On Saturday, February 1, 2025, City Council met for their annual Strategic Visioning Retreat with a third-party facilitator, Patrick Ibarra of the Mejorando Group, alongside the City Manager’s Office, City Attorney, and department directors. Councilmembers were invited to share their desired legacy for their time on Council, existing strategic priority milestones were reviewed in addition to exploring additional milestones or action items.

Four new milestones were discussed (denoted below with an asterisk*) and several action items that support the strategic priorities were discussed, which are outlined below.

Through the FY26 budget development process, we will continue to organize the budget and supplemental requests by Strategic Priority, further aligning our operations with the Council-adopted priorities and connect the dots between our goals, objectives and tasks for our departments, divisions, and individual employees.

Strategic Priority Updates

As part of the conversation during the retreat, a different perspective emerged in context of viewing the Strategic Priorities in relation to the service delivery of the City of Pearland – the how, the what, and the why. These distinctions are important in considering that many of the things that we provide as a City fall under more than one priority in addition to their contributions to making Pearland “The Community of Choice”, which was the official tag line adopted after the conclusion of the 2021 City Council Retreat. 

“How” we deliver the services are realized through the foundational strategic priorities of Resilient Finances and Trusted Government. “What” we deliver can be seen through the Safe Community, Strong Economy, Sustainable Infrastructure, and Connected Community strategic priorities. These all fall under the “Why”, which is the overarching theme of the Strategic Priorities – the reasoning behind the services we deliver, to intentionally create The Community of Choice.

Organized below by Strategic Priority, the updated milestones underneath are inclusive of the recommended changes discussed at the recent Strategic Visioning Retreat.

Strategic Priority Updates

1. Trusted Government: Delivering transparent, high-quality, and accessible city services by developing cutting edge solutions, engaging with the community, and continuously improving our capabilities.
   1. Interconnected historical data.
   2. Proactive, accessible communication that is intentional and consistent – related to decisions and initiatives.
   3. Provide quarterly reports to the Audit Committee on progress on internal control reviews*.
2. Strong Economy: Developing and investing in an attractive community that allows talent, entrepreneurs, and business to thrive for generations to come by supporting stable, steady growth, and unending opportunities.
   1. Attract new investments from businesses, driving increased sales and property tax.
   2. Driving future growth through redevelopment and reinvestment in older areas of community.
   3. Engaging employers and education partners on workforce issues, increasing the number of residents who work in Pearland.
   4. Continue work with governmental partners to secure state and federal funding. Examples include grants, including the community development block grant (CDBG) and Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP), which drive growth from neighboring communities by developing the North/South corridors.
   5. Continue to focus on the priorities outlined in the Comprehensive Plan and the Pearland Prosperity Plan.
   6. Continue the process to update the Unified Development Code*.
   7. Continue to nurture sports tourism initiatives including tournament recruitment, tournament servicing, and sports facility improvements*.
3. Safe Community: Making Pearland a welcoming place by ensuring a safe environment and providing efficient and effective Public Safety services for residents, businesses, and visitors.
   1. Fire
      1. Develop staff/equipment plans.
      2. Large apparatus replacement.
      3. Evaluation of the effectiveness of coverage.
   2. Police
      1. Development of the gun range/driving track.
      2. Expansion of the automated license plate reader (ALPR) flock cameras.
   3. Emergency Management
      1. Continuation of the Emergency Supply Warehouse project.
      2. Continuation of training/drills.
      3. Evaluate and consider Incident Management Team (IMT) certification pay implementation.
      4. Continue coordinated community planning for disaster preparedness and recovery through the Pearland Recovery Committee.
4. Sustainable Infrastructure: Building quality of life on a well-planned and maintained foundation of essential water, transportation, and flooding infrastructure, appealing amenities, and long-term value.
   A)Policies and programs to manage each of the areas below, including schedules.
   B)The financial program behind each of the areas below to support implementation.
   1. Streets & Sidewalks
      1. 2023 bond program update
      2. Long term neighborhood revitalization program
   2. Water/sewer
   3. Motor pool
   4. Facilities
   5. Information Technology
   6. Drainage
      1. Complete 2023 bond projects as outlined in the proposed schedule.
      2. Evaluation of the drainage maintenance team after two complete years of maintenance.
5. Resilient Finances: Providing long-term community value through trusted stewardship and responsible financial management.
   1. Implement recommended changes in staffing and support current positions.
   2. Continue development of the Internal Service Fund policies.
   3. Develop mid-range (3-5 years) financial planning.
6. Connected Community: Fostering a sense of belonging and encouraging opportunities to connect through multifaceted events, services, amenities, and gathering spaces.
   1. Implementation of projects from the 2023 Bond Program:
      1. Hickory Slough Sportsplex Phase II
      2. Independence Park Phase II
   2. Continue the Train Depot Renovation, Phase II.
   3. Completion of the Cultural Arts Master Plan.
      1.  Explore development of annual regional event/evaluate current special events held in Pearland.
   4. Connecting with the Community - Implementation of organization-wide Customer Experience Management framework (formerly known as 311 Call Center).
   5. Update the Parks, Recreation, Open Spaces & Trails Master Plan*.

Council adopted the updated strategic priorities and milestones during the March 10th regular meeting.