Page 93 - Littleton, CO Comprehensive Plan

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IMPLEMENTATION

With Envision Littleton (the Plan), the City of Littleton and other partner agencies and organizations have an essential new
document that should be frequently referred to for guidance in community decision-making. The Plan should be a “living
document” that responds to change. Its key planning considerations, goals, policies, and action strategies must be
revisited periodically to ensure that the Plan is providing clear and reliable direction on a range of matters, including land
development issues and public investments in infrastructure and services.
Implementation is not just a list of action items. It is a challenging process that requires the commitment of the City’s
elected and appointed officials, staff, residents, business owners, major institutions, other levels of government, and other
organizations and individuals who will serve as champions of the Plan and its particular direction and strategies. Among
its purposes, this final Plan section highlights specific roles, responsibilities and methods of implementation to execute
plan recommendations. Equally important are formalized procedures for the ongoing monitoring and reporting of
successes achieved, difficulties encountered, and new opportunities and challenges that emerge after Plan adoption.
This is in addition to any other change in circumstances, which may require rethinking of plan priorities. Scheduled plan
evaluations and updates, as described later in this section, will help maintain its relevance and credibility as the policy and
action guide for the City.

PLAN ADMINISTRATION

During the development of this Plan, representatives of government, business, community groups, and others came
together to inform the visioning and planning processes. These community leaders – and new ones that will emerge over
the horizon of this Plan – must maintain their commitment to the ongoing implementation and updating of the plan’s goals,
policies and action strategies.
LEADERSHIP ALIGNMENT

While long-range plans such as Envision Littleton are relatively general they are still complex policy documents that
attempt to balance various policy objectives. Engaging decision-makers and administrators about plan implementation
is an important first step after plan adoption. As the principal groups that will implement the Plan, City management and
department heads, the City Council, and Planning Commission should all be in agreement with regard to priorities,
responsibilities, and interpretations.
Consequently, City management should arrange to convene those listed above immediately after Plan adoption,
to include:
• A discussion of the respective roles and responsibilities of the Council, Planning Commission (and other City advisory
Boards/Commissions), and City departments and staff;
• A thorough overview of the entire Envision Littleton Plan, with emphasis on the parts of the Plan that relate to each
group;
• Implementation tasking and priority setting, which should establish a one-year and three-year implementation agenda;
and

• An in-depth question and answer session, with support from the City Attorney and other key staff.
DEFINITION OF ROLES

As the community’s elected officials, the City Council should assume the lead role in implementing the Plan. The key
responsibilities of the City Council are to decide and establish priorities, set timeframes by which actions will be initiated
and completed, and determine the budget to be made available for implementation efforts. Based on this City Council
direction, the City Manager and staff must help to ensure effective coordination among the groups that are responsible
for carrying out the plan’s action strategies.

City Council

The City Council should take the lead in the following general areas:

Adopted October 15, 2019