Strategic Planning Process
Strategic Planning Process
The goal of the City of Asheville’s 2027 - 2032 Strategic Plan is to align operational and recovery activities over the next five years by clearly defining values, mission, vision and goals for the organization. This process will produce a framework for applying the City’s limited resources to strategically address our community’s needs. The UNC School of Government is facilitating this work, with a funding award from the Community Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery (CDBG-DR) planning program.
Happening Now
The City of Asheville is undergoing a year-long process to develop its 5-year Strategic Plan. This is a collaborative process that requires input from Council, the community and staff in order to be successful.
Our team from the UNC School of Government is currently analyzing input gathered from City Council and staff in October 2026, alongside City plans and recovery priorities, to draft a mission, vision and values framework that will guide the rest of the planning process. This framework will be presented for Council feedback at a follow-up retreat, scheduled for January 2027 (exact date TBD). The community will be asked to provide input on the draft framework in February 2027. Subscribe to this project and receive email updates when engagement opportunities are announced.
Opportunities for Community Involvement
The City of Asheville is committed to a transparent, inclusive planning process. Throughout the upcoming public engagement period, community members will have several ways to get involved, including:
- Viewing Council retreats held on October 29, 2026 and in January 2027 (date TBD)
- Attending engagement opportunities that will be planned in early 2027 to learn more about the proposed strategic plan framework and share your feedback on the draft plan
- Responding to the community survey scheduled for February 2027 about the draft strategic plan framework
- Viewing or attending the City Council meeting in March 2027 when the framework will be considered for adoption
- Providing feedback on how the City should measure success of the strategic plan and progress toward goals during neighborhood and community meetings tentatively planned for spring 2027
- Subscribing to receive project updates on this page
Why This Matters
The 2027 - 2032 Strategic Plan is important because it outlines what we will focus on for the next five years. It is crucial that we use a strategic plan to guide our work and the use of limited resources as we continue recovering from Helene. This impacts everyone who depends on services, infrastructure, programs and funding from the City, so it’s important that we hear from the community, especially those who are most impacted. We value your input but we also respect your time. We’re drawing on community engagement data from adopted plans and projects to help prioritize what we bring to the community for feedback.
Next Milestone
In November 2026, the data and feedback from the Council Retreat will be synthesized to further refine the draft mission, vision and values statements. This will guide Council and community conversations during the 2027 engagement period, scheduled for January-February.
Background
The preparation phase of this project occurred in September 2026, consisting of pre-project surveys shared with City Council and City staff for completion. Those responses are the preliminary data facilitators from the UNC School of Government will use to kick off the process.
Past Updates
- October 29, 2026 City Council Strategic Planning Retreat #1 [YouTube Recording]
- June 23, 2026 Presentation to City Council Worksession on Policy, Finance and Infrastructure [PFI Presentation]
- June 23, 2026 Presentation to People & Environment Recovery Board [PERB Presentation] [Info Sheet]
Frequently Asked Questions
A strategic plan provides a clear framework for the prioritization of City operations and programs over the next five years.
The strategic plan will define community and organizational values, create a vision for the organization, provide a roadmap for City operations, and become a tool for communicating progress toward shared goals.
The City will draw on existing City plans and previous public engagement efforts to inform us as we engage with the community.
Visit the timeline on this page to see the planned Council and Community engagement opportunities.