Town only goes through a sped-up budget process each year where too many directors present their wish lists in rounded thousands of dollars. This process cannot be regarded as a representation of an Operational and/or Implementation Plan with top-rank, second-rank and third-rank objectives etc. Nothing is measurable here. The directors are not measured of having done or doing a poor, average or good job and there is no accurate measure or even understanding of related and/or changing service levels under an assumption that certain budget positions are partly or entirely reduced.
• Almost all of the attempted statements and definitions in the current draft fail to achieve clarity.
• A Strategic Plan does not predict the future but it should give an answer to the questions:
Where do we want to be in 5 or even 10 years?
What actually has to be changed in our Town in order to get there?
Does this current draft give answers to these questions? No, it does not!
• My prediction is: A Strategic Plan in whatever version and detail will become implemented and nothing will change for the citizens of Wolfville. A real pity!
• At this time and with the current content I regard the presentation of the Draft Strategic Plan of June 2009 a futile exercise. An implementation of a realistic and clearly defined Strategic Plan is a very good idea. The execution of this idea by the Town Administration has so far been a very poor one including the attempt to involve Wolfville citizens after the drafting process was done without them and expecting the public to sanction the whole exercise later on.
Lutz E. Becker / August 23, 2009
____________________________________________________________________________________
For decades and maybe centuries this Town has obviously done “business” and survived without the presence of a Strategic Plan.
To ask our residents – during the holiday period – to provide input and suggestions within 5 to 6 days after the draft of the Plan was available proves again that this Town and its Administration have absolutely no understanding of what it means and/or no intention to really involve the public in their decision-making process.
I regard it as irony in Mayor Stead’s introductory letter indicating that the Council wishes “suggestions and comments” within this given time frame of 5 to 6 days for a key document like a Strategic Plan.
I strongly demand the decision by Council to be delayed until after the holiday period to provide more time for our residents – incl. the now absent holiday seekers – to come up with their ideas and suggestions for such a key document.
Best regards,
Lutz E. Becker
____________________________________________________________________________________
The following are comments and questions I have concerning the draft strategic plan (Plan).
As I have indicated in prior emails to you, townsfolk should be given more time to read, discuss amongst themselves and comment upon the Plan. The letter and Plan, to my knowledge, appeared on the Town’s website on July 15th. That allows five or six days to provide written comments. Is there a reason why it must be approved by Council at this time, in the middle of the summer, when many people are sure to be away?
The Mayor’s introductory letter indicates the Council wishes to “engage and communicate with our residents” and states “please tell us how you would like us to involve you in our decisions and activities.” Two of the seven listed “objectives” for the strategic planning exercise are: Provide better communication link to the public - build the bridge so that we are responding to their issues” and “Improved communication with the people - improved budgeting process - ensure that meetings accomplish set goals and that aren’t scrambling in April to rush the budget”
The proposed Mission states: “To excel in the provision of effective and efficient government and work creatively with the community to achieve our vision.” (My emphasis.)
Besides placing the notice on the website, what steps has the Town taken to inform the public about this key document and obtain feedback? As of noon, July 17th, there was no notice of the Plan or of the July 21st public meeting on kiosks near the bus stop or at the corner of Main and Gaspereau. On noon on July 15th, the librarian was not aware of any copies of the Plan at the library.
Public input is important in order to have a different views incorporated into the Plan. See Sub-Goal #4: Enhance social diversity. At least as to age and gender, the Council is not especially diverse; all male, all over 50. I believe only one Council member has a child presently enrolled in a Town public schools.
Prior to the formulation of the Plan, the Council went through a SWOT analysis in which it reviewed Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats of the Town. In order for residents to understand the Plan, and how it was derived, it would be very helpful to have a summary of the SWOT analysis. The residents will be better able comment upon and understand the Plan if they are provided with this background information.
------------
Comments and questions concerning “Core Principle of Governance and Service Provision.
Sustainability:
Is it appropriate for the town government to commit without reservation that it will “consider[] both short and long term benefits and risks equally when making decisions.” Perhaps there should be a provision that requires such consideration when appropriate or relevant?
“Wolfville aims to ensure ecological, social, cultural, and economic integrity . . .” Could there be some explanation as to the meaning of ecological integrity, social integrity, cultural integrity, economic integrity?
Equity and Inclusiveness:
Why will these principles only be used to guide decisions related to the development of policies and procedures? Aren’t there other decisions which might be informed by these principles?
Fiscal Responsibility:
Should there be a statement that the town should be “living within its means”? Does “affordability” capture this principle?
Community Health, etc.
Should reference be made to economic well-being of residents.
Transparency and Participatory Government
Is the Code of Conduct on the Town’s website?
How do you make a “communication process” accountable?
--------------
Comments and questions on Goals.
Is there a cost (both in terms of money and staff time) associated with the specified goals set out in the Plan, and if so, what are these estimated costs?
The setting of goals also entails a broader issue which should be at least acknowledged if not addressed. Many, if not all, of the goals listed are likely to require the expenditure of staff time if they are to achieved. Can the Town afford the staff spending its time achieving all the goals listed? And even if the Town could afford the cost, does it want to have its tax dollars spent for this purpose?
There should be a list of each and every item in the Plan that will require the expenditure of staff time and an estimate of staff time needed. With this information in hand, the Council and the public will be able to make informed decisions about whether achieving the goals set will be worth it.
The issue of the expenditure of staff time takes on particular importance because the Town’s increased expenditures for General Government and Administration during the past eight years has far exceeded the percentage increase in population growth and the cumulative increase of the consumer price index during that time period.
Should these goals be prioritized? And if so, how and by whom?
What will occur if goals come into conflict with one another? Is there a mechanism to decide between two conflicting goals?
The following are some suggestions to help implement the Goal: Engage and Communicate, Sub Goal No. 1: Foster the positive engagement of citizens.
--Put in place a volunteer ombudsman who will be able to respond to complaints raised by citizens. This can be modeled after Nova Scotia’s Ombudsman Act.
--Devote greater staff time to keeping the public informed. Eg. failure to post on Kiosks. If this means staff time being diverted, then need to prioritize.
--Respond to ALL correspondents sent to town hall if only with acknowledgment that it was received.
--Develop a community newsletter.
--Unless necessary, no councilor questions during the Question Period at Council meetings. Councilors have the ability to ask each other and staff questions directly and obtain responses. If the Councilors feel that the answers should be known by the public, then the answers can be placed in the newsletter or Town website or by some other means.
--Improve Town website: for example, establish a “bulletin board” where comments can be placed by subject. There should be a written policy indicating what submissions or parts of submissions will not be posted. Place the agenda of the meeting before that meeting’s minutes. This will facilitate review of the minutes.
Consider establishing area advisory committees, if appropriate. See Municipal Government Act Sec. 201
There should be a written policy, approved by Council, as to what subjects and how a citizen or a group of citizens can make a presentation to Council.
The Council might consider having a formal “open house” during which citizens can voice concerns. Leaving it up to contact with individual Councilors or the Mayor or Town staff may not be sufficient.
The Council might consider instituting a variation of participatory budgeting. See the following website:
http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INTEMPOWERMENT/Resources/14657_Partic-Budg-Brazil-web.pdf
The Council may wish to consider making its meetings more accessible for citizens. Have afternoon sessions where daycare is provided; have recordings of the meetings placed on the internet.
Some of these ideas will require staff time and money to implement. Council should make decisions about the allocation of its scarce resources (staff and money) In light of the apparent importance Council places on such engagement.
Please post the following as a comment on the Town's website.
Thank you.
David A Daniels
July 20, 2009
____________________________________________________________________________________
“I have looked at the draft strategic plan over the weekend and it looks very comprehensive and ambitious – I hope all these goals can be achieved but it will take a lot of hard work. I am particularly interested in environmental concerns.
I do have one general comment, about communication with the Town. I have communicated with the office or with members of the Town Council on a number of occasions, and with one exception ( a letter expressing concern over the rise in the transient resident population in my area), I have never received any feedback. For example, I wrote to the Mayor and to a number of councillors to ask what plans the Town had for Earth Day in March, and had no reply. I also took the time to complete an extensive survey in June, and have no idea what happened to that or what other people thought about the issues that were raised in the survey. While I don’t expect a personal response to a survey, I think the Town should make the results available on its website so we can all see what the trends are.
As one of the stated objectives in this strategic plan is to engage and communicate, I would like to request that communication become more two-way; that is, that our responses are not only heard but also acknowledged in some way, so that there is a better dialogue between all residents of Wolfville. I realise that it takes time to give personal responses to letters and emails, and I don’t know how many of these the Councillors and Mayor receive on a regular basis, but if there are too many to handle each one, perhaps some kind of general email response could be generated, stating the specific concerns that have been raised and what has been done about them, if anything.
I would also ask that any binding decisions be delayed until after the summer vacation period, so as many residents as possible have time to consider and comment on these important issues.
Thank you for your attention.”
____________________________________________________________________________________
I would like to ask that the public be given more time to read and reply to the proposed Town of Wolfville Strategic Plan.
I received notification of its existence this morning July 20, in my mailbox. This means that many people will not see it until after work today, making it impossible for them to send written feedback to you before the office closes.
If the Town is serious about communicating with the public and the role that citizens should be playing in governance, it is really a necessity that sufficient time is allowed, one, to notify members of the public and two, to allow them time to respond.
Sincerely,
Ann Anderson
____________________________________________________________________________________
Dear Mr. Brideau, Councillors, and Staff:
Thank you to the Town for your recent invitation to citizens, to make submissions regarding the Draft Strategic Plan, and to attend the public meeting at the Fire hall on Tuesday July 21.
In all, I think that Wolfville is a remarkably pleasant place in which to live, and that it is, for the most part, well-run by our elected municipal politicians, with the important support of the Staff.
However, it concerns me that there` are so many empty store-fronts, particularly on Main Street, in Wolfville. As you are no doubt aware, many small businesses, a number of them attractive specialty 'boutiques', open for a short time, but are obviously unable to attract enough customers, in this small community, to be profitable on a long-term basis. They then find it necessary to close their doors, after a relatively short time. This seems to be true particularly of enterprises at the eastern end of the Town, and of those which are not particularly geared toward meeting the retail needs of University students. I am thinking, for example, of recently-closed shops such as the one which was selling 'fancy' shoes; the clothing store on the corner facing Tim Hortons; craft shops such as The Weave Shed, and the beautiful shop across the street from the Box of Delights, which for a short time sold lovely jewellery and other hand-crafted 'objets d'arte'.
I think that the problem with these shops is that there simply is not a large enough population In Wolfville itself to support the kinds of retail outlets where people do not buy things on a regular day-to-day basis, but to which they are attracted when they wish to buy something 'special', e.g. for a gift, or for a special occasion. It seems to me that what is needed in order to be able to support such retail outlets, is to be able to attract more customers from more distant places such as Metro, or even from Windsor, and other communities that are outside of the regular Wolfville-New Minas-Kentville run.
I think about the huge amount of Provincial money that is being spent on 'twinning' Highway 101, and about how unlikely that project is to bring to Wolfville the additional visitors which we sorely need in order to boost and support the kind of 'specialty' shopping which Wolfville, with its charming ambience, would be in a unique position to provide to people from more distant communities. An expanded highway, with an additional outlet in New Minas, will, if it brings in new people at all, deliver them to the mundane shopping malls and 'big box' stores in that area, by-passing charming Wolfville altogether, and providing little if any increased business in our Town.
On the other hand, if there were to be a focus on providing more accessible and pleasant PUBLIC transportation, for example a special rail service which might originate in Halifax quite early in the day (starting perhaps with just a few days per week), pick up passengers in a few additional communities en route, deliver them directly to Wolfville, where they could spend the better part of the day enjoying the charming shops, restaurants, parks and other amenities of our Town, without the need to worry about parking, and then deliver them back to the City (or to the intermediate towns in which they live) at a reasonable time in the late afternoon or early evening, I believe that it is probable that a lot of 'tourists' and other visitors could be induced to 'make a day of it', and really enjoy visiting and shopping in Wolfville. A specially dedicated Bus could also provide such service. Overuse of highways would then not be such a problem. As fossil fuels inevitably become scarcer and more expensive, more people would be tempted to make use of well-designed public transport services, to make excursions to a charming spot such as Wolfville, to broaden their shopping options, thus helping to provide much-needed support for attractive small businesses here.
With this idea in mind, I wonder whether our Town Councillors might consider suggesting to the Province that the very expensive twinning project might be held in abeyance, at least around the Wolfville area, in order to allow more deliberation, and consultation with Wolfville citizens, as to whether that is really the most effective method for increasing the kind of commercial traffic we need and want in our community? Is this a possible strategy that could be considered, as the Town moves forward with its Strategic Plan?
Respectfully,
-Michaele Kustudic
Wolfville |
Latest News