2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan

Northumberland County has released its 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan. With the community set to grow to 122,000 residents by 2051, this plan will inform how the County guides this growth with intention.

From April through June 2023, the County undertook a broad collaborative strategic planning process. Over 900 residents, businesses, and community partners from across the county, along with staff and elected officials, were directly engaged through questionnaires, focus groups, one-on-one discussions, and in-person community conversation ‘pop-ups’ at six locations throughout Northumberland.

“During this collaborative process, the community shared that we need to build on Northumberland’s strong foundation to drive continued municipal government efficiency and exceptional service delivery,” states Warden Mandy Martin. “The 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan sets out a framework for overcoming challenges and seizing opportunities to guide community growth in a dynamic and sustainable way. It is rooted shared vision for the future of our community. We look forward to working with the community to bring this vision to life.”

Along with consolidated feedback gathered during the consultation process, the Community Strategic Plan is informed by existing key master plans and strategies for the community. 40 action items are identified within the final plan, each tied to one of five strategic pillars, including:

• Innovate for Service Excellence
• Ignite Economic Prosperity
• Foster a Thriving Community
• Propel Sustainable Growth
• Champion a Vibrant Future

These pillars embody key themes identified throughout the strategic planning process and will inform the organization's planning and decision-making over the next four years and beyond.

The County will regularly report on progress in delivering the priorities outlined in the 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan. In addition to annual business plans and budgets approved by Council, and the Annual report with audited financial statements release each July, the County will also launch a public-facing dashboard in early 2024 featuring key performance indicators (KPIs) from across County operations. These KPIs will pertain to the principal direction and priorities addressed in the plan.

To view the 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan, visit Northumberland.ca/StrategicPlan.

After extensive community consultation, the proposed vision, pillars, goals and actions for the Northumberland County 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan will be presented to the Economic Development, Tourism, and Land Use Planning Standing Committee on Wednesday, August 2^nd and to County Council at the regular meeting of Council on Wednesday, August 16^th.

The proposed Community Strategic Plan will provide a guiding framework as the County navigates a period of transformation change related to growth and development, economic renewal, climate change, community health and well-being and changing government services and accountabilities. The plan will set clear priorities and actions for the next four years, to set us on a path to achieve a shared community-driven vision for the future of Northumberland.

During the consultation process, we sought feedback from this vision, which would act as the Principal Direction for this strategic plan. Based on a consolidation of this feedback, the following vision emerged:

“Northumberland is recognized as a vibrant and connected twenty-first century county. We embrace innovation, respect our natural environment, celebrate diversity, and care for one another. Together, we are shaping an inclusive, prosperous, and thriving community for all.”

Five strategic pillars were identified to provide a framework to direct planning and decision-making in alignment with this vision. The five distinct, yet collaborative, strategic pillars include:

• Innovate for Service Excellence
• Ignite Economic Opportunity
• Foster a Thriving Community
• Propel Sustainable Growth
• Champion a Vibrant Future

40 actions tied to these pillars have been identified based on broad input and consideration. These actions are available to review in the full report attached to the meeting agenda.

Pending approval of this proposed direction, the final 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan will be shared at the September meeting of County Council on Wednesday, September 20^th.

To view the full report, visit https://bit.ly/450mUME.

In just over one week, more than 500 community members have visited Join In Northumberland to learn more about development of Northumberland County’s new Community Strategic Plan. Since consultation launched on May 8th, over 110 people have submitted ideas, vision statements, and feedback on important priorities.

As another way to gather input from community members as part of this process, the County is coordinating ‘Community Conversation’ pop-ups at special events, farmers markets, and public libraries across Northumberland between May 20 – 28th. Community members are invited to connect with outreach team members over the next two weekends to share their thoughts in-person:

• Saturday, May 20: Cobourg Farmers Market (9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.)
• Saturday, May 20: Port Hope Famers Market (10:45 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.)
• Friday, May 26: Brighton Library (10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.)
• Saturday, May 27: Roseneath Library (11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)
• Saturday, May 27: Bewdley Library (1:30 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.)
• Sunday, May 28: Warkworth Lilac Festival (10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.)

Northumberland County’s 2023 – 2027 Community Strategic Plan will define a shared vision for the future of Northumberland, and identify priorities and actions that will set the County on a path to achieving this vision. Making sure residents and community partners have a variety of opportunities to provide input is an important part of the County’s outreach to build a plan that best reflects community needs and expectations.

Community and staff consultation is currently underway, and will close June 2, 2023. A 16-member multidisciplinary team of County staff will review consultation input, consider emerging trends and the municipal operating environment, and develop a Community Strategic Plan for recommendation to County Council in August 2023.

What is your vision for the future of Northumberland? And what actions can we take, together, to make this vision as reality? Northumberland County is posing these questions and more to residents, community partners, and staff as it launches community consultation to inform creation of a new four-year Community Strategic Plan.

“We are charting a course for the next four years and beyond, and have structured a collaborative process to ensure we are building a plan that best reflects community needs and expectations,” states Warden Mandy Martin. “We are asking you, our residents and partners, to share your thoughts about where your County level of government should be directing its focus to ensure Northumberland continues to be a great place to live, work, and visit. Together, we will set a shared vision for the future of Northumberland. We will define priorities and actions for the next four years that will set us on the path to achieving this vision.”

Every four years, Northumberland County undertakes a strategic planning process to identify the shared priorities that will then inform decision-making reflected in its annual budget and long-term financial plan. The 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan will be a guiding framework as the County navigates a period of significant transformational change. This includes changes related to growth and development, economic renewal, climate change, community health and well-being, and evolving government services and accountabilities.

This plan will create a common understanding of the work Northumberland County will focus on to:

• Achieve a high quality of life for residents;
• Encourage a thriving economy for local businesses;
• Develop memorable experiences for visitors; and
• Earn the trust and confidence of community members.

“The Community Strategic Plan will guide the work of Council and staff in seizing new opportunities and addressing the unique needs of our community,” states CAO Jennifer Moore. “Engaging residents, businesses, and community partners in this important work is vital to create a plan that inspires collective action on shared priorities. The resulting plan will also be an expression of the County’s commitment to our community: that, with an eye always to the future, we will ensure innovation and resilience in our operations to continue delivering the programs and services that people rely upon.”

Community consultation launches today, and will take place throughout the month of May, concluding June 2, 2023. There are several ways for community members to engage in this process, and stay informed of the progress of this work.

• Via Join In Northumberland, the County’s online consultation portal:
  • Share your vision for our community – and what actions can be taken to make this vision a reality – by completing a brief questionnaire. Postcard questionnaires will also available at locations throughout the community starting the week of May 15th, and a random sample of approximately 10,000 households will receive a copy in the mail this month.
  • Post ideas and comments about important priorities to our ‘Ideas Boards’.
  • Stay up to date on the progress of this initiative by subscribing to email updates.
  • Connect in-person to share your feedback at one of our ‘community conversation’ pop-up locations around Northumberland later in May (locations to be announced shortly).

In addition to input gathered through this process, a unique input to the County’s strategic planning process will be feedback gathered through community consultation done in collaboration with the Ontario Health Team of Northumberland (OHT-N)'s regional strategic planning process in 2022. This cross-county consultation was organized to identify local health and well-being priorities, as experienced by area residents and service providers. This included strategy sessions with over 170 participants exploring challenges and opportunities around themes such as inclusion, systemic inequality, and social determinants of health, aging well at home, supporting mental health and addictions care, and more.

Feedback collected previously through the County’s annual budget process, Official Plan update, emergency shelter system review, Transportation Master Plan, and other key projects will also inform development of the 2023-2027 Community Strategic Plan.