Imagine 2045 - Share your Vision. Shape our City

In 2020, the City of U.P. will celebrate its 25th anniversary since its official incorporation in 1995.

So what projects do you think we should tackle over the next 25 years? What do you think our priorities should be? Imagine 2045 is a community effort to determine what we want our community to look like by 2045.

When the City of University Place was incorporated 25 years ago, community members engaged in a robust visioning process that identified our collective priorities and community values. That information became the basis of our Comprehensive Plan, which has been the guiding force behind all of U.P.’s  governing efforts—from budgeting to planning to public services.  

As we approach the milestone of entering our second 25 years, it makes sense to re-examine our vision for the City of U.P. We need to look back on what has changed and been accomplished in the last quarter century and use that information to shape our efforts through 2045.

You will! And your neighbors. And local businesses. The goal is to get input from all stakeholders. Everyone’s input matters, because we want a broad range of perspectives on a number of critical issues, including:

• Economic Development
• Zoning and Land Use
• Parks
• Public safety
• Transportation
  
  
  

City of U.P. staff, City Council Members and Commissioners will actively seek input from members of the community during popular events such as Duck Daze, National Night Out and the annual Christmas Tree Lighting.

Residents and stakeholders will also be encouraged to enroll in FlashVote, which will provide them with the opportunity to answer brief, periodic surveys and weigh-in on key topics.

This information will then be reviewed and organized into a draft vision statement for the City of University Place. This community vision will then be used to help shape the City’s Comprehensive Plan, the document the City Council and Commissioners will use as the roadmap for all of the City’s efforts through 2045.

Imagine 2045 will officially launch during Duck Daze 2019 when City Council Members, Commissioners and staff will be asking the public: What is your vision of U.P. in 2045?

Stakeholders will be given additional opportunities to share their thoughts over the next 12 months. Then in June 2020, the information collected will be reviewed and analyzed to create a draft vision statement. That draft statement will be presented to the public during the City’s 25th Anniversary Celebration in August 2020.

There will be opportunities for public comment and revision to the document before the final vision statement is unveiled in December 2020 during the annual Christmas Tree Lighting festivities.

Residents are encouraged to visit a special “Community Gallery” in the Civic Building to remember where U.P. was in 1995 and what it looks like today. This trip down memory lane reminds us that thoughtful planning can make a community’s vision become its reality.