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Dorchester County hires consultants for community-centered strategic plan, seeks public input
Summary
Consultants outlined a county-led strategic-planning process emphasizing town halls, stakeholder interviews and a January survey; consultants said deliverables will include mission/vision/values and a five-year outcomes statement and urged broad participation.
Dorchester County officials on Dec. 16 introduced a consultant-led strategic-planning process aimed at producing a countywide mission, vision and five-year outcomes statement and soliciting broad public input.
Frank Grossman, the consultant leading the effort, told the county council the plan is designed to be county-driven and to “put you all in the center” of the process. He said the work will begin with a discovery phase that includes department process reviews, stakeholder interviews and a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats) analysis, followed by town halls and a countywide survey to collect community priorities.
“Every voice shapes tomorrow,” Grossman said, summarizing the consultants’ philosophy. He asked council members and county staff to participate in interviews scheduled in December and January and said town halls are planned for the week of Jan. 26, with a broader survey set to be released in January. Grossman said interview responses would be treated as confidential to encourage candid feedback.
Council members asked specifically how the strategic process would work with the county’s existing comprehensive plan (completed 2021). Grossman said the consultants will review prior reports and use them as context, noting the process will identify where community input aligns with or contradicts the comprehensive plan and surface trade-offs for policymakers to consider.
Deliverables the consultant listed include a mission, vision and values statement; a five-year outcome statement; a completed SWOT analysis; presentations tailored to multiple audiences; and a communications plan to publicize results and next steps. The consultants said they will benchmark practices in comparable counties and produce objective milestones and accountability measures so the plan does not “sit on a shelf.”
County staff said the consultants’ slide deck and contact information will be posted on the county website and that plans and dates for town halls and surveys will be publicized so residents can weigh in. The council encouraged residents to participate and said interviews with county leaders would be scheduled in January.
Next steps: the county will finalize town-hall locations and publish the survey in January; consultant interviews with council members and key departmental staff are expected to occur in December and January.
