Town Manager Wilkins Touts Town's Two Year "Strategic Accomplishments" ... You Be The Judge

13 of 65 projects accomplished in the past two years
Town Manager Jeff Wilkins updated the Oro Valley Town Council last Thursday on the 2023-2025 Strategic Plan accomplishments. "We had 65 projects... we've completed 13," he stated.

New format for reporting progress on the strategic plan
Wilkins also announced a new reporting format to track and communicate ongoing initiatives. "Having the projects listed will improve accountability over the next couple of years," he said. He noted that similar structured reporting has been successful in cities like Buckeye and Goodyear, reinforcing the importance of well-defined strategic priorities.

Destination marketing focuses on a five-year strategy
One of the key economic development initiatives was Oro Valley’s transition to a Destination Marketing Organization, a move that required new staff resources and long-term planning. The town is now developing a five-year leisure travel strategy to boost tourism and local business growth.

Additionally, the ExploreOV app and public arts tours have been well received, with arts tours selling out, reflecting strong community engagement. The town has also secured over $11 million in grants, supporting parks, bridges, water infrastructure, and police services.

Major investments in parks and recreation
Several parks and recreation projects have been completed or are in progress. The Naranja Park Expansion Project is moving forward, and the Community Center elevator ribbon-cutting is expected in March. Investments in Steam Pump Ranch, multi-use trails, and large-scale community events such as the Fourth of July celebration highlight the town’s commitment to recreational development.

Attendance at key events has grown, with Fourth of July participation increasing from 8,500 to over 10,000 attendees, demonstrating rising community involvement.

Public safety and infrastructure improvements
Public safety and infrastructure remain priorities. Oro Valley was recognized as one of the top five safest communities in the state and became only the second city in Arizona to receive full accreditation for its police services.

The Dial-A-Ride service has expanded, providing essential transportation for residents who can no longer drive. Additionally, water infrastructure projects, such as the Northwest Recharge Recovery and Distribution System (NWWRDS), are now 50% complete, with further expansion planned.

The short-term rental ordinance, aimed at balancing neighborhood impact and tourism, has been effective with minimal complaints.

Recognition in community engagement
Oro Valley’s efforts in community engagement and employee retention have been acknowledged at state and national levels. The town received multiple awards for public outreach, including recognition for creative initiatives such as the Star Wars-themed “SHRED” event and a new podcast series.

Attracting and retaining employees
The town also approved new personnel policies to attract and retain employees, reinforcing its commitment to leadership development and workforce stability.

Tomorrow: A rocky start for the 2026-2027 strategic plan
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Oro Valley Town Council to Create 2025-2027 Strategic Plan

Oro Valley Town Council to discuss new strategic plan
The Oro Valley Town Council will hold a study session tomorrow to discuss projects, strategies, and guiding principles for the Strategic Plan for the upcoming two fiscal years (2025-2027). The current Strategic Plan covers this fiscal year (2024-2025) and the last fiscal year (2023-2024), meaning the Council must now develop a new plan for the next two fiscal years. The Strategic Plan is a significant document as it shapes budget priorities and guides long-term initiatives.

A current example: Trails Master Plan
Two years ago, the Council agreed to a plan that, among other things, called for "Creating a Trails Plan" focused on multi-use paths, natural surfaces, paved surfaces, access, connectivity, maintenance, mapping, promotions, and signage. [panel right] In November 2024, staff initiated a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a consultant to lead this effort. The RFP stated a budget of $50,000, an amount that should be in this year’s budget, though it has not been clearly identified.

The strategic plan is not the general plan
The General Plan is a voter-ratified document that outlines the town’s long-term vision for a 10-year period. The town is currently working on a new General Plan, OV Path Forward, which will take effect in 2026.

It is a council and staff interpretation of resident intent
The Strategic Plan, on the other hand, is a Council-approved document developed by town staff and reviewed by the Town Council. Unlike the General Plan, which is shaped by voter input, the Strategic Plan reflects a staff and council interpretation of the General Plan, setting the priorities for staff actions and activities. It matters even more than the General Plan because, unlike the broad statements in the General Plan, the Strategic Plan determines specific actions to be taken.

The translation from General Plan directives to Strategic Plan actions a open to wide interpretation
Over the years, LOVE has reported on the town’s Strategic Plans, and some residents have raised concerns about the process. These concerns include:

• The Strategic Plan is shaped by town staff and the Council, which may lead to misalignment with residents’ priorities.
• Staff controls the narrative, possibly selectively presenting information to the Town Council, resulting in a focus on growth that primarily benefits staff initiatives rather than community-driven needs.
• The 2016 General Plan is still the guiding document for the Strategic Plan, since the 2026 General Plan has not yet been adopted. Some fear that the 2016 plan may be dismissed as outdated to justify new priorities that may not reflect resident approved long-term vision.

It is up to the council to get this right
Ultimately, it is up to the Town Council, not town staff, to ensure that the Strategic Plan aligns with the community’s vision. It is our hope that each of the seven Council members will challenge staff as needed to ensure that resident priorities remain at the forefront.

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Editorial ~ Strategic Plan vs. General Plan

FROM THE TOWN DOCKET: January 11-12. Strategic Leadership Plan update – Town Council Strategic Planning Retreat will identify budget priorities for the next two fiscal years.

The Strategic Plan. This plan is updated every two years via collaboration between the Town Council and senior management staff. The plan is then written by the town staff.

The General Plan. This plan is updated every 10 years with focused community input. It is then sent to the voters for approval. It states their priorities. The current General Plan (Your Voice, Our Future) was approved by the voters in November 2016.

In December, we asked Town Manager Mary Jacobs why she felt it important that the town council and staff engage in this strategic planning exercise. One reason she mentioned was that the 2016 General Plan was out-of-date. We disagree. Creating the General Plan was a massive effort. The Town spent 3 years, thousands of staff hours, and more than $300,000 on this effort. Hundreds of everyday residents were involved.

What we do recognize, however, is that there are certain strategic issues that were not considered during the planning process. LOVE has discussed three of these issues: (1) The closing of brick and mortar stores and the potential impact on sales tax revenues; (2) The strategic implications of CAP water restrictions on Oro Valley’s water plans; and (3) Whether Oro Valley should use its precious water resources to annex more residential, water using, areas. Thus, we do agree that a strategic discussion is appropriate at this time.

What follows is a direct quote from the December 2018 Town Manager’s Executive Report regarding the Strategic Plan sessions.

“Staff will be preparing background information for you to review prior to the session as well. The final plan will provide me and my team with your expected priorities and outcomes to be accomplished over the coming two fiscal years, and will help inform our deliberations as we prepare the FY 19/20 budget in the spring.”

There are two areas of concern:

(1) Staff will be controlling the information since they will be providing the Town Council the information for their review.  The problem with this is that it's in the staff's self-interest to grow Oro Valley in order to create work for themselves and guarantee their long-term job security.

(2) The General Plan is only two years old. It is not out-dated. It is a document that was compiled after 3 years of gathering input from the citizens and it advises the Town Council of the citizens expected priorities and outcomes.

The Town Council needs to guard themselves against allowing this Strategic Plan exercise to get in the way of the General Plan. One of the platforms during the campaigns of Winfield, Barrett, Jones-Ivey, and Nicolson was adherence to the General Plan. If the purpose of the Strategic Plan is to advise the Town staff what the Town Council’s priorities will be for the next two fiscal years…it is imperative that those priorities should not be in conflict with the General Plan.
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What do YOU think the Town Council should focus on for the next two years? What are your priorities? You may email your suggestions to Patrick@gettingbetterallthetime.com in order to have your comments included during the Town Council’s Strategic Planning Meeting on January 11-12. (Patrick Ibarra is a consultant from Glendale who facilitated the December 18th town meeting to gather community input on the Strategic Plan).