Outstanding Public Outreach, Program, Project, Tool, or Initiative
Forward SGF Community Outreach
In the Spring of 2019, the City of Springfield embarked on a new Comprehensive Planning process, Forward SGF, to replace the city’s long-standing Comprehensive Plan, Vision 20/20, adopted 1998-2001.
Recognizing the City had one-shot at getting the utmost in community input and support, the City of Springfield Planning and Development Department and a team of consultants, led by Chicago-based Houseal Lavigne Associates, set the bar high for public outreach. The Forward SGF outreach process yielded an unparalleled amount of participation with approximately 10,000 points of interaction with the Springfield community. This exceptional level of participation showcased the remarkable commitment and active involvement of the Springfield community.
Engagement was conducted through a wide range of methods, both online and in-person. This included engaging nearly 1,500 participants in 57 individual face-to-face workshops, and over 7,000 participants through online surveys and online mapping platforms allowing broadened outreach, engagement, and analysis. The Forward SGF planning process yielded the largest public engagement in the City of Springfield’s history for any plan or project, focusing on inclusivity by engaging a wide range of individuals with diverse backgrounds and interests in the process. The peak of public outreach occurred when one visioning workshop hosted over 500 participants in a hotel ballroom. The crowd was so large that the hotel ran out of tables and participants worked on the floor to complete the workshop.
The Forward SGF process included a speaker series where various planning topics were discussed by planning experts to build and maintain excitement for the plan. The kick-off event began with, 4-term Mayor of Oklahoma City, speaker Mick Cornett highlighting the City’s planning process. An additional unique event was hosted by The Network, an organization for Springfield’s professionals under 40 who are the go-to voice for young leaders. The group hosted a “tailgate” at a local coffee shop before each of the visioning workshops to encourage participation from their membership. The public engagement for Forward SGF included the utilization of a city-owned building, scheduled to be demolished, as a hub for Plan activities and public engagement sessions known as the Forward SGF Planning Studio.
The Forward SGF process, which is expected to wrap-up in the fall of 2022 with adoption of the Plan by City Council, has been a process of pivoting and adapting to changing circumstances with the pandemic occurring shortly after the start of the planning process. Despite the interruption from the lack of in-person engagement opportunities and restricted consultant travel for a significant portion of the planning process, the interaction with the community continued using technology, innovative practices, and sheer determination.
