The Richland County Health Department, in collaboration with the City/County Planning Board and other local agencies, has undertaken a process to assess conditions in Richland County that impact quality of life and potential for economic growth. This resulted in the development of a Community Strategic Plan (CSP) which is reviewed and updated at the "State of the Community" County-Wide Conference.

To help achieve the goals and vision laid out in the CSP, the Health Department and other local government agencies and non-profits hosted AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers who helped the community form action groups around the focus areas of:

• Housing - Meets the 1st Wednesday @3:30pm, Nutter Building, for more information contact Marcy Hamburg
• Physical Activity - Meets the 1st Wednesday @Noon, Health Dept., for more information contact Justin Nuveman
• Public Safety - For meeting information contact Melissa Larson
• Natural Resources - For meeting information contact Ellen Forde
• Life-long Learning - For meeting information contact Renee Goss

A partnership was also formed with the existing Partnership for Promise coalition to ensure that issues affecting Youth Opportunities were addressed.

Currently, community leaders including elected officials and representatives from key agencies such as the Conservation District, local schools, and the action groups are meeting as a Steering Committee to help guide the future evolution of the CSP and evaluate the effectiveness of the work done thus far.

YOU CAN GET INVOLVED BY:

• Reviewing the Community Strategic Plan and offering your input
• Attending a Steering Committee meeting (Meetings are held on the 2nd Tuesday of each month at 3:30pm in the Health Department. They are open to the public and governed by our Charter. Approved minutes from previous meetings are available to the public by calling 433-2207 or e-mailing Rebecca Hayes
• Attending the "State of the Community" County-Wide Conference (January 20th and 21st, 2011)
• Joining an Action Group in the areas of Housing, Physical Activity, Public Safety, Natural Resources, Life-long Learning or Youth Opportunities. To be added to the mailing list for an action group, please e-mail Rebecca Hayes.

In 2006, the Richland County Health Department, in partnership with the City/County Planning Board, AmeriCorps*VISTA volunteers and other local agencies, conducted a comprehensive multi-part survey of quality of life issues in Richland County. An overview of the results are available in three parts: one, two, three. The files are large (~85MB in total), and you will need Adobe Reader to open them.