HomeMy WebLinkAboutCouncil MIN 01-27-2007 Retreat -DraftTHE FEDERAL WAY CITY COUNCIL AND MANAGEMENT TEAM’S
ANNUAL STRATEGIC PLANNING RETREAT
January 27th, 2007, 8:30 a.m. – 3:45 p.m.
DRAFT SUMMARY
of the Retreat’s Key Discussions, Decisions and Agreements
Attending the 2007 Annual Strategic Planning Retreat were: Mayor Mike Park; Deputy Mayor Jim Ferrell;
Councilmembers Jeanne Burbidge, Jack Dovey, Eric Faison, Linda Kochmar, and Dean McColgan; City
Manager Neal Beets; Assistant City Manager Derek Matheson; management team members Patrick
Doherty, Donna Hanson, Kathy McClung, Mary McDougal, Pat Richardson, Cary Roe, Iwen Wang, and
Brian Wilson; City Clerk Laura Hathaway; Assistant Police Chief Andy Hwang; and two City residents.
THE COUNCIL’S DECISIONS AND DIRECTIONS
During the January 27th, 2007 strategic planning retreat, the City Council agreed on the following
decisions or directions:
COMMUNICATIONS AND MESSAGING:
The Council agrees that the City of Federal Way needs to be more aggressive about “telling its
story.” That may mean marketing its accomplishments or educating the public-at-large or specific
stakeholders, such as the business community, about the community’s attributes and the City’s
services.
Councilmembers want the City to continue to maximize the communications and marketing
resources and tools already at its disposal, including press releases, newsletters, the website,
video, and television. No effort was made to try to reach agreement on other strategies, but
individual Councilmembers offered these suggestions for how to accomplish this goal:
Dedicate a full-time position for public relations, someone whose sole responsibility is
“selling” Federal Way.
Produce a public relations strategic plan to change perceptions. For example, to attract new
businesses, help change the lingering perceptions that the community has a high crime rate
compared to other communities, and that the City is a difficult place in which to do business.
Crime rate statistics and changes in the permitting process are evidence that these
perceptions are no longer true.
Identify the key messages that the City needs to communicate, and develop systems for
doing so and for changing them over time. Recognize that some techniques we currently use
may no longer be as effective given evolving ways our citizens receive messages and search
for information, so tailor the messages and the ways in which the City delivers them to a
variety of constituencies, and use a diverse set of tools to communicate them.
Partner with other agencies and groups who contribute to perceptions about the community.
A priority: the Federal Way School District.
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DECISION-MAKING PROCESSES:
As a result of Neal’s observations about the uses and time-consuming nature of meetings and of
his “trial balloon” suggestions, the Council authorized the management team to submit proposals
for streamlining and increasing the efficiency of the Councils’ decision-making processes,
particularly in the use of committees. The management team should craft its proposals to
achieve these Council interests:
Strengthen the quality of Council decisions.
Maintain or enhance the Council’s teamwork when making decisions.
Provide sufficient Council oversight while increasing the efficiency of City decision-making.
Enable the Council to be as efficient as possible.
Use staff resources judiciously and efficiently.
Maintain or strengthen the involvement of citizens in the Council’s decision-making.
THE POTENTIAL ANNEXATION:
As the City prepares for the possibility that in the near future it will assume responsibility for an
additional 20,000 citizens and an area about one-quarter the size of the City’s current territory,
the Council offers this direction:
Because of the diversity of the neighborhoods that may annex into Federal Way, the City
needs to tailor its messages during the annexation campaign to the different interests, needs,
concerns, and qualities and characteristics of these neighborhoods.
Federal Way residents have come to expect high quality services and a high level of service
delivery from the City. In planning to deliver services to these potential new residents, the
City needs to consider their expectations as well as those of existing residents. The City
should also consider the demands for service as it prepares service delivery strategies.
The City also needs to consider the State’s and County’s interests and expectations because
of financial contributions they will make if annexation is successful.
The City should also consider whether or not the interests of new citizens would be served if
the annexation were to take effect on January 1st, 2009, or if their interests would be more
effectively addressed by an earlier date of implementation.
In his presentation that laid the foundation for the Council’s discussion and direction, Derek
mentioned that a public outreach plan will be developed, and that the Council will have
opportunities to influence its themes and components.
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT:
There appears to be consensus among the Council members that the City is on “the right track” in
its economic development vision and actions. In addition, the Council appears to be united by a
goal of continuing to increase retail sales within the City for numerous reasons, including the
potential to help address the anticipated future “gap” between tax revenues and City
expenditures. The Council also appears to agree with the management team that economic
development initiatives can make a significant contribution to narrowing that gap, but are not
likely to completely eliminate it.
We did not make an attempt to reach consensus on the following strategies; individual Council
members suggested them in the spirit of continually refining the City’s approach to economic
development:
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The City may need to revisit regulations governing the location of the front door of new
developments to ensure that the they do not face parking lots, leaving the backs of buildings
facing the street.
As we continue to make progress on the City Center, the City should also address the needs
and interests of neighborhood business districts.
The two-hundred-foot height limit for buildings constructed in downtown may be too low
because it may be limiting opportunities for redevelopment.
The City should consider “spinning off” to other organizations management responsibility for
some community events. Although the City could still contribute funding to the events, there
could be cost-savings to the City by delegating management duties. Furthermore, delegating
such responsibility to private or non-profit groups could spread the economic development
benefits of these events throughout the year and result in a more strategic, coordinated
approach to corporate sponsors.
The City should communicate with businesses as early as possible to ensure that when they
consider locating in Federal Way or expanding their existing operations, their plans align with
the City’s vision, goals, policies and regulations.
As the retreat’s discussions about service delivery, productivity and efficiency concluded, Neal
pledged on behalf of the management team to continue to seek ways in which the staff can be
even more productive and efficient, and can improve the quality and delivery of services to
Federal Way residents.
THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER:
The Council recognizes the interest in a performing arts center in Federal Way. To help move the
community discussions about the facility to the next level, the Council agreed that:
The City or a group such as the Coalition for the Performing Arts should informally convene
representatives of the interested parties. The School District is one of those interested
parties and needs to be included.
This group should articulate a vision of the performing arts center’s role in the community and
how it could address the needs and interests of the community and arts organizations.
The group should also identify a variety of models or alternatives and the cost of each.
As part of the process for moving this issue into the public arena, the City could help to
identify a group that could be the principal advocate for the performing arts center. This
could move discussions from “informal” to “formal.”
In addition, the roles and responsibilities of the City, the School District and other key
organizations and groups should be defined and agreed upon.
While there was not a consensus on the timing of this process, a suggestion was offered that the
first step—informally convening the key stakeholders—should occur in the first half of 2007.
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2006 ACCOMPLISHMENTS AND THE FACTORS THAT PRODUCED THEM
At the beginning of the retreat, we identified and discussed our accomplishments of 2006. The
following were cited as the primary accomplishments:
Voter approval of Proposition #1, which will define our work for the next several years.
The Community Center.
Continuity of executive leadership following David Moseley’s departure, first from Derek and
now from Neal.
The City Manager hiring process, including how the citizenry was involved.
Purchase of the AMC movie theatre property.
The budget process, including the approach to and level of citizen involvement.
National recognition of Federal Way as a “diversity champion city.”
Improvements to Highway 99.
The Council is on “the same page” and providing unified direction and leadership.
A second municipal judge.
The Council’s lead role in moving “the ball forward” at the State Legislature on domestic
violence legislation.
Code compliance.
Started developing “grid roads” in City Center.
Use of utility tax revenues for the general fund.
The hiring of Brian Wilson as Police Chief.
Capacity building program initiated by staff and supported by Council to assist and train non-
profit organizations, which will be featured at a national human services conference in 2007.
14.8% reduction from 2005 to 2006 in “index” crimes.
Success in funding projects, like $100 million for the transportation “triangle.”
Federal Way’s maturation, and our ability to put “legs” on our vision.
After listing the principal accomplishments of last year, we identified the reasons why we were
successful. The factors cited were:
Outreach to the public, including public education and citizens’ involvement in City decision-
making.
Respect among the Council members for one another and for staff.
The consensus among the Council on our long-term vision and important decisions that
implement it.
Courageous decisions, including purchasing the AMC theatre, proceeding on annexation,
and adopting the budget.
The ability of the Council members to float “trial balloons” with each other so that we get a
wider range of ideas and opportunities when addressing issues.
The dedication and commitment of the City’s employees.
Teamwork approach of staff.
Cooperation and collaboration with key stakeholders, such as the Police Guild.
Quarterly meetings with representatives of other agencies, including the School, Fire, and
Water and Sewer Districts.
The City’s growing influence because it has become a significant “player” in the region.
Consistency among the management team members: The team has stayed pretty much in
tact, and changes that have taken place, such as in the person of the City Manager, have not
disrupted service to the Council or citizens or delayed progress in resolving issues.
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THE CULTURE OF THE POLICE DEPARTMENT
At the Mayor’s request, Brian Wilson, the new Police Chief, described his leadership and
management philosophy and the culture of the Police Department.
From the time he assumed the post of Police Chief on an interim basis, Brian’s goal has been to
keep the department moving forward by offering a seamless leadership transition. He then
articulated the values that define his leadership and management style and the department’s
culture:
officer safety
be the best of the best; if you are not passionate for this work, this is not the career for you
personal and professional development; on-going commitment to employee education
everything is an opportunity to showcase our good work
the “Wow!” factor: every contact with the department exceeds citizens’ expectations
solid communication from top to bottom and from bottom to top of the department; as a result,
every employee knows about and understands the department’s vision, priorities, issues and
challenges
an enjoyable, challenging, rewarding work environment
positive relationships with the public-at-large and with community groups
build trust and credibility with the media; to protect privacy, we may not be able to answer all
the media’s questions, but we are responsive about what is happening and why
problem-solving takes place at all levels of the department
be clear about standards and parameters, and hold employees accountable for achieving the
standards and adhering to the parameters
on-going enhancement of the culture
command staff is expected to keep in touch with what is going on in the department
To ensure that these values are reflected in the department’s operations, Brian mentioned two
initiatives:
1. Improve response times to calls from citizens and improve internal supervision by increasing
the number of squads from seven to eight and reducing the number of officers per squad.
2. To bring new hires “on-line” faster, the Federal Way Police Department and other local police
departments in South King County are considering developing their own Police Academy.
THE DEPARTMENTS’ APPROACH TO IMPLEMENTING PROPOSITION #1
The management team provided the Council with an accounting of how each department is
implementing Proposition #1. These are the themes of that discussion:
The departments are focused on continuing to provide high quality service.
Maintain the City’s high standards for employees even if that means taking a little more time
to hire the right employees.
Hiring the right employees has become more challenging recently because of competition
from both public and private organizations. Private companies in particular, but some public
agencies, too, such as police departments, are offering “signing bonuses” and other “over the
top” packages that are extremely difficult to match when trying to recruit quality employees.
In the period before all the new positions authorized by Proposition #1 are filled, departments
are being creative about deploying staff and resources to get the job done.
In-house training is a key strategy to maintain the high skill level of employees.
Some departments, such as the Police Department, are changing service delivery models to
ensure high caliber, responsive and efficient services.
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THE CITY’S LONG-TERM FINANCIAL OUTLOOK
Iwen provided everyone with a copy of her PowerPoint presentation that set the stage for future
actions to address the deficit that is expected in the next three to five years. Her presentation
and the ensuing discussion highlighted these points:
Some fundamental structural changes will be needed to resolve the “gap” between revenues
and expenditures.
The City has been very efficient in delivering the high level and quality of services. But for
the future it appears there will be less money to provide the same standards in the amount
and quality of services.
Federal Way’s situation may be worse than that of other comparable cities in the region
because the City does not have as many jobs, as much manufacturing/warehouse-based tax
revenue, and as high a percentage of property tax revenues from property in its budget.
As part of this discussion Patrick mentioned that his office, working in conjunction with the
departments, is focused on increasing the number of jobs in the City, diversifying the economic
base of the City, and increasing job opportunities within the City for existing residents.
POTENTIAL FUTURE ISSUES FOR COUNCIL CONSIDERATION
Following the discussions of the City’s long-term economic outlook, annexation, economic
development and the level and quality of services, the Council identified and discussed issues
that may be of interest in the future or could soon require the City’s attention. The performing arts
center was discussed for the longest amount of time; the discussion resulted in Council
agreements that are listed on page three.
Other issues the Council briefly discussed were:
Parks. Parks such as Lakota and Sacagawea have not been upgraded in a long time and
may soon require City action to improve them. If the City is unable to fund upgrades of these
and other parks through the CIP, it may need to consider creating a Parks District to generate
sufficient funding.
The Community Center’s business plan. At the end of 2007 the City may want to assess
the Community Center’s business plan to determine whether the plan is achieving our goals
and expectations.
In-city transportation: The City may want to explore establishing an internal (in-city)
transportation network (shuttle system) to efficiently move people throughout the community,
reduce reliance on the automobile, and stimulate economic opportunity. The creation of a
Business Improvement District (BID) may be one method to launch such a system.
Design Guidelines: Today the City’s design guidelines are most restrictive in City Center,
and less so the farther one goes from downtown. The City may want to review that
approach, assess whether or not the current guidelines are working for both downtown and
the neighborhoods, and, if not, revise them.
