Shorewood council reviews draft 2025 priorities; seeks clearer metrics and resident input

The Shorewood City Council met March 24 to review a draft 2025 Strategic Priorities Work Plan and to set expectations for how staff should prioritize and report progress. City Administrator Nevinski described the list as a high-level framework and recommended beginning with a Vegetation Management Plan under Environmental Stewardship.

Councilmembers pressed staff to add measurable milestones and clearer resource estimates. Councilmember DiGruttolo urged adding a column that shows staff time and financial support needed for each action so the Council and public can track progress. Nevinski cautioned that early estimates would be wide but agreed that milestones would help measure progress.

Members discussed the GreenSteps Cities program. Councilmember Gorham asked what higher program levels would yield; Nevinski said advancing levels requires formal commitments, staff time and policy development. Mayor Jennifer Labadie and Councilmember Sanschagrin asked staff to brief the Council on GreenSteps costs and implications before committing to higher program levels; Sanschagrin noted residents had raised concerns about possible unintended consequences.

The Council debated how to handle the Shorewood Community Events Center (SCEC). Councilmember Gorham said he wanted a thorough analysis and community feedback before proposing structural changes; Nevinski said some incremental steps could be taken quickly but that a full rework would likely take longer than the third-quarter target originally listed. Councilmember DiGruttolo said the SCEC has not been financially sustainable and asked that staff aim for a plan that moves the facility toward a balanced budget.

Public-safety expectations and neighborhood traffic also featured in the work-session discussion. Nevinski recommended earlier Council engagement with Police Department leadership because rising public-safety costs will affect the budget. Mayor Labadie asked to accelerate Council conversations about public-safety goals before the City advances a search for a new police chief.

Other items the Council highlighted for closer tracking included completion of the Parks Master Plan, construction specification updates, the 2040 Comprehensive Plan implementation (with some sections paused pending state legislation), and outreach and communications, including the idea of regular town halls or a Strategic Communications Plan.

Next steps: staff will add milestones and status columns to the draft Work Plan, prepare a GreenSteps briefing, develop an approach and community-engagement timeline for the SCEC analysis, and return with updated materials for Council review.