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Hernando County unveils draft strategic plan and sets implementation schedule
Summary
The county presented a draft strategic plan built from two years of public engagement; commissioners endorsed moving to Phase 3 implementation, which includes identifying champions, KPIs and quarterly progress workshops.
Hernando County staff and outside consultants presented the draft of a countywide strategic plan that was developed over a two‑year process of public and staff engagement. The Board of County Commissioners accepted the draft and directed staff to move into Phase 3 — implementation and operationalization.
Consultants from the University of South Florida and St. Petersburg College said the draft plan frames four strategic themes: economic and workforce opportunity; commitment to public safety; stewardship of natural resources; and quality of life. The draft contains 14 goals, 17 objectives and six priority goals chosen by the board during the process.
Angela Crist of USF’s Florida Institute of Government and Andrea Henning of St. Petersburg College introduced the plan’s vision, which they presented as the board’s “North Star”: “Rich in character, inspired by natural resources, Hernando County is a safe environment for opportunities.” They also unveiled a short list of values that the consultants said were chosen to spell “HERNANDO” as a practical mnemonic.
The board said the plan aligns with ongoing budget priorities and asked for public access and accountability mechanisms. Andrea Henning outlined Phase 3: a December 12 organizational meeting with the administrator and executive leadership team to identify champions and teams for each priority, design reporting cadence and define systems — for example, a performance dashboard — to track progress. Champions will return with 100‑day action plans and key performance indicators. Quarterly implementation workshops in 2026 will review progress and recalibrate as needed.
Commissioners asked that the public-facing materials be posted on the county’s engagement portal (engagehernando.com). Administrator Rogers and several commissioners said they want the plan used as a practical budget and implementation roadmap, not a static document. Commissioner Campbell said the plan should be tied directly to budget priorities and that staff should prepare the necessary administrative capacity to run the quarterly reviews.
Ending: The county said a community report and full data appendix would be published online by the end of the month and staff will schedule the Phase 3 workshop for December. The board directed staff to begin implementation work and to return with champions and draft KPIs for the priority goals.
