News
2/4/2011 - County Fine-Tunes Strategic Plan Survey
County Fine-Tunes Strategic Plan Survey
As Responses Begin to Flow
It’s been an encouraging start for Cumberland County’s newly released strategic plan survey.
In the first month since its release, more than 200 county residents have logged on to the survey site to share their opinions on the direction of county government, services and land use over the next decade.
And based on suggestions from the early respondents, officials have fine-tuned part of the multiple-choice questionnaire to give residents more options to express themselves.
The survey was launched in December to solicit direct input from residents for the ten-year strategic plan, “Cumberland County 2010-2020: The Future is Now.”
The 22-question survey is designed to involve residents in shaping achievable strategies to be implemented over the next decade that will support positive growth and development of the County.
The final section asks residents to choose from specific options on how County funding should be prioritized over the next ten years. Some respondents felt that being restricted to just the three or four choices didn’t give them the opportunity to fully express their opinions.
The Strategic Planning Committee has now added an “Other” option to those questions that allows respondents to offer their own suggestions.
Director William F. Whelan |
|
“This is an evolving process,” said Freeholder Director William F. Whelan. “We want input from as many county residents as possible to help create a Strategic Plan that will guide us as we progress through this decade.”
Initiated by the Cumberland County Board of Chosen Freeholders, the planning process has been actively underway for the past year with focus groups comprised of county residents, business owners, financial institutions, industry, environmental and non-profit organizations.
|
Louis N. Magazzu |
“The focus groups guided us in the creation of the survey,” said Freeholder Louis N. Magazzu who has been working closely with the strategic planning committee since its formation. “We want to get the most thorough responses as possible, and if that means making some adjustments here at the beginning, great.”
The easy to use survey is available online to county residents at a special “The Future is Now” link on the County website at cumberlandcountynj.gov. You’ll find the link in the lower right-hand corner where it says “Take Our Survey.”
For those who don't have internet access, a hard copy version is available at local libraries or by calling the Cumberland County Planning and Economic Development at 856-453-2211.