Editorial: Palm Beach's new strategic plan provides roadmap for way forward
The timing could not be more perfect.
At its meeting last month, the Town Council approved a number of recommendations from the Strategic Planning Board.
In a unanimous vote, council members agreed to accept the board's recommended mission and vision statements, critical success factors, strategic focus areas, and strategic priorities as the framework of a new five-year strategic plan to be incorporated into fiscal year 2024 budget planning.
The new strategic plan replaces the one completed in 2003 and updated in 2012 and comes at a time when the town is at a crossroads as it figures how to move forward in a rapidly changing landscape, fueled by growth we've seen since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The town began weighing development of a new long-range plan in an effort to address concerns about growth, particularly on the island's North End, where residents have seen an intensification of a longtime trend: Older homes are being replaced with larger ones that are maxing out their lot sizes and changing the character of the surrounding neighborhoods.
More: Palm Beach approves framework for new five-year strategic plan
The wide-ranging final plan touches on a number of key areas, including community culture and character; governmental leadership and innovation; traffic; parking; preservation, environmental protection, and drinking water management.
The issues are huge and complex. But they have been distilled into a format that everyone can understand so that there are no mysteries about the path forward.
For many residents, preserving the island's culture and character is the top priority. They will be grateful the Strategic Planning Board also made it a priority.
There will be challenges as the board addresses the issues that have accompanied growth, such as managing development in commercial areas, and finding that balance between allowing property owners to build the homes they want while ensuring that they conform to the rule of law.
Residents and business owners also are fortunate that the strategic plan dovetails with the revamping of the town's 50-year-old zoning code. That will help ensure a more comprehensive look at the road ahead.
A debt of gratitude is owed to Strategic Board chairwoman Mayor Danielle Moore and members Alfred “Skip” Aldridge, Elizabeth Dowdle, Kristen Kelly Fisher, Peter McKelvy, Nicki McDonald, Katherine Ostberg, Michael Pucillo and Michael Reiter, who spent 15 months hammering out a thorough and detailed plan.
It couldn't have come at a better time.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Daily News: Editorial: Palm Beach's new strategic plan provides roadmap for way forward
