Carlsbad, New Mexico Long Term Plan
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
City of Carlsbad, New Mexico Long Term Plan Presented to the Carlsbad City Council by the Carlsbad Long Term Planning Committee Contents I. Introduction ...........................................................................................................................1 II. Public Participation Summary ............................................................................................4 III. Long Term Plan Summary ..................................................................................................6 IV. Quality of Life .....................................................................................................................10 A. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................10 B. Survey Input ....................................................................................................................10 C. Quality of Life Committee Results Summary ................................................................11 V. Energy and Natural Resources ............................................................................................1 A. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................14 B. Survey Input ....................................................................................................................14 C. Follow-On Actions to Address Survey Responses/Sub-Categories ...............................24 D. Supplemental Local ENR Information ...........................................................................28 VI. Government .........................................................................................................................35 A. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................35 B. Survey Input ....................................................................................................................35 VII. Economic Development ......................................................................................................39 A. Vision ..............................................................................................................................39 B. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................39 C. Current Status of Highest Priorities ..................................................................................1 D. Survey Input Item Ranking .............................................................................................40 E. Needs to Meet Metric #x .................................................................................................40 F. Impediments ....................................................................................................................42 G. Plan to Overcome Impediments ......................................................................................43 H. Other Carlsbad Opportunity Scenarios ...........................................................................44 I. Issue vis-à-vis 50,000 population goal ............................................................................45 VIII. Education .............................................................................................................................47 A. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................47 B. Survey Input ....................................................................................................................47 IX. Infrastructure ......................................................................................................................51 A. Vision ..............................................................................................................................51 B. Focus Areas .....................................................................................................................51 C. Current Status..................................................................................................................51 D. Survey Input Item Ranking .............................................................................................53 City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 i X. Long Term Plan Recommendations ..................................................................................55 XI. Appendices ...........................................................................................................................57 A. Public Outreach ...............................................................................................................57 B. Long Term Plan Improvement Survey Results ...............................................................60 ii City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 I. Introduction In early 2011, Mayor Dale Janway initiated a Long Term Planning Initiative for the City of Carlsbad. The Carlsbad Long Term Plan is a product of over 12 months of work by Carlsbad citizens to develop a broad-based vision for Carlsbad’s future. The VISION of the plan is to ensure that Carlsbad is a well- planned and maintained community environment with ample resources and opportunities available for citizens and visitors to enjoy a high quality of life. The MISSION of the Long Term Plan is to establish a sustainable, transparent Long Term Planning process that maximizes citizen participation; thereby creating a road-map for community development, progress and pride. The GOAL at the outset of the effort was to attain a population of 50,000 in the City of Carlsbad by 2035. This goal must be synchronized with the City’s potable water supply. In March of 2011, the City of Carlsbad convened a Long Term Planning Committee composed of over fifty Carlsbad residents representing a wide range of community interests. The committee structure included a Steering Committee and six subcommittees to look in depth at topic areas that are critical to Carlsbad’s future. Each of the following subcommittees was tasked with analyzing community input related to the focus areas for their topic. Quality of Life Government Energy and Natural Resources Economic Development Education Infrastructure The work of the Long Term Planning Committee was completed in three phases. The first was public outreach to obtain as many ideas as possible from the community. The second phase was the work of subcommittees to compile the ideas submitted and present the ideas and prioritize projects for each topic area. The draft reports were submitted to the Steering Committee. The third phase was to integrate the work of the subcommittees into a final report, with the work of each subcommittee comprising a report chapter. A summary of recommendations is the final chapter. City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 1 An organization chart of the committee structure, subcommittees and focus areas of each subcommittee is shown in Figure 1. 2 City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 Figure 1. Long Term Planning Committee Structure City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 3 II. Public Participation Summary To inform the work of the committee, the Committee solicited information from Carlsbad residents through a series of public meetings and a planning survey. The purpose of the meetings and survey were to ensure citizen participation in the planning process at all levels of the community. Public outreach included a general public kick-off meeting at the beginning of the process, followed by public meetings in each of the City’s four wards, sponsored by the City Councilors. Residents were notified of these meetings and of the Long Term Plan through water bill inserts, news articles in the Carlsbad Current-Argus, radio spots, information on the City’s web site, and distribution of information through a variety of channels. Representatives from the six subcommittees attended each meeting, and residents were able to complete surveys at the meetings. Public meeting dates and locations were as follows: Meeting Location Date Time Kick-Off Walter Gerrells Performing Arts and Thursday, February 10, 2011 6:00 pm Event Exhibition Center Ward 1 San Jose Senior Center Tuesday, March 29, 2011 3:00 – 5:00 pm Ward 3 North Mesa Senior Center Tuesday, March 29, 2011 5:00 – 6:30 pm Ward 4 Municipal Golf Course Annex Tuesday, March 29, 2011 5:00 – 6:30 pm Ward 2 Building for Christ Church Thursday, March 31, 2011 5:00 – 6:30 pm The survey was distributed at the public meetings and was available at the Carlsbad Municipal Building, the Carlsbad Library, the San Jose Senior Citizens Center, the North Mesa Senior Citizens Center, the Carlsbad Museum and the Chamber of Commerce. Representatives of the Long Term Planning Committee spoke to local service organizations (Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions, etc.) and handed out surveys to their associates, church members and as many other individuals as possible. A copy of the survey was printed in The Carlsbad Local, a local free newspaper. The surveys asked the public for their ideas for improving Carlsbad. For each idea, respondents were asked to describe the benefits of the idea or project, define the need for the project, identify obstacles to accomplishing the project, describe past efforts or provide examples of successful 4 City of Carlsbad Long Term Plan. 2012 projects, and indicate their willingness to help implement