Mayor sees planning session as eyeopener
Visioning 10 years in the future was the main focus of officials from the Town of Fort Myers Beach during a Strategic Planning and Goal Setting workshop at Town Hall last week.
Fort Myers Beach Mayor Anita Cereceda thought the session to develop a broad, overall view of the island’s future was a sudden realization for policy makers and staff members who participated in the all-day event.
“I believed we worked more in sync and enthusiastically than in the entire 1-1/2 that I’ve been there,” she said. “I think what we recognized when talking about the big picture is that we are really all on the same page. That’s really empowering.”
The workshop appeared to open eyes wider instead of what some may call a narrowing vision from smaller day-to-day issues.
“We are so involved with what’s going to happen with Matanzas (On the Bay) or what’s going on with the dock at Palermo(/Primo canal) that we fail to look at the bigger policy-making roles that we have of where are we steering this train,” Cereceda said. “In general, we have the same ideas about what we need to be doing right now.”
Marilyn Crotty, the director of the John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of Government, facilitated the session. At day’s end, Town officials created a set of organizational values, guiding principles to base decisions on and an overall set of goals, objectives and priorities.
“You have to pick the things that will get you closer to your vision, focus on those and put your resources on that,” Crotty told participants. “By the end of the day, you will have the framework for a really robust strategic plan. You will pick a set of goals, objectives and, most importantly, you will have some priority that are the things you really want to focus on.”
Activities included an “Environmental Scan” involving the creation of lists for imposing external issues and trends as well as impactful internal issues and trends, S.W.O.T. (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis and identifying strategic issues before establishing goals, determining objectives and setting priorities.
Regarding external issues and trends, the list was comprised of opening up of Cuba; sea level rise/climate change; FEMA flood insurance cost; water quality and quantity; El Nino weather unrest; aging population, tax caps while reigning in the ability to raise taxes; entitlement; instant gratification; information-sharing; limited retirement income; social media; 24/7 economy; loss of communication skills and pride in writing; generational change; world-wide economy; tourism; energy and alternative methods; political campaign finance laws; infrastructure decay; changes in technology; drones (privacy and safety); and healthcare costs and access.
Regarding internal issues and trends, the list contained redevelopment; image due to road construction; traffic; the poor image of Fort Myers Beach; providing service for annual residents; seasonal residents; tourists and day-trippers on a limited budget; revenues based on population; declining population of young children; cost of living due to imposing flood plain insurance laws; developers purchasing homes with cash to avoid flood insurance; citizen engagement tied to reaction without facts; competition for tourists; staffing; infrastructure needs; and community outreach.
Cereceda realized that her fellow Town officials feel as strong about the upcoming budget as she does.
“When it comes to the budget, everyone agreed and prioritized in the end how important it is for us to have a ‘five-year financial plan’ for budgeting,” Cereceda said. “Another important fiscal objective was to explore alternative revenue sources. This is what Councilman Alan Mandel has been trying to get across with a capital improvements budget and planned resources.”
Infrastructure was another main topic insofar as completing and implementing a potable water plan and conducting an inventory of town assets, value and viability.
While a “Blue Sky” philosophy may not be reality, Town officials were asked to articulate what they would like to see as a best-case future without constraints 10 years from now. While the exercise entertained individual remarks, it centered on the collective sense.
“There are things going on and will be going on in the next few years that will impact what you have to do, what you can do and what you are able to do,” Crotty said. “If you are not aware of those, you are kind of blindly setting your course.”
“Vision 2025” reflected many moving parts from the five Council members. Some thoughts cast were a positive, educational and environmental Beach image (incorporating bird stewards, photography, archeology and continued professional education to impact tourism, instead of being a spring break destination); improving water quality to return to “blue water;” an improved view corridor through redevelopment; improved mass transit around the island; construction in sync with FEMA regulations to allow a pedestrian plaza and ground walkways instead of what may turn to 17 feet above sea level; a longer pedestrian plaza to extend to Crescent Street with a re-routing of Estero Boulevard to mitigate traffic; a mix of cottages, new homes and small businesses; inviting pedestrian/bicycle accesses; healthy bay and beachfronts; continued diverse population of lower income people and millionaires; increased Art events; fee paying system for businesses and properties not taxed by the Town; maintaining Bay Oaks Recreational Campus; keeping the island dog-friendly; and focusing on families, children and environment instead of tourism.
When it came to determining objectives, reviewing the town land development code to better regulate redevelopment was important, especially when related to the view corridor, as was technology for Town Hall operations.
“We discussed how to get the town to the point where we can do online permitting, accept payments for parking tickets online and do other business with the Town online,” Cereceda said. “We want to strive for that same level of service and to make things more convenient for people.”
During the S.W.O.T. analysis, each participant wrote down what they individually thought to be strengths, weakness, opportunities and threats on sticky notepads. Collectively, strengths involved people, weaknesses dealt with money, opportunities sought economy and history, while threats were seen as FEMA flood plains issues.
“Probably nothing will affect the character of the town more than FEMA regulations as this community re-develops,” Cereceda said. “We have no say over this.”
Other points of communication involved evaluating and giving better direction to advisory boards and developing a marketing plan.
This is the second time in 14 months that the current Beach Council and Town staff members were involved in a goal-setting session. The former one did not appear to have much impact.
“Overall, we are recognizing what the challenges are and how we need to be prepared to meet them,” said Cereceda. “It was very, very well worth it.”
Crotty is expected to have an overview of the workshop via document at week’s end. Council is planning on holding a workshop to discuss the details and future plans.
“It’ll be staff’s requirement to show us that plan of what we can and cannot do,” said Cereceda. “What has happened in the town has been on an as-needed basis without a lot of reflection for the future or looking back at the past. There are policy decisions to be made. I think this Council is poised to make those decisions.”
Facilitator biography
As well as being the director of the John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of Government at the University of Central Florida in Orlando, Crotty serves as the executive director of the Tri-County League of Cities. She develops and presents workshops, seminars and conferences throughout the state of
Florida on topics of interest to state and local governments. She has designed courses in organizational development, management and supervision, customer service, leadership and media relations. She also facilitates charter reviews and strategic planning sessions for local governments and non-profit organizations.
Crotty is a faculty member for the Florida League of Cities Institute for Elected Municipal Officials.
Prior to joining the staff at the University of Central Florida in 1990, she directed the Institute of Government at Valencia Community College for eight years. She has been appointed to many governmental boards and has served on the East Central Florida Regional Planning Council, the Florida Environmental Efficiency Study Commission, and the Governor’s Commission on the Status of Women.
A Florida native, Crotty has a broad background in community service. A former president of the League of Women Voters of Seminole County and member of the League State Board, she lobbied in Tallahassee, coordinated and directed the election of the first Silver Haired Legislature for the state of Florida, coordinated statewide debates for gubernatorial and senatorial candidates and developed and managed a program for economically disadvantaged women in central Florida.