Strategic Vision 2024-2029

At their retreat on April 27, 2024, the Ellensburg City Council considered strategic questions and created a shared vision for the future built on strategic priorities. The City Council’s Strategic Vision represents the most important issues facing the City of Ellensburg and establishes precedence for expenditure of staff and other City resources. In addition, the Strategic Vision provides Milestones as a measure of achievement for the entire executive staff and City Council to use in the coming years.

At the May 20, 2024 Ellensburg City Council meeting, the Council adopted a new resolution that included the refined strategic priorities and milestones for 2024-2029 that are listed below.

Strategic Pillars for Council's Vision 

  1. Sustainable Economic Development
  2. Infrastructure and Energy
  3. Safety, Civic Engagement, and Cultural Inclusion
  4. Affordable Housing and Living
  5. Dedicated Parks and Recreation Resources

Sustainable Economic Development

  • Increase living/family wage jobs and opportunities for community members and new graduates
  • With partners, prepare to seize new industry opportunities that are additive or retentive—not extractive—and aligned with community assets and resources
  • Expand creative economy and entrepreneurial sector to retain and enhance community character
  • Strengthen existing business through education and resources in partnership with Ellensburg Downtown Association (EDA), Kittitas County Chamber, Central Washington University, Kittitas County, and other local and regional partners
  • Implement the County-wide Economic Development Strategic Plan in collaboration with partners; actively participate in countywide and regional collaboration around economic opportunities
  • Maximize opportunities to capture external (sales tax) revenue through tourism, sports, etc.
  • Expand opportunities for current and new businesses, including multicultural business training and programs
  • Identify gaps and partner to align local labor market to community needs (trades, behavioral health professionals, etc.)
  • Leverage location for increase efficiency/economy of multi-directional shipping (freight) transportation systems
  • Continue diversification in local business market for economic resilience
  • Measures: define living wage jobs and track changes by sector over time; creative economy jobs and sales tax/GDP; tourism impact

Infrastructure and Energy

  • Develop sustainable funding for infrastructure maintenance programs based on largest community impact; renew transit funding
  • Expand GIS Asset mapping and inventory programs to measure need and meet level of service benchmarks
  • Continue multi-modal transportation, utility (water, wastewater, stormwater, electric, and natural gas), and broadband infrastructure forecasting for growth (enhancing public awareness) and incorporating priority projects into six-year capital improvement plans
  • Implement strategies outlined in the Sustainability and Energy Plan
  • Explore and increase public/private partnerships for infrastructure projects
  • Seize innovative energy opportunities that build reliability, resilience and protect community’s future (renewables, demand response, smart grid, etc.); implement smart grid solutions to improve efficiency and service delivery
  • Plan and build electric and transportation system infrastructure to facilitate increase in electric and autonomous vehicles
  • Advance technology roadmap: implement enterprise resource planning (ERP) software system, records management, and best practices to improve data management, operational efficiency, and security; continue to enhance cyber security and resilience of systems to protect public data and assets
  • Measures: Create metrics for prioritizing community service demands, maintenance and replacement; map public infrastructure assets

Safety, Civic Engagement, and Cultural Inclusion

  • Implement system to improve communication and engagement with community; expand use of tools for civic interaction and emergency communications; match goals, tools, and methodology with audience and outcomes (public forums, website, social media, etc.) for greatest impact; enhance use of video and other engaging channels, such as Public Service Announcements on ECT, etc.); consider expansion of capacity for community engagement.
  • Expand partnerships to host more cultural events; encourage inclusive attendance at community events
  • Civic education program including onboarding for City opportunities to increase access to opportunities on City Council and advisory boards/commissions
  • Expand customer service, soft-skills, de-escalation and cultural awareness training for staff
  • Recognize changing role of Library services and adapt facilities respectively
  • Address artificial intelligence (AI) and other threats against community misinformation, undermining trust, and public safety
  • Partner with other agencies and organizations to expand resources for mental health, substance use disorder; advocate for infrastructure/staffing investment to support behavioral health crisis
  • Measure: communication/engagement tools and use over time (web, social, newsletters, engagement, public meetings/forums, PSAs), establish equity index (with data based on local demographics)

Affordable Housing and Living

  • Close the gap between units and projected need (additional 4,772 units by 2037)
  • Decrease the number of cost-burdened households (>30% income) through implementation of the Housing Action Plan while retaining neighborhoods
  • Remove barriers to construction of new housing types; create housing incentives that are utilized to build new housing stock
  • Increase diversity in housing options
  • Partner to retain affordability
  • Decrease the number of unhoused people in our community and eliminate gaps in the path to housing permanence
  • Zoning for basic services in accessible distance to current and future neighborhoods
  • Programs for home/landowners to build ADU’s (or tiny homes) to assist range of income needs
  • Explore gaps in service network, including food security
  • Measure: Social service provider ratio to population; decrease reliance on social services/FISH/Open Table/APOYO; change in cost-burdened households; track vacancy rate; average housing cost; affordable stock; unhoused people; new housing units by type

Dedicated Parks and Recreation Resources

  • Improve transparency in funding park, recreation, and library programs
  • Prioritize park and recreation capital needs (new pool, etc.) and develop sustainable park design and funding; consider efficiencies to consolidate services under one roof
  • Explore community partnerships for facilities and operations (Boys & Girls Club, YMCA/YWCA, etc.)
  • Develop dedicated and sustainable revenue for park infrastructure and operations and maintenance (O&M) such as Metropolitan Parks District
  • Restructure all fees, including special event permits
  • Revisit park impact fee amounts
  • Consider revenues for tournaments such as parking fees
  • Develop corporate sponsorship program
  • Coordinate programs with identified community and public health needs (CHIP, etc.); a healthier community that is activity-based
  • Measure: past and current funding; track unmet needs 

Read the resolution (PDF)