Project to formalize community core values and establish a foundation for future planning efforts

information released

Lake Chelan Vision Project is the first large-scale effort of its kind in the valley since 2006

Earlier this week, the City of Chelan announced the launch of the Lake Chelan Vision Project, a community-driven outreach and visioning initiative designed to identify and memorialize core community values, and lay the foundation for the Lake Chelan Valley’s desired future. The project will include outreach to residents in an area stretching from Twenty-Five Mile Creek to South Shore to Chelan to Union Valley to Manson.

As part of the launch, a community survey is online.

The Lake Chelan Vision Project will announce the dates and locations of seven listening sessions soon.

The project will extend into the fall months, culminating with a Community Summit in which residents will be able to offer feedback about the initial findings. This is the first valley-wide community visioning work in the Lake Chelan Valley since 2006.

“The Lake Chelan Valley will continue to grow. We must take bold actions now to address the challenges as well as opportunities we are facing if we want to preserve the qualities of living in a small rural community,” said Chelan Mayor Erin McCardle. “This is the beginning of a larger effort that will identify strategies and actions for the future based on feedback from all facets of our community.”

Our Valley Our Future (OVOF) has been retained to conduct outreach and visioning activities, collect and analyze input from community members, and draft an initial set of core community values. To gather feedback from residents, OVOF will be interviewing community leaders and stakeholders, conducting the bilingual community survey, and holding several listening sessions for various groups.

Residents will be asked about what they value most about living in the Lake Chelan Valley, changes they observe occurring, challenges facing the community, and ways to improve the quality of life for all.

“The next several years are a critical time to position our community for the future,” McCardle said. “This work is essential to ensure the Lake Chelan Valley remains a great place to live for generations to come and that we are doing our best to preserve the historical roots of our community. I’m reminded of what Dr. Jonas Salk said, ‘The most important question we must ask ourselves is: Are we being good ancestors?’”

A project management team has been appointed to oversee the initiative and ensure the integrity and validity of project outcomes. Team members include McCardle, John Ajax, Lynette Grandy, Terry Sanders, Shane Collins, Aimee Sheridan, Laura Rivera, Stacy Willoughby, and Steve Maher.

To date, 20 local organizations are assisting the project. They include (in alphabetical order):

  • Chelan Fire and Rescue
  • Chelan Pride
  • Chelan Valley Hope
  • Chelan Valley Housing Trust
  • City of Chelan
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Historic Downtown Chelan Association
  • Lake Chelan Arts Council
  • Lake Chelan Chamber of Commerce
  • Lake Chelan Community Center
  • Lake Chelan Food Bank
  • Lake Chelan Lions Club
  • Lake Chelan School District
  • Lake Chelan Thrive
  • Lake Chelan Wine Alliance
  • Manson Chamber of Commerce
  • Manson School District
  • NCW Libraries Chelan
  • NCW Libraries Manson
  • Rotary Club of Chelan

OVOF is designing the outreach and visioning to be highly inclusive. The survey and outreach materials are being offered in English and Spanish. Each listening session will be facilitated for a specific demographic group, and interpreters will be present.

Without identifying core values that are inclusive of everyone in the community, it is difficult to take the bold steps necessary to plan and preserve for the future. Engaging residents to participate in such work has been shown to lead to greater community cohesion, connectiveness, and inclusion. The City of Chelan sees this outreach and visioning work as an important investment in community building.

“The Lake Chelan Vision Project is providing all lower-lake residents with opportunities to come together, to be heard, to frame our community’s values and needs, and to articulate the future direction for the Lake Chelan Valley,” McCardle said. “Input from community members will enable us to use clearly articulated community core values to make bold and unique opportunities to preserve, protect and thoughtfully manage future growth in the Valley.”

For more information, please visit https://ourvalleyourfuture.org/lake-chelan-vision-project/.

OVOF is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that strives to bring residents and organizations together to plan for a better future. OVOF conducts community outreach, visioning, and planning work, and guides the development of a community-generated, regional Action Plan every five years. This is the first time OVOF has assisted an individual community in NCW with outreach and visioning.

The City of Chelan is a small lakeside community located at the base of the longest and deepest lake in Washington state. Nestled by hillsides of grape vines and orchard trees, the 4,400 residents and over 600,000 visitors a year enjoy the rural setting that boasts plentiful outdoor recreation opportunities, a rich food and wine experience, a quaint historical downtown filled with boutique shops, and robust critical services.

Photo courtesy of Jerry Isenhart