Work Plan
Work Plan Priority Setting Process Overview
Every two years immediately following a general election, the City of Pleasanton begins the process of establishing a work plan that functions as the road map for projects, initiatives and budget development for the subsequent two-year period.
The FY2021/22 – FY 2022/23 work plan development process began in December of 2020 as City staff worked to develop a list of potential priority projects for the draft work plan. The list of projects included secondary and tertiary phases of previously approved priorities, recommended initiatives from members of the Council and various boards and commissions, as well as capital improvement projects and other initiatives as outlined in the City’s various master plan documents.
The Work Plan does not rank projects in various degrees of priority (e.g., highest priority, high priority, etc.). Rather, all projects in the work plan are included equally as part of the City’s work effort. However, to help define the Council’s prioritized work plan, the projects have been placed in broad goals and categories as follows:
- COVID-19: Lead and assist others in recovery from COVID-19 (new for this work plan)
- Bernal Property: Develop Bernal Community Park
- General Plan: Implement the City’s General Plan and pursue long-term advanced planning activities
- Fiscal Sustainability: Maintain the City’s fiscal sustainability
- Affordable Housing: Address affordable housing needs
- Traffic Circulation: Implement improved traffic circulation measures
- Economic Development: Foster economic prosperity
- Youth Programs: Strengthen youth programs, services and activities
- Public Safety: Ensure a safe and secure community
- Quality of Life: Protect and enhance Pleasanton’s quality of life, including downtown
- Environmental Awareness: Pursue environmental awareness, health, land use and preservation issues.
- City Services: Operate an effective and cost-efficient government.
- Organizational Success: Develop & implement initiatives for organizational success
Following the development of a draft list of priorities for the two-year work plan, City staff presented the draft list to each of the City’s advisory boards and commissions at one of their regularly scheduled meetings. The commissions included Parks and Recreation, Planning, Housing, Economic Vitality, Civic Arts, Human Services, Library and Youth, as well as the Energy and Environment Commission. Each group was tasked with determining 2-3 projects (relating to that group’s purview) which they felt would be most appropriate to prioritize for the coming two-year work plan and that would best achieve that group’s strategic goals.
Including both staff and board and commission recommendations, the draft work plan was presented to the Mayor and members of the City Council to prepare their priority designations in advance of the work plan priority workshop. In April of 2021, the City Council conducted a workshop to review the work plan and receive community feedback on any items being considered for prioritization and to make recommendations for additional projects that should be considered for prioritization.
The end result of this process is a bi-annual work plan designed to inform the community of the Council’s shared vision and provide the City Manager with the policy direction needed to direct City resources, including preparation of the City’s Annual Operating and Capital Improvement budgets.