By Natalie Anderson
natalie.anderson@salisburypost.com

SALISBURY — The Salisbury City Council will meet Thursday and Friday to develop goals and priorities for 2022 as well as hear reports from city departments about issues related to diversity, public safety, capital projects and affordable and fair housing.

City Council members will gather at City Hall on South Main Street Thursday and Friday for their annual planning and goal-setting retreat. The meeting will be held in a hybrid format, with members of the public invited to tune in virtually. Thursday’s session begins at 3 p.m. and City Council will reconvene Friday morning at 9 a.m. The meetings can be streamed live via at salisburync.gov/webcast or via the city’s Twitter and Facebook accounts.

Warren Miller, president of Fountainworks Facilitation and Management Consulting, will moderate the retreat. Miller moderated the city’s planning retreats in 2020 and 2021.

On Thursday, Interim City Manager Brian Hiatt will brief the council on an overview of the previous year before discussing the council meeting schedule and procedures moving forward. Council members will receive reports from the Finance and Human Resources departments before hearing about the city’s diversity, equity and inclusion efforts.

Police Chief Jerry Stokes and Parks and Recreation Director Nick Aceves will also provide a community safety review.

On Friday, the City Council will be briefed on the impact of Salisbury’s growth as it relates to the comprehensive plan, development standards and system development fees. They’ll also discuss the state of affordable and fair housing in Salisbury and downtown development.

The Stormwater Capital Improvement Plan, along with upcoming transportation projects, will also be a topic of discussion. Transit Director Rodney Harrison will discuss Salisbury Transit, one of the hardest-hit city departments throughout the pandemic.

Council members will use the reports and discussions to prioritize capital projects and develop priorities Friday afternoon before wrapping up the retreat.

Such discussions will also provide Hiatt with guidance to prepare of the 2022-23 budget. He said the goal is to hire a new city manager before the budget is adopted so the new hire can be involved and make any necessary tweaks before the new fiscal year starts on July 1.

Hiatt also intends to brief the council on the status of an ongoing citywide pay salary, which is expected to be complete this spring.

Contact reporter Natalie Anderson at 704-797-4246.