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Community Planning
Vision 2010 was a citizen-driven community development initiative, developed by the City of Elkins, to guide the community’s future. The project issued a challenge to the citizens of Elkins and Randolph County to look at where we are, where we are heading and provide direction for where we want to go. Hundreds of people met the challenge and promised to keep the momentum alive. “There are many people that are truly committed to improving the area and the lives of its citizens. That provides some hope,” said one person involved in the process.
The Vision 2010 effort was led by the leadership committee, comprised of eight leaders in the county. The leaders guided the efforts through the donation of their time, knowledge and skills to the process.
Relying heavily on public opinions, Vision 2010 offered residents of Elkins and the surrounding areas opportunities for input into the future of the region. More than 500 residents from Elkins and surrounding areas spent more than 1,900 hours and provided input through town hall meetings, roundtable discussions, visioning sessions and a public opinion survey.
The public opinion survey was made available to residents and visitors in the local newspaper, at the public meetings, schools and at area organizations and businesses. Collection boxes were strategically located throughout the county to encourage participation. A third of the completed surveys came from residents and visitors outside the city of Elkins.
Vision 2010 started with a “listening session” in the form of a town hall meeting. It provided residents a forum to come together to discuss common issues, build relationships and initiate plans to move forward. The town hall took on a “café” style discussion with people broken down into smaller groups to make sure all attendees had a voice and an opportunity to affect their future. Residents were then invited to volunteer their time and serve on one of the roundtables.
Roundtable discussion groups focused on growing the economy, enhancing quality of life, connecting the communities, understanding the role of government, appreciating Elkins’ history and culture and creating a better future through education.
A website was developed so that residents could submit comments and suggestions for Vision 2010, complete the public opinion survey and read information on the Vision 2010 process.
Residents embraced the Vision 2010 process and attribute its success to people working together in Elkins and surrounding communities to make the vision a reality. Their comments, visions and reports were assimilated into a document that was made available to all.
The process continues today with implementation plans to make Vision 2010 a reality.
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