Colorado Springs mayor releases action plan guiding citywide goals in 2024
Colorado Springs Mayor Yemi Mobolade on Friday released a framework that intends to track the city’s work and its progress in 2024 on a number of action items.
Developed around five priorities — public safety, infrastructure, housing solutions, economic vitality and community activation — the Strategic Doing Framework, as it is called, will “move ideas and plans into action-oriented collaborations that result in measurable outcomes,” according to the plan’s webpage, coloradosprings.gov/2024strategicdoing.
The strategic priorities are among those Mobolade touted during his mayoral campaign last year, but they also reflect areas the community asked the city to focus on this year, officials said in a Friday news release.
Mobolade’s administration used feedback gathered from residents during the Listening Tours he and city councilmembers held this summer, as well as recommendations from solutions teams, councilmembers and city staff to develop the focused action plan, officials said.
It lists 20 total initiatives across all five identified priorities, which will be supported by cross-departmental teams and detailed workplans.
The framework is a non-exhaustive list of actions Mobolade’s administration plans to take this year, according to the webpage. It will help inform the city’s long-term Strategic Plan officials are still developing. The framework will also be updated annually, officials said in the release.
“Through these focus areas, we will move the city forward. It is how we will transparently build a more inclusive, culturally rich, economically prosperous, safe and vibrant Colorado Springs together,” Mobolade said in part in the release.
The initiatives include:
1. Public safety. Mobolade’s objective is to enhance public safety by increasing community support, funding, innovative programming and staffing to Colorado Springs first responders.
Five public safety goals this year include expanding community and behavioral public health safety programs; leveraging and implementing technology to enhance public safety efforts; establishing a plan to better retain and recruit first responders, including continuing efforts to build a new police academy; expanding community outreach and engagement; and finding funding to build two additional fire stations in the city.
2. Infrastructure. The overarching goal in local infrastructure is to invest in core public infrastructure that will meet demand as Colorado Springs keeps growing, as well as maintaining current infrastructure.
Six infrastructure-related goals for 2024 include exploring and implementing “smart growth” policies; reforming the Lodgers and Automobile Rental Tax; enhancing and expanding mass transit and multimodal transportation; preserving, enhancing and upgrading aging city facilities; seeking funding for roads and parks maintenance and upgrades; and beginning to activate local waterways.
3. Housing solutions. Mobolade hopes to implement policies and foster community partnerships to increase the variety of housing options in Colorado Springs, as well as to provide more affordable and attainable housing.
Three housing goals include using regional partnerships to improve housing affordability; pursuing building technologies like 3D printing or panelized construction, and adopting guidelines that will encourage and incentivize development of accessory dwelling units; and removing barriers to affordable and attainable housing.
4. Economic vitality. The city’s economic objectives in 2024 are to grow new and existing businesses with a business-friendly environment, attracting and retaining employees to support business growth, and expanding Colorado Springs’ Olympic City USA brand and Pikes Peak region outdoor recreation to promote quality of life.
Four goals include bolstering collaboration and resources to maintain a business-friendly environment and support new and existing local businesses; working with educational leaders, workforce partners, employers and the military to advance the future workforce; reimagining the city’s Olympic City USA brand to attract talent and promote quality of life; and collaborating with regional partners to attract new workforce talent by promoting outdoor activities and quality of life.
5. Community activation. Mobolade wants to enhance the city’s work on these goals through community partnerships and engagement, and focus on mental health.
Two action items in this area include advancing the city’s “Mental Health COS” campaign the mayor’s wife, Abbey Mobolade, is leading, and using technology to engage residents and improve quality of life.
To track the city’s progress across all 20 initiatives, and for more information on each action item, visit coloradosprings.gov/2024strategicdoing.
A new framework Mayor Yemi Mobolade recently released will track Colorado Springs’ progress in 2024 on 20 identified action items.
Mayor Yemi Mobolade greets Thanksgiving travelers Lu and Dan Patnaude at the Colorado Springs Airport and hands out hot chocolate to those coming and going on Wednesday, Nov. 22.
