A nature center, affordable housing, growing the transit system and a continued focus on quality of life were among the suggestions to the city of Mankato at an open house Wednesday.
The event was part of an ongoing effort to get input from the community, city employees, the business community and others as the city prepares to create a new five-year strategic plan.
“We’ve been getting a lot of feedback,” said City Manager Susan Arntz during the event at the Intergovernmental Center.
The city has hosted open houses with residents and specific groups, as well as conducting an online survey and other efforts, to get information.
Arntz said the next step is to refine themes that have come up and give them more definition and suggestions of how the city can implement goals. The information will soon be reviewed by Oregon-based SSW Consulting, which will develop a suggested list of priorities and action plans.
In late April, the City Council will review the findings before approving a final strategic plan.
Arntz said the plan will come together as the city prepares its 2025-26 budget so that funding can be in place to implement plans.
Parker Skophammer, director of administrative services for Mankato, said the information-gathering events have drawn a lot of participation. The last strategic plan expired last year, but he said the city wanted to take plenty of time to decide what should be in the next plan for the growing community.
“One of the things we’ve heard has been about continued expansion of the transit system.” He said users have shared their reliance on transit and want the city to keep meeting new demands for it.
Housing was another big topic.
Nancy Bokelmann, with the city’s housing and economic development department, said comments on housing focus on affordability but span the spectrum.
“We’re hearing most about affordable housing.”
She said the city is looking at a variety of ways to meet needs, including getting more of the increased state and federal funding that has been focused on affordable housing.
“We’re a growing community and need a lot of housing. We’re seeing a lot, but not enough affordable housing,” Bokelmann said.
Many people had suggestions about parks and recreation, said Claudia Hicks, facilities recreation coordinator for the city.
“We’re hearing a lot about trails.” People wanted more trails, more signage on them, and more maps and information about where trails are.
Skophammer said the city also was interested in what people like about the community, saying focusing only on what people want may lead to neglecting building on the qualities already in place.
A board asking what people liked was filled with written notes: “A college town, parks, the art focus downtown, amenities without congestion, trails and parks and being a big/little city.”