City Commissioners discuss strategic plans

The City of Liberal Commission met Tuesday with city administrators to discuss its strategic plans.

City Manager Mark Hall presented to the commission a strategic plan through 2011. To make Liberal the "city of choice," Hall said city staff have been developing proposals for projects, timelines and cost estimates for commissioners to approve.

"We actually have a plan in place that gives dates and times of projects, when they will start, and actually give dollar values to those so we can kind of see where we're at," said Mayor Joe Denoyer.

According to the strategic plan, the city has seven areas of "strategic emphasis for the future." One of the areas identified in the plan include pivotal areas development and redevelopment of "pivotal centers." Downtown is a clear pivotal center the city hopes to redevelop in the coming years. The southern side of the city is also another area the city considers important to develop like the Southgate Mall.

Other areas for strategic emphasis include the city's planned growth, increased economic development, more community services and amenities, improved safety and livable communities, increased community spirit and pride, and increased fiscal policies and management.

Vice Mayor Tim Long and Denoyer both shared excitement Friday about potential projects they received Tuesday. Pending the commission's approval, for example, the city could be investing $24,200 in Tobias Park or $60,000 in Mahuron Park in 2010.

City of Liberal Public Works Director Joe Sealy (left) points to some overhead diagrams of the six-points intersections during a city work strategic planning session including the city commisssioners. Commissioners Larry Koochel, Bob Carlile, Dave Harrison, Mayor Joe Denoyer and Vice Mayor Tim Long met with Sealy, City Manager Mark Hall and other city administrators to discuss future projects dependent on funds from the city’s 1 cent sales tax. The group also discussed the city’s goals for various areas of emphasis like the redevelopment of downtown and the new city marketing video for potential businesses. Photo by Tony Hernandez

"None of this is set in stone, all of this is going to be done according to commission approval," Long said. "All of these are based on the projected tax revenues coming in. Now if the economy takes a turn for the worse, all of this changes."

Revenue coming in from the city's 1 cent sales tax go to fund most of the projects presented to the commission. Fifty percent of sales tax revenue goes to street and drainage projects; 25 percent goes to economic development; 10 percent goes to crime prevention; 10 percent goes to housing and 5 percent goes to city beautification.

The 1 cent sales tax is set to expire in late 2011, but revenue from the sales tax today continues to benefit the city, Long said.

"I'm most excited about the Western Avenue, East 8th Street and Light Park, because we have those in the works to be done and we don't have to set any more money aside," City Commissioner Dave Harrison.

If the sales tax is renewed in 2011, a family recreation center is one of the biggest priorities for the city, Denoyer, Long and Harrison all said.

Discussions to build a family recreation center has been in the works for about 20 years.

For one reason or the other, Denoyer said, the family recreation has been continually put on the back burner by previous commissions.

"If we get the 1 cent sales tax renewed again, we will have a plan," Denoyer said. "We will be setting money aside specifically and our family rec center will be completed. It's been a project that has been a priority since the 1990's. It's just that previous committees did not have specific direction like this strategic plan."

Long agrees that if the sales tax are renewed, city residents will see a family recreation center as a major priority for the city commission. The challenge is convincing the city voters to renew the sales tax.

"The challenge will be getting the story on how much good the 1 cent sales tax does do and that's how these projects are getting done," Harrison said. "In other words, it's not money that you're paying on property tax, this is money that everybody that comes through Liberal and buys something helps contribute to pay for that."

Long stays convinced the commission has been on the right track on making the right decisions for the city.

"I feel as a commission, we have so far come up with the right decisions, so far," he said. "Basically, it's a quality of life issues for Liberal."

For full story please see Sunday's Times

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