The City of Revelstoke is working on a strategic plan to plot the city’s development over the next several years.

Traditionally the city has done this sort of exercise, but only on a year-to-year basis. Creating a longer-term strategic plan is something new.

“It’s a piece that has been missing in the past, to allow council and staff to sit down in a forum and work through their priorities and risks that we see,” said mayor David Raven. “It’s an operational piece. We’re not planning what we do, but planning how we do it.”

The planning was first brought up last winter but has only begun in earnest over the summer. Each city department has been asked to identify the projects it has been working on and what projects it is focusing on for the future. That information will then be summarized and given to council, who will then set the city’s priorities.

“The council’s real exercise, in light of what’s important to the community right now, to focus in on a limited number of priorities over the next few years,” said Ross McPhee, the city’s chief administrative officer. “That will then turn into marching orders for staff.”

The strategic plan is being worked on internally by city staff and council, with the help of a consultant. Public consultation will depend on what comes out of the planning sessions, said Raven.

Part of the plan will look at how to implement the infrastructure funding grants announced two weeks ago, said Raven. The city received two-thirds of the funding for four projects from the provincial and federal government, but it still has to cover the other third.

“There’s some very significant workloads coming for staff and the city over the next year and it’s just a question of being able to set priorities and get them in place sooner rather than later,” said Raven.

At a meeting of the Economic Development Commission last week, Alan Mason, the city’s director of economic development, updated the group on the areas he is working on: economic diversification, the environment, planning, affordable housing, and marketing.

He said economic diversification was a strength of the town, with strong forestry, transportation, tourism, and public sectors.

One issue Mason said needed to be addressed was the city’s ability to respond to environmental issues.

“We’re continually being bombarded with stuff about the environment and what we have to do as a local government but I don’t think we have good capacity to deal with it,” he said. “I don’t think we’re doing a great job. We’re not really focused on it.”

Another staff member may be needed, he added.

Members of the commission said there was a need reduce red tape for new business owners and make the city more friendly for new business owners.

“If I just came to town and was looking to start up a new business and my first contact is with city hall, I’d go check out some more towns,” said commission chair Brett Renaud. He added that the city’s website needed to be upgraded, as that was often someone’s first point of contact with the city.

McPhee said it would be up to council to determine what the priorities are.

“All the departments are providing information to council about initiatives from past year and initiatives they would like to focus on over next three to five years,” he said. “Council may follow that or may have other ideas.”

Raven said he his hoping to have the document completed by the end of November, in time for the budget sessions.

“Our goal is to have budget prepared earlier than we have in the past so we can move on with greater certainty,” he said.