The American Planning Association’s Alabama Chapter has honored Anniston, Alabama’s “One City, One Vision” Strategic Plan with an Outstanding Planning Award for a Plan or Program.
“One City, One Vision” was completed through a one-year community-led process that engaged over 1,125 people who participated in six different face-to-face public events and generated over 2,700 ideas. In addition, 3,200 people engaged in the process online through Facebook and the project website. This extensive public engagement resulted in a plan that put forth a visionary, yet substantive and realistic, Action Agenda in eight categories: Arts and Culture, City Image, Community Services, Learning, Place, Prosperity, Safety and Transportation. Each category included a goal, a series of actions, a description of each action and an indication of whether each action was identified as a community preference.
“We’re so proud of the work that the citizens of Anniston have done to plan for the future,” said Mayor Vaughn Stewart. “This prestigious award from the American Planning Association’s Alabama Chapter is testament to the great commitment of our community to enrich Anniston socially, culturally and economically.”
The plan was adopted in June 2014 and is now being aggressively implemented. One of the top priorities that emerged from “One City, One Vision” was a zoning assessment and update. The zoning update and an associated land use framework were initiated in fall 2014. This will be the first new zoning ordinance in Anniston in over 30 years.
To learn more about this great work, take a look at the recent video prepared for the International City/County Management Association (ICMA).
