Yucca Valley’s Livability survey is the Town’s effort to guide and direct the future of the Town through an updated Strategic Plan and the Town’s next two-year budget cycle. The comprehensive survey offered much information that the Town Council is now exploring. This article will give you a brief overview of some of the items in the survey and how the Town is exploring its options. With statistics from 453 interviews, the Town Council is now engaged in an in-depth discussion on what is most important to residents for the future of Yucca Valley.
On the survey, Yucca Valley residents have given high marks to Town staff. At least 85% of respondents expressed their appreciation for the accessibility, professionalism, and helpfulness of Town employees. The survey identified several top-performing services, including fire protection, emergency services, special community events, parks and recreation facilities, and police services. The survey revealed that 67.3% of respondents reported being satisfied with the Town’s efforts to provide municipal services. The survey also indicated residents were increasingly satisfied with how the Town operates.
At the October 17 Town Council meeting, the Council held an in-depth discussion around crucial community initiatives, guided by the insights from the Community Livability survey. Priorities identified were maintaining and repairing infrastructure, strengthening law enforcement, attracting commercial businesses, improving the Town’s appearance, and partnering with property owners for revitalization. The discussion emphasized the importance of increasing special community events, developing action and strategic plans for the future, prioritizing fiscal stability, and crafting a career path strategy to encourage local youth to grow and develop within the community.
It’s important to note that this survey took place against the backdrop of the COVID-19 pandemic, which had significant economic and social impacts. Challenges included high unemployment, economic uncertainty, labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, and inflationary trends.
Effective communication emerged as a key theme from the survey. Clear and timely communication through newsletters, press releases, social media, and the Town’s website is crucial in understanding community concerns, perceptions, and priorities and conveying and discussing future action.
Finally, preserving the unique features of Yucca Valley remains another priority for residents. Approximately 15% of respondents were unsure or unable to specify aspects they’d like to keep, except for environmental conservation, maintaining the small-town atmosphere, supporting small businesses, recreational facilities, and community activities. Maintenance of dirt roads was a significant issue.
At last night’s Yucca Valley Council meeting, they discussed the Strategic Planning Ideas and Initiatives and provided input for the 2024-26 Strategic Plan. The following steps are to affirm the prioritization of strategies in November and December, develop and update strategies and action plans in December, adopt the Town’s Strategic Plan in February, and plan the budget in May 2024.
