SALISBURY — The Salisbury City Council formally approved the final draft of the city’s strategic plan during its March 5 meeting.

“This is the culmination of over five months of work for many people across the organization and community,” Administrative Services Director Kelly Baker said. “Having a broad range of voices and thoughts in the process can only make the plan that much stronger.”

The plan first began to take shape late last year when Raftelis, the consulting firm the city hired to assist in developing it, interviewed members of the council, various chairs of boards and commissions, and sent out an employee survey to city staff.

After Raftelis received feedback and multiple workshops took place, the city council retreat discussions in January were the final steps in creating the plan. Baker said it outlines the next three to five years for Salisbury.

“It will be foundational as we set the budget and determine how we allocate time and resources,” Baker said.

The key focus areas include: healthy safe and engaged neighborhoods, economic and workforce development, public safety, organizational excellence, sustainable infrastructure and cultural amenities.

The city’s organizational values are collaboration, compassion, fairness and equity, innovation, sustainability and integrity.

The plan’s vision statement reads: “Salisbury is a welcoming and forward-thinking community, inclusive for all generations, aspiring to offer a vibrant economy, high quality of life and greater opportunities for everyone.”

When it came to healthy and safe neighborhoods, staff steered away from mentioning specific projects to allow more “flexibility” in the future. A few of the strategies involve facilitating better mixed-income and senior housing neighborhoods, carrying out the Forward 2040 comprehensive plan, and upgrading the city’s “connectivity” and “walkability” for residents.

For its economic and workforce development, Salisbury will take advantage of what makes it unique and what it has to offer to convince an ever-growing workforce to move and become employed here. This means they will partner with local businesses, organizations and schools to help cultivate that workforce.

Salisbury’s organizational excellence pertains to following through with employee development and retention, communication, compensation and relationships to improve the staff’s work environment.

Public safety is vital to all branches of Salisbury. The police and fire departments as well as parks and recreation will come together with residents and businesses to make sure everybody feels secure. Completing construction on the new Fire Station 3 and continuing “community conversation” gatherings will further nurture a safe Salisbury.

In order to produce and maintain sustainable infrastructure, the city is going to invest in its capital improvement programs, information technology infrastructure and build “environmentally sustainable projects” like electric car charging stations.

Cultural amenities add character to a thriving city and Salisbury is committed to contracting local artists for “public art installations” such as crosswalks and murals. The city is also interested in renovating the Wells Fargo Building and cooperating with Rufty-Holmes Senior Center to establish a “multi-generational community center and pool.”

At the end of Baker’s presentation, members of the council spoke highly on the importance of the strategic plan for Salisbury’s overall well being.

“An organization can’t operate effectively without a strategy if you don’t know where you’re going, you’re not going to get there,” Council Member David Post said.

“It’s very exciting to see where we’re going next,” Mayor Karen Alexander said.