ATHABASCA – Athabasca County councillors have finalized their first strategic plan after months of work, a document which outlines the four pillars that will guide them remainder of their term.
The 12-page document, which was put on their website alongside a survey June 5 and was the main topic of a June 14 open house, features three “high priority tactics” which are subcategories of the overarching pillars.
“For us this was the first real work through of a strategic plan. Ideally councillors would do one every term, and then on a yearly basis update them looking forward, because you’re going to accomplish the goals that you set out along the way,” said reeve Brian Hall in a June 15 interview.
With the help of a consultant, the nine councillors identified the four pillars that they believed will be the best guides for the goals that they want to accomplish from 2023 to 2026: strengthening the economy, investing in infrastructure and the environment, being a community that cares, and prioritizing effect leadership and organizational excellence. Council budgeted $25,000 towards the process in 2022.
“It was a good process. We had a lot of ideas expressed, and a lot of common themes in those ideas. To answer your question, it didn’t feel bogged down at all, and there was a lot of unity in our ideas that came together,” said Hall, who felt that the consultant helped keep the discussions moving and on track.
“The strategic plan helps to align decisions; it’s a framework against how you can look at decisions and test how they align with that. It provides a reference point, if you will. It keeps you making decisions that are consistent.”
Open house
The June 14 open house, held in council chambers, was sparsely attended. The three people that did show up were engaged and made sure to get the best bang for their buck that they could as they asked that four councillors — Hall, Ashtin Anderson, Kelly Chamzuk, and Tracy Holland, as well as interim CAO Pat Vincent and department directors — questions.
A common topic of discussion for the first hour was energy prices; utility bills are high at the end of the month, and one attendee wanted to know what council was able to do about it.
“A benefit of acting on behalf of the municipality is that we can take a very different approach to our timelines,” said Hall during the discussion. “We can ask ‘can we look to convert this building and try something different?’ As a municipality, we can take that long-term view because it extends beyond us; a homeowner is less likely to put shingles that will last 50 years on his home because he isn’t likely to be there for that long, but the municipality can because it will be here at the end of it.”
