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10/14/2020 09:15 AMThe Town Council has unanimously voted to adopt an official vision statement that outlining six goals for the town.
The vision statement says in part “The Clinton Town Council is committed to providing quality, efficient and effective services for our citizens; serving as stewards of the town’s finances, assets, and environmental resources; maintaining our desirable location by encouraging opportunities; and displaying honesty, respectfulness, and fairness in all relationships.”
The six goals included in the statement include items such as protecting taxpayer’s money, preserving and enhancing the quality of life in Clinton “for all demographic groups,” provide cost-effective services to the town, working for economic development, supporting town employees, and increasing communication to town citizens.
A full copy of the statement and the goals is available at the end of this article.
At the end of August, the Town Council attended a goal-setting workshop for the purpose of getting the council members on the same page with regard to what members wanted to accomplish as a team. At the time, Town Manager Karl Kilduff explained the need for the workshop.
“As a new council and the first council under this form of government, I felt there was a benefit to having the council work on a common direction to facilitate consensus. This is a practice I have done with other councils and it helps to find the common ground,” said Kilduff.
Coming out of that workshop, Kilduff said he would work on combining ideas the council members discussed and creating a vision statement for the council. That vision statement along with six specific goals for the council were presented and unanimously adopted at the Oct. 7 council meeting.
During the meeting Kilduff described the statement as “guide for how you are going to operate as a governing board.”
“The goals represent the consensus of the council and their shared direction. As such, the goals become a road map for how the council is going make decisions to guide the governance of Clinton. They represent the shared vision and direction of the whole council as a group. Ultimately, it is the council’s tool to use. From my experience, initiatives, policies, and the budget should align with the council’s goals. I will be asking department heads to review the council’s goals and drive a management agenda around aligning department activities with these six goals,” said Kilduff
Town Council Chair Chris Aniskovich said that he believes the statement and bullet points contained in the statement will “allow us to focus on what we’re there to do when making decisions.”
Aniskovich and that the statement will also allow the public to look at decisions made by the council and understand the motivations behind those decisions.
“They could look at it and see the council is working together and for the benefit of the town. I think it’s a great tool for us as a council,” said Aniskovich.
“Since the six goals will become the guideposts for the council’s decision-making process in setting priorities for the town, they help keep what is important at the top of everyone’s agenda,” said Kilduff.
Vision Statement
“The Clinton Town Council is committed to providing quality, efficient and effective services for our citizens; serving as stewards of the town’s finances, assets and environmental resources; maintaining our desirable location by encouraging opportunities; and displaying honesty, respectfulness, and fairness in all relationships.”
Goals and Objectives
1. Prioritize, evaluate and control expenditures to mitigate the impact on taxpayers and maintain a stable tax rate.
a. Approve an operations and capital budget that is within the economic feasibility of the taxpayers and, to the extent possible, maintains levels of service that are acceptable to the majority of taxpayers
b. Initiate long-term financial planning
c. Update financial policies and procedures to reflect current best practices, and
d. Strive to improve the town’s bond rating
2. Provide the most cost-effective services possible.
a. Provide responsive, efficient customer-oriented services
b. Maintain high quality town facilities and programs
c. Develop a system to monitor and collect data to improve government performance
d. Implement technology to improve efficiency
e. Provide public safety that focuses on prevention of problems
3. Preserve and enhance the quality of life that makes Clinton a desirable location.
a. Support the enhancement of quality of life for all demographic groups
b. Provide public safety that focuses on prevention of problems
c. Evaluate infrastructure investments that bring value and improve the quality of life for residents
4. Economic development that enhances the community.
a. Identify areas for growth
b. Develop an economic development strategy to encourage desirable growth
5. Better inform and engage our community and its stakeholders.
a. Use technology for enhanced communication
b. Increase awareness of all town communication vehicles
c. Monitor effectiveness of communication tools
d. Explore opportunities for community partnerships
6. Promote a town organization that is sustainable and maintains employee morale, productivity and effectiveness.
a. Recruit, develop, and retain a highly skilled workforce
b. Support ensuring that employees are current on best practices within their areas of expertise