08-13-2007 After 9 months of labor, City Plan initiatives take shape

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The directives, however, represent only the most visible public window into the detailed City Plan objectives. Here is a list of other work toward City Plan priorities: • As part of the 2008 budget process, city officials are incorporating City Plan benchmarks into an outcome-based budgeting process. The shift will enable the city to be more publicly transparent in its budgeting process and remain accountable to residents in meeting shared objectives. City Plan also will provide direction for program development, strategies and capital expenditures. • On Aug. 17, Luecke and Jeff Gibney, interim director of Community and Economic Development, will introduce a new strategy for downtown development. Inspired by City Plan's vision, initiated by new departmental leadership and shaped by an ad-hoc group including public and private stakeholders, the strategy will create new dialogue about the vision for downtown. (Community participants in the City Plan process identified a comprehensive strategy for downtown as the top key issue for City Plan to address.) • By the end of the month, crews from the city's parks and public works departments will have re-opened nine "Windows on the River." These 500-foot sections provide clear viewing points at strategic places along the St. Joseph River's 17 miles of riverbank in South Bend. City managers adjusted existing work plans to free staff time to address this City Plan concern. Work will conclude this fall on a 10th and final window for 2007. The program is expected to resume in 2008. • The South Bend Department of Parks and Recreation is drafting its first natural resource management policy and activating a National Resource Advisory Team to guide stewardship of park properties. The team will identify park properties that require such management and whether a single, over-arching plan will apply to all identified parks and green spaces. • Responding to a City Plan objectives for area-specific plans and encouraging planned-unit developments, the city guided and approved a plan for the $200-million Eddy Street Commons, which includes commercial/retail and residential uses. The commercial development also will fund, through tax incremental financing, a$15 million redevelopment of the "Triangle" section of the Northeast Neighborhood. • The mayor has refocused an existing position in his office to concentrate on key City Plan priorities, including promoting city assets, developing a formal marketing strategy for the city and promoting the strengths of South Bend neighborhoods. • As part of efforts identified in City Plan to recruit youth interested in police careers, South Bend police have expanded a middle-school education program to include a six-week GREAT (Gang Resistant Education And Training) program. Police have expanded a tennis program to include a women's program with 25-30 women, while the boxing program has grown to more than 85 participants with built-in educational tutoring. Police also have begun regular meetings with the Hispanic Focus Group, the Hispanic Business Alliance as well as a monthly ride-a-long with the Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance of St. Joseph County. • Seeking to address City Plan's call for integrated telecommunications infrastructure, South Bend police expanded radios to 800 MHC and worked in partnership with St. Joseph County to obtain a mobile command center. • Responding to the objective of energy efficient practices, the public works department is overseeing the installation of light-emitting diode (LED)traffic signals, saving a projected $1.9 million in avoided electrical cost.