By Dave Fidlin
CORRESPONDENT
Within the next week, property owners within the Village of Waterford will be asked to provide input through a community survey that will touch on such issues as the business climate, taxes and relations with neighboring municipalities.
Details of the survey are being included with upcoming water and sewer bills, Village Administrator Rebecca Ewald noted at a Village Board meeting June 13. Respondents will have an opportunity to take the survey online or through a traditional paper method.
The survey is an outgrowth of the village’s long-range strategic planning effort. Part of the exercise entails crafting a vision for future planning and policy decisions.
A month ago, more than 40 community representatives gathered during a workshop to hash over some of the conceptual components of the planning effort.
Participants include local government officials and representatives of Waterford-based schools, in addition to religious groups and civic organizations. Rounding out the participants were business owners and the tourism industry.
“A variety of comments and recommendations were vetted with the stakeholders,” Ewald said.
The 13-page, 19-question survey is formulated with multiple-choice questions, but also gives respondents the opportunity to provide their own feedback.
One question asks respondents to weigh in on a list of potential threats to the village in the years ahead.
Listed factors include a lack of business growth, diminishing revenue sources for village operations, drug and alcohol abuse, competition from neighboring communities and the imminent reconstruction of highways 83 and 20.
On the other end of the equation, respondents will be asked if they agree with an itemized list of some of the village’s strengths, including schools, location, level of services, the Fox River and the downtown area.
Plans call for the more than 40 community representatives to meet in August to review survey results. A series of recommendations will be drafted and presented to the Village Board in the fall for adoption.
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