Thank you everyone for being here.

This is a very important session that we've been having.

Strategic workshop.

Thanks, Kendra, for again for again joining us and be here to help navigate us through this process.

Let's make the most of it.

And let the work we do today manifest us next year and far into the future.

So take a minute to grab something over here that got snacks, beverages, and all.

And with that, Kendall, if you want to open up and we'll we'll move forward.

Sounds good to me.

We'll make this as informal as possible.

Help yourself with the food and water and the restroom is right there if you need that, no worries.

I think you guys have seen me before.

Lee and I met for the first time today.

And so uh I appreciate the opportunity to come and to kind of facilitate this.

Honestly, that's what I am as a facilitator.

I'm going to try to get out of the way while you develop the values of the city.

We're going to take a look at the mission and the vision.

Um we'll take a look at your strategic plan as we move forward.

Um I thought I would start with um my background because some of you don't know my background.

Um I grew up in Mulro, Oklahoma.

You can thank me later for that.

Um Fort Smith is kind of like home to me.

I mean, if you grew up in Mulro, Oklahoma, if you did anything, you came to Fort Smith.

You came here to skate, that's what I did when I was a kid, or see movies or things like that.

So Fort Smith is kind of home to me.

Uh I'm a mechanical engineer by trade.

You may go, well, why in the world are you leading a strategic planning?

Well, uh, it it's been an interesting career path for me.

Uh I was an engineering manager at Ream for about a dozen years.

I left there and went into the ministry full-time.

I was an executive pastor here in Fort Smith for 20 years.

Uh then I moved to Ozark.

Technically live in Denning, Arkansas, but no one knows where Denning, Arkansas is.

Uh it's a suburb of Altus, uh, and so there's like 207 of us.

It's a suburb of Altas.

That's the way I look at it.

Uh so I pastor a church in Ozark.

Um, but I've been at the University of Arkansas, Fort Smith now for uh about seven years full-time, about 10 years as a faculty member, adjunct faculty member.

Love what I do.

Um I started teaching uh leadership and management, um, got my degree in organizational leadership, and from that I learned how to lead a strategic planning sessions.

We do a lot of this for businesses and industry here in town.

Um we've even been to um a university in Missouri to do the exact same thing for them.

So um love what I do.

I need to give you my uh proprietary statement that you can't see because the sun is on the screen.

All content on this slide and in this presentation is the intellectual property members of our sophomore smith, reproduction distribution, or presentation of this material whole or in part without written incentive UAFS.

Thank goodness we got that out there.

All right, here we go.

Um most of you are really familiar with what we do at the Center for Economic Development.

We're located down at the Bakery District.

Um we now we in the past we had three centers that were a part of the uh the bakery district center for economic development.

We have the family enterprise center that is focused on helping family-owned businesses uh start and strengthen.

We have peer groups and quarterly breakfasts and things of that nature to really focus on helping family-owned businesses.

Uh, we recently uh received an endowment uh to rename that the Jim Walcott Family Enterprise Center.

Jim was uh president, CEO of Wells and Williams Index for a number of years, was really committed to the Family Enterprise Center.

So we're really thankful for that.

Uh that'll help us sustain that for a long time.

Um we also have the Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center.

Uh we recently got a new director, uh Ty Barrett is uh came from Sparrow State Bank.

He owns Spiro Estate Bank, uh sold the bank, and he and his wife decided to uh retire.

Uh he's a real young guy to retire, and uh he runs our ASV T BC uh full of acronyms, sorry.

Um and uh he has been with us for five months.

He has already helped start six businesses and in fusion at 1.7 million of capital.

So it's fantastic.

I mean he's already just doing a great job.

Our Center for Business and Professional Development has been around uh right at uh 31 years now.

The Center for Business and Professional Development was designed to help people progress through their uh career.

We do industrial and technology training, so everything from industrial electricity to robotic automation.

We just received a grant from the Office of Skills Development for $4 million and one from the Arkansas Department of Higher Education for $1.7 million to expand our facility.

So we are renovating our old automotive lab into a workforce development center that we say we are.

It will be very complimentary to what we have at Peak.

So we're super excited about that.

And then most recently we just started well, yesterday was a month, a new Center for Nonprofits.

We received a $7.5 million gift to start the Center for Nonprofits.

So everything that happens with the Center for Nonprofits is going to be funded by our endowment.

Now we've not received the total amount yet, but we've received enough for us to get started and to create the center.

So we're super excited about being able to invest in our local nonprofits.

We already, and Jerry participates with our River Valley nonprofits.

We are already investing a ton of work into nonprofits, but this will help us be able to do that much better and stronger.

Okay.

So here's our thought process for the day.

It's kind of our agenda for the day.

We're going to start with values.

We're going to work through values that serve our community.

I'm going to ask you specifically what are the values that the city of Fort Smith has or should have.

That'll be the foundation for everything that we do today.

Then we'll kind of take a look at an environmental scan.

We've called that a SWAT before, but we're going to look at strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats for the city of Fort Smith.

We did this a couple of years ago.

I've got that data with me, but I want to rebuild that because things change rather quickly in municipalities.

Will you share that with us?

Absolutely.

Absolutely.

And then after lunch, we'll kind of do a SWOT review.

We'll take a look at a kind of strategic health check.

What does all of this data tell us?

What are the themes that we're looking for as we move forward?

And then our final thing for the day, the last two things really we need to define what our priorities are.

So we might call that a strategic plan.

We might call that our goals.

We can call it a lot of things, but I'm going to call it priorities.

What are our priorities as we move forward here?

And we'll just kind of put all this together into a roadmap.

Alright, so what is your lens?

I want you as you think through this to think in terms of you are speaking for the citizens.

So as you think through this whole process, try to look, we're all biased.

Try to put your biases aside and think in terms of reflecting the voice of all of the citizens of Fort Smith.

I want you to think specifically about your area, your board, but I also want you to think in terms of the broader Fort Smith area.

What do our citizens really need to see and what do they need us to do?

The thing I want to remind you, and I do this for everyone.

Every time I do a strategic plan, we did our Center for Economic Development Strategic Plan back in June.

And I told my team, this is not a to-do list.

A lot of times we think, oh man, I need to, I just need to do this, and we need to do this.

We need to fix spot holes, and we need to put those things aside and think and think in terms of what are our priorities as a city.

What is it that we need to do?

Not a wish list.

So this is kind of like a GPS.

It's kind of like Apple guys, so it's kind of like Apple Maps.

This is a direction.

This is going to get us headed in the right direction.

This is a map of where we're headed, not necessarily a detailed things of all the things we're going to see.

This is just kind of a direction of where we're going to head.

Here's our guidelines.

I know really well what we did a couple of years ago because I regression occurred before we came.

But I want to start with a blank slate.

That's why you see a white ease, a white notepad on an easel there.

By the way, I don't know what to call that thing.

I I called it big notepads, but I don't really know.

Oh what is it?

Just call fall.

Okay.

Bob.

Sounds good to me.

We'll put all of our values on a white blank slate.

Alright.

We'll start with that.

I don't want to start with anything that we're biased with.

Um there's really not an idea that's too outrageous.

Uh you may, as the time goes on, you may go, uh we're not going to be able to do that.

We're too small to do that.

Well, that's fine, but let's start with a blank slate and put it up there.

Our goal is to generate as many ideas as we can, and then we'll pair those down into what we can actually use.

Um I would tell you this.

I've said it, we're all biased.

Just try to know what your biases are.

Think in terms of what that might look like.

And then stay away from this idea of task-oriented thinking.

All right.

So our values, this is the way we're gonna start here.

Our values.

We are going to look at the core values of the city.

I'm gonna ask you to put those on paper, what they are that can guide our city leadership, and that can serve us as a municipality.

The way this works is if we define our values, we know what it is that we stand for, we know what we believe in, our values from our values, that becomes our foundation.

And then we can understand what our vision and mission is.

Now the city of Port Smith has a vision segment, uh, a mission segment.

We have both of those on the website.

Um we'll take a look at those and we'll ask those hard questions about is this the right mission statement?

Is it really applicable to us today?

Uh, August the twenty-second, two thousand and twenty-five.

Is it dry?

And then from that, once we know what our values are, what we know what our vision and our mission is, that's when we can develop a strategy.

Now, I think the key thing here is when we when we define our strategic priorities and we know what our priorities are.

It's the role of I think of city leadership and you as directors to be sure that we are following those priorities.

We need to review those probably every month when you have the opportunity.

Alright, so blank slate.

Um I want each of you to just write three values on your notepad of what you believe the values of the city of Fort Smith are.

Alright.

They can be what they are, or they can be what you want them to be.

What are the values of the city of Fort Smith?

All right, Devin, we'll start with you.

Uh hardworking community.

Doing all three or gonna do one at a time.

Uh one in time.

You can go next, you want Andre to go next.

Uh yeah, let's do that.

Let's let's go to Andre.

Okay.

Let me get over your bracket.

Okay.

I think that'd be better if they're first people.

Yep, I agree.

Okay.

Kindness.

Quality of life.

I think we value our security.

Pretty safe, folks.

Financial responsibility.

I'm not stealing this, but I truly believe.

Trail books.

Opportunity.

I'm going to see.

We'll go back to that.

Okay.

Alright, Lady.

Compassion.

Innovation.

Representation.

I think we value out our Western Frontier heritage.

Partnerships.

Integrity.

Embracing our history.

I'll hand that for you.

My third one's evolving.

Evolving.

Dedication.

Dedication.

And you manage.

Development.

Mayor third.

Um can't read your own inwriting.

You know, we value out work it.

Oh, okay.

Accountability.

I have hard working feedback over here on this hard work.

Yeah, but it's okay.

Yeah, that's okay.

Yeah.

Yeah, I'm gonna just scratch it out since we got it over there.

That's good.

Well, guess what?

Third one's hard work.

Hard work.

All right, hard working in front of a printer.

And Gabriella, uh everybody needs uh, let's say five voting dots.

Would you uh make that happen, please?

So here's what we're gonna do.

Gabriella, I love a uh administrative assistant is gonna provide you with five voting dots.

And what you're gonna do is you're gonna vote, or you can do this however you want to do it.

If you think let's pick one.

You think security is number one?

If you think security is number one, you can put all five of your voting dots on security if you would like.

Okay.

Or you can spread them out however you would like.

But you get five votes.

The mayor gets five votes.

Just like everybody else.

And you get to vote on whatever you want.

So she's gonna provide you with the dots, and then we'll see how this works.

By the way, there is a we have um a software program where uh you could use your phones to scan a QR code and vote on these things.

And so a couple years ago we talked about, I think Mayor Link you suggested it that we bring the city together in a in a location, like maybe the rentals room at UAFS and ask the city what their thoughts are on these values.

I think that's a really great idea.

We'd be love to host that.

But if we were to do that, we could have the citizens scan a QR code with their phone and then simply vote on each one of these things.

Um makes it anonymous, you can see it in real time.

It's pretty impressive.

Any time now, right?

Anytime.

Five out of the six, right?

Five out of six.

Only five.

Well, you gotta keep one of them.

You gotta keep one of them.

Keep one of them.

Keep your eyes on the one I got.

That's fine.

Security, I'll go, I'll put all my buttons here.

Now these are uh these are some of these.

They can be, or they can be who we think we got.

Yes.

Okay.

Who we think we got.

We think we value.

Yeah.

This is what we think part.

Yeah, you're speaking on behalf of the speaking on behalf of the citizens.

Yeah, you got your one.

Okay, all I've got to do.

We talk about integrating five or either.

We are using five.

We are using five.

Have you had a chance to purification?

Yeah.

I want to just make sure that's that's what we want.

I don't know.

That would be helpful for me.

Yeah, see.

I think we have to set up.

There's power screen.

Yeah, I'll cut it back here.

And for my sixth one.

I'm gonna put it on integrity.

Right.

So much for George.

That's right.

Someone should vote the joke.

Is everyone voted?

Okay, good.

Oh, Jerry.

That's all we're doing.

I'm a rookie of the game, though.

Nobody tells me to go liquor room up the building.

Yeah.

Afternoon.

Afternoon.

Well, our best ideas are back in there.

When you rent this out, do you get involved with her?

Is that 17?

Um they don't run it anymore.

So it's just a private clock.

Oh, are you really?

She's already sure what we're doing.

She knows that.

Why do you do that?

Well, to be a member.

Yeah, that's what's a member should be.

Well, you've got to go sport boards.

We'll review the application.

It's a pretty high bar, right?

It's a high bar.

No, it's clever.

I'll pay attention.

How about that view, huh?

Yeah.

You already make it to the top.

You are already here.

Yeah, we did George with a hot take here last year because it was his 70th.

And then this year he was like a birthday up there again.

So it was special for a big birthday.

Hey Joe.

You came to our last session when we did this to you.

Two years ago.

Yeah.

Learned a lot.

Me too.

That was my first one.

Yeah.

And our organization is head for these.

Yeah, we've been doing this thing.

Okay.

I mean.

Um I'll be fine.

Oh, yeah, no.

Off and very short.

Yeah, but I want to rematch later.

There you go.

Yeah.

I wanted one of those ones broken up so bad.

But I wanted one of those.

I thought one for outdoors behind the church.

Wool balls.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah, I can find that one.

No, he just went this morning.

He's been struggling though all week.

Yeah, he he wears all the way.

So I think the water meetings are hard for him.

Umbility just all that Toby told him he would be for copper pain because I bought it just like a console application.

And then it's a little bit more.

Yeah, just to give him a little stability where you kind of shuffle.

And I'm worried he's gonna fall very simple.

Um but he was like, I don't need a canoe, I need a cane for.

Because they're kind of out of just like a like one stick, but they can get him the one that has like the the wide base, you know, with the bottom that has the four little feet.

Yeah.

Um you is it too bright.

No, I yeah, I got him when he threw it at me.

You know, that's it.

She was hanging on to the water.

It's like a bottle for the cheaper.

Never say I don't want to.

She will she carry she is so unbeautiful because of the on the world.

Yeah.

Because my inbox removed.

She's just she doesn't want to see what holds.

So it's just a big yeah.

But she's just so sweet.

She is.

She is.

I don't know if one of that is like she likes it before she's just bringing so I can still get that still.

I think something or something.

She does.

I mean 78.

78.

She gets around.

I'll tell it.

I'll tell it.

But she uh reliable.

Yeah.

Somewhere.

But that's gonna tell her she's gonna be a little bit more.

Um everything said that I know that's the fun body sunscreen.

Um that got set back.

So do we have a call for 7K?

I don't think it's same.

Yeah, right, right.

So we played that we do that.

Alright, so I hate it now.

So these are the values that we identified in 2023.

Now I don't know that values necessarily change, but what happens is time passes and we begin to think in terms of other things.

So what I'm gonna do is I'm gonna take these values and place them over there.

I'm gonna take the values that you came up with and put them over there, and I'm gonna have you vote again, and we're gonna re-rank all these values.

Maybe now that we think about it, maybe some of these might fall into your category.

Alright.

Uh so Gabriella, can you give them um oh let's not do you've already got one dot, right?

Yeah.

Uh give them, just give them some more dots, and we'll just let them use four this time.

You only need to vote for four, and then we'll re-rank them.

Can we vote in on the old values too?

Yes.

So we're gonna put them side by side, and you're gonna you can integrate your old values into your new values.

So you're voting on all of these.

We did love here that we'll make sure everybody's uh look at uh plus quality of place.

Quality of services.

So equals a year.

I'm gonna I'm gonna make a just a couple of changes right quick.

Simply less uh is this what we want or what we think we have.

So the answer is these are what we value as the CD of Horse Smith.

So this is what we have, but also where we want to be.

Okay.

Alright, so let's say, for example.

We believe we're close to a world-class quality of place, but we're not there yet, but it's really important to us if we value it.

If that's the case, then we would vote for that.

Does it make sense?

Okay.

It's it's it's what we believe are.

But with the world class quality place, quality place with the same.

With a world class quality place quality.

I think they would.

So we'll take this one, and I'll move it to there.

I'll just kind of kind of do this number.

If you may want to change quality of life to be world-class quality of place, but I think that's probably the same.

I put trust and integrity is the same as integrity.

Um I don't see anything that's the same as an environment.

I don't think there's a quality four services that are the same.

Um growth.

Growth, growth.

Well, maybe evolving and growth might be the same.

And then safety I don't see on our day list.

Alright, so what you're gonna do is you're gonna take your dots and you go place them on uh one, two, three, four, four, four.

One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, six, eight.

Is safety and security the same up?

Um I don't know.

I would say so.

I'm thinking of IT, safety up in one security police.

Security, uh I guess when I think security, I'm I don't think it looks like police.

Police fire that you didn't lock your car.

I did lock my car.

Maybe it's not securely than it is.

Well, it's uh I would say security.

My due diligence.

Yeah, doing my diligence.

I would say that security provides safety, and in that regard, I think I see it as one, but yeah.

Could I can I say like I mean going back a step to the quality of life versus quality of place?

I I kind of see them as different things.

Do you mean I think from the way I'm looking at it, quality of life is you know, maybe personal to me in terms of how I'm navigating my time here on earth versus quality of place is where am I spending that time?

You know, is that is the place I'm spending that time reflective of you know I I mean they're related certainly, but I kind of see them as two different things.

Yeah, absolutely.

Place may be something that I'm doing.

Life is I prosper while I live here.

Right.

Right.

Let's combine them as quality.

Sure, sure.

Well, we don't even have to combine them, we can leave them separate to one.

That's your goal.

Quality of place is more of a goal than a value, right?

Like that's what we're working towards.

And the quality of life is what drives me to it.

Yeah, I mean, it's certainly certainly related because you know, good quality of life.

I mean, typically you living in a place that you that's similar.

Let me see what we said about world class quality of the place.

The City Force strives for excellence in all that we do with a particular focus on maintaining a high quality of life for our residents and providing amenities and infrastructure designed to attract visitors and investment in our community.

So it certainly is related, yeah.

Certainly close to the I would say the value, and that is the quality of life.

Probably I agree with Christina on that.

Okay.

And then a place may be a goal.

So do you want to leave world-class quality of place up here?

You want to combine it with quality of life?

Well, I think that definition that certainly encompasses what I was thinking.

I mean, that's certainly related to I was gonna say you can combine them, but we may want to restructure the work.

That's your next step.

So as we get as soon as we figure out what the values are, you're gonna work on the work.

Well, quality of life to me.

Uh would be how well can I enjoy the quality of place?

Do I have the income to enjoy all the great activities that we have?

Um do or what is the food security for my family?

We're gonna have a great place.

But my quality of life may not match.

Just doesn't get there because I'm I'm concerned about electricity, so quality of life would lean closer to me toward uh good paying jobs and that kind of thing.

Which helps create a good quality of life so they can enjoy the quality place we live in.

That makes sense.

What if we just combine them for now just said quality of life and place?

Oh my I think you can't get to that without all the others.

You can't get to that without compassion, without quality core services, without safety.

Anyway, well, I think I mean I think this discussion is answered by the question.

Just thinking of as exactly the same thing, but perhaps a little different.

I think discussion like this is more important.

I'm sure you understand exactly where you're headed.

I think about somebody in bad health.

We might have a great quality of place, but quality of life is so bad we can't enjoy quality of life.

I think there's separate things.

I do think from even from this discussion, I'm hearing that they're two separate things.

I guess the definition would be the quality of would be the key thing here.

If if I if I live in such abject poverty, I can't enjoy maybe some of the things that are going on.

That's very true.

I can't go different from the street.

I can't go to Fernand Island.

I don't know.

Maybe I was paid compared to something like that.

Oh, it's like when I when I was younger, I've lived in Mountain Hall.

And we didn't have the money to go to the lake.

Yeah.

You're not riding out on the lake in a boat.

Right.

So I like quality a lot.

I think that goes more to the whole of the person.

Health.

Finance.

All these different things.

Okay.

Let's vote on uh your four values.

Okay.

Choose for either page that you want to use.

Four dots.

No workshops.

You won't hold them on the hand.

No, thank you.

Do we have your own four dots, Jim?

You keep that power.

Right.

It would be great.

I wonder if it costs something.

They collect a way thing.

Yeah, okay.

Yeah, first.

Yeah.

Yeah.

It'll be uh what do I need?

Oh, it's the museum.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

So I don't use one of those two.

Is this quality core services?

Yeah.

Yeah, water, sewer.

Sorry.

Yeah.

What if they say?

Yeah, I have to do it.

Yeah, how do you think?

Here's the definition of quality core services.

We work to deliver the highest quality services to our residents.

We endeavor to understand the needs of the residents.

That's a lot more anniversary, like we used to go to concerts there a lot before the amp was really getting good shows.

Um yeah.

Yeah.

Um these uh services.

Uh not the last uh is that right?

Yeah, I think we have this.

Yeah, we can do simple math today.

Yeah, simple.

Simple math is more than better.

Any type of different things.

Yeah, so yeah.

So it kind of since the healthy how yes or drawish.

Like it's a user loss on the life.

Let's recount those.

There's also a lot of things.

So I mean just a day.

Are you all going to the ribbon cutting today?

I was thinking about you.

I'm just gonna see where we were.

I also see it as we're gonna have a ribbon cutting when it's when it's actually built, right?

How long is the last you know?

It it may last, depending on how long they've talked about.

You've got your code in the road there, and I'm sure each one of them will say something.

You got the governor's pool view there, she'll say something.

So we'll max one doing a row.

Yeah, we'll make uh I think Bozeman and Rose.

You know, you have them and you'll have somebody from our dive say something.

So you you could look at 45 minutes to an hour.

Well, they do another one.

Well, they'll be doing another one.

You remember what they did when they didn't have the five forty opening is going on.

So they'll probably do something like that.

After their meetings at the Facebook.

So yeah, they'll do something.

Is it on the other side on our side?

They're gonna do it on our side.

So maybe it was the other way around.

I think we'll just soon that's operating.

So they're doing shuts down.

Yeah, yeah, I mean that's kind of uh that discussion's kind of gone there.

Ever since we started talking about that we split this up, well, how that works.

I'm not sure why that discussion.

I guess that's what people worry about.

I just hadn't heard that down here come back up.

I didn't know that was gonna be general.

Of course, I don't see a lot of tension with the county.

Right, and I don't think it's much of a public discussion.

I think it's uh Judge Hopes asked me about it.

I think we're gonna do it.

Probably so far.

So I think some of them I will go uh I'm not sure if we're gonna I'm kinda moving past so that we can kind of get it through the same.

I think that's good.

I know that way.

I think Kevin has who else was.

Alright, here we go.

Let's uh let's resume let's kind of talk about where we are.

Um I am going to give each of you a number.

And it's gonna be real important for you to remember the number.

So do not forget the number because once I give it to you, I will not remember what number I gave you.

All right.

One, two, one, two, one, two, one, and two.

Alright.

All the ones gathered here.

All the twos gather here.

Uh now you're gonna write descriptions for each of these.

And congratulations.

You do not have to write a description for quality core services.

Because you already have that.

Excellent.

So this is done.

We'll just refresh it.

And safety is done.

And let's see what else.

Let's send some text messages.

I think that's a good question.

Alright, we've got to do this.

The ones are going to do these.

And twos are going to do these.

Alright.

So your goal now is to collaborate and write a paragraph that describes quality of life for those of you that are one.

Yep, yeah, sorry.

One quality of life and financial responsibility, a paragraph.

And then two is provide an opportunity, work at the hard working community.

And then we'll wordsmith it.

Almost when you're finished.

Alright.

Just so that you kind of know what we're looking at here.

Here's safety.

This kind of describes what safety looks like.

This is kind of the way you want to write this paragraph.

And you can always break out your phones and look for ways to write this as best you possibly can.

There's going to be a thing that necessarily automatically controls.

What do y'all mean by that?

What do you mean about it?

I think that's a good idea.

We should always be never going to reach point of the hundred percent.

Oh, I would other people.

Yeah, I think you may hug up on the debate.

And so like that the government's not necessarily separate for the common standards.

But can I contribute my desire and why is there a place for me to be able to do that?

What implement policies and what's just trying to really state working when you start to do it.

We need to represent opportunity.

I guess we seek to provide forward.

Are we doing this from our perspective or like that's a good idea?

Oh you know, you're using it.

Okay, but it's definitely send it.

How does it have what is possible?

Or all these are all up to are we defining it?

You are uh basically let me put another one of these up there for you.

Okay, here's some kind of way we want to appraise this.

This is who we are, this is what we do.

Alright.

So you'll notice it says we work to deliver this place we endeavor to be inclusive.

So you kind of want to think in terms of that.

So what are some of that with the city?

In terms of starting out your statement, what is the thing?

Because when I think of opportunity, I think of like one of the things that you would want to do.

An opportunity for first place.

Attract more business here, more jobs.

More people competing for your job you're trying to do.

And sometimes based on just where they want to be.

What can we do to attract more business?

So it's focused on what we're doing.

I'd have like policies.

We seek to provide a path for all sources to capture their full potential.

And achieve the desires that seek to realize.

I like capture the full potential thing.

I like to achieve something, but I don't know if achieving is the thing of opportunity.

But I don't know if I like achieving.

I think that's the first desires.

I don't think value individual goals.

We believe the quality just the life.

The end of the race.

It's a good start.

That's right.

We strive to implement policies to increase the attractiveness of our three to businesses and job creators.

Yeah.

Yeah.

I think that's good.

Um further.

But what do you consider?

Entertainment options.

Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

I think that's just one piece.

I don't think that's the same.

But I don't know, but what can we impact on this one?

We can impact parks, safety, security, well, we can also create entertainment.

We can't we can't be the promoter, but we can give news to have a lot of things.

So in terms of the business and our individual system like that.

I was trying to think of something that's like opportunities.

Opportunity is collective.

Well, it's like what I think is too much.

I'm not necessarily saying we put parking, but we put a whole opportunity the definition that uses make it possible.

We strive for those things with private entities when it's going to do to bring those kind of entertainment private objects.

We seek to provide a path to capture their full potential and we create it where a private industry.

What about achieve your individual the individual goals?

Making possible individual goals.

Okay, like we should like to be able to do that.

Well, achieving rather than having capture the full potential, what can we go to and how can we get them together and say, okay, just cheating or buying just the green by these folks?

And just round it.

Tell us what it's like to build house.

We'll just like to start business here.

Like the proactive nature of what we're doing.

To capture the full potential by achieving the total.

Right.

Sure.

But achieving their individual.

RAND is.

Is that too simple?

I think it's a good place.

Yeah, that's a good place to start the discount thing.

Actually, I have down.

We seek to provide a path for all sources to capture potential by achieving their bills.

So I can go.

Furthermore, we recognize the importance of supporting recreational and cultural energy that make Fort Smith in the context of this important meets of Fort Smith.

Make Fort Smith a destination for new investment.

What if we put recreation entertainment industry?

I mean that's a good idea.

Yes, and existing.

I would really believe most people want to be able to decide.

Most people it starts out.

Yeah, yeah.

I think even if it does not be, you know, by the factory job might be doing something else.

I think I don't want us to go.

Yeah.

So making a contribution.

I mean I go back to the world.

Like workshop to the when I hear those things, I hear what you're saying.

But I think it's not just fine.

A lot of folks.

This community has not like highly those folks here.

But they have not complained and they went to work and they provide ESA words.

We can change our businesses, but provide what makes it work is their grid to say yes.

Or move from this is what we have to do to make it.

I'm here to have my problem.

But I want something more often.

Something that says something that's a business is looking at what is last year.

Okay, I've seen my talk like that.

That doesn't feel so sterile.

You know, I I talked to a Google.

So maybe you can say that we're not afraid of the challenge.

Instead of saying we seek the end time.

Which one you work at.

I feel like sometimes it's like it's like standard.

So with me for system like that's something to talk about a lot.

A lot of these people come from the job.

I get a job.

So I was just persistent.

I didn't know what the other thing is.

And then we're going to have to do that.

So that's what happens, right?

And that's that's good.

Stop showing up in your show.

What do we have when they come back?

What do they what do we have?

Maybe I can do that.

It's very understanding.

Yeah, better reader.

We are so much of it.

And willing to roll up our stocks to do whatever it takes, but in the effort.

It's really five for me to be four more rooms that look like this on on the seventh floor behind the four.

Right.

A lot of them are physically third person.

Don't use them again.

Well, and I didn't know if you're going to do that.

For the community, let's see if we look at the country and that's we have to expand.

I think that's a basic person.

There's nothing exceptionally special, which is a good idea.

I remember towns will build those.

And it's happened to me.

And it's it's it's cost-like those or you know expensive stuff.

But it's just changing.

And it's loud and provide.

I mean, and it's like there is a potential file.

Here you should file from the family.

Go to those.

Yeah.

It's intimate.

Maybe that's the body too.

But uh but it's like you know, it's stuff.

We wouldn't do uh training that you're comfortable.

All right.

No, I have grandma file.

Okay, I have our citizens.

So you're up here to transplant the offset like another version of the work for them.

You can't replicate his support in their family.

That's what she wants to do.

And then they did those.

There's always somewhere else.

Right.

So life.

Military, we can get medical college.

I mean, we're the whole state the last five, six years.

We seem to provide a path for all citizens to capture full potential.

There's a new entity.

Yeah, but it doesn't matter.

That's five percent.

I didn't say 35, some of those 35, but this up the other thing.

That's working.

I don't want to change, leave it alone.

Right.

Right, and I think we all are.

I mean, you said two started.

You didn't I started Facebook was just in the COVID.

Right.

Social media was not.

Yeah, we're just a different way of knowledge we have brought in role.

So financial responsibility.

How about the enforcement?

We are the responsible stewards of tax pay it off.

We'd like to do that.

Transparency, integrity and honesty will provide our financial conduct.

We respect and recognize the importance of citizen-led account.

Well, maybe another reason.

It is where we go we respect it, recognize it for citizens accountability at the outside office to require.

So it would be whatever.

So it was almost like in the citizens.

I heard it first time I was thinking citizen let out.

Yeah, well, we were talking about quality place.

Um not particularly community.

But the market recreational focus is like people.

If we were spending because we don't really have a word for it in English, like we agree, it's really like remote for a lot of things we want about it.

There's really not an English equivalent with our culture here, so we have the money to do it.

I mean, I was focused on the network.

What do we do about it?

It's not like we're all like that kills you know we thought you were talking about what made it work was regularly.

You would do whatever it took to get it done.

I think that's what I was looking for.

Something great.

Revenue stabilization.

We put it in.

And it's a little smile, it is really responsible.

What does that mean?

We're going for transparency.

What are those?

We're so far in dead.

So much.

We're so far in dead.

What are you talking about?

So I guess that's the deck.

I agree.

I agree.

But it's not a good thing.

I will say that's the same thing.

If we were that financial analyzer, we should have bobs on the meetings there.

You've got a lot of treatment.

You're the water.

I mean, we had it.

We had a whole lot of people.

We have an expensive computer this year.

Sure.

But that's related to that building.

Capital.

But that was the same.

Are you gonna read it back to the public?

Right.

That's why I always strive to my own.

I just really said that uh the conversation is too much.

I think it's electricity.

Oh yeah, right.

We respect the importance of citizen labor to outside to figure out the arts of the activate system.

Yeah, you want to see.

Yeah, because you write yourself.

That's right.

But like making an effort to get some fashion.

We are doing extremely well.

Sure, outside of public.

We already have done big model.

Yeah.

And they're just gonna be able to do it.

Basketball complex articles are straight source.

Well, they all redicated it.

But you're together, and then they're not gonna be able to do that.

And 50% water off leads or so you know the I think the the thing is all these cities probably have the same problems.

However, what is it that's overheaser that kind of I'm not gonna say draws the eye, but they can say I can live with this because it's that's what I that's kind of where I'm gonna do it.

But I'd like to deflect from this and look at this.

That's what I was always talking about.

We are strong by motion to have part time.

We can't call it full-time jobs.

And then we do institutional.

That's like the older newspaper.

And so I have almost like everyone can play it.

What's the boxer?

Yeah.

And then my own.

And that's how the speed is just like you can't move out of the way.

I'm mad.

George's cousin is the guy that's going to be able to do that.

Well, I don't know.

I bought higher.

Oh, the other people.

Right.

Okay.

Surely in our own.

I don't know if they all tell you that.

Well, you have to do that.

Well, he said he came to the reason.

We're going to tell a story.

It's one word.

I could see my response for that.

In the last sentence which says intentionally the word is important.

And then I actually forgot that we're called bars.

She told me that we're going to be able to remote marketing.

Chris is this guy you need to come back after one.

Or it says accountability.

Hey, do you have to go to dealer guy?

Oh no, you name the lower change.

No, I was like six times.

So that sounds hard.

It was just um wrap it back up to values.

Let's uh spend some time on values and then we'll take a break.

Um we're gonna have to step through these out of your way.

Uh the first one is safety.

This is what we had from a couple of years ago.

We seek to continuously improve the safety of all areas of the city.

We value the safe environment for all residents, employees, and visitors.

Quality core services, we work to deliver the highest quality services to our residents, customers and visitors.

We endeavor to understand the needs of residents, visitors, and treat everyone consistently, fairly and responsively.

Quality lives, this is new today.

We strive to implement policies that increase the attractiveness of our commitment to businesses.

So community.

Wait a minute.

Attractiveness of commitment.

Let's go, babe.

So instead of the word commitment.

Community.

You're committed to business.

Nothing like that.

Alright, we strive to implement policies that increase the attractiveness of our community to businesses and job creation.

Creators.

Man, y'all are killing me here.

We look at the case.

We tied to our network.

You got it.

We strive to implement policies that increase the attractiveness of our community, the businesses and job creators.

Furthermore, we recognize the importance of supporting recreational entertainment.

Is that right?

Recreation.

Oh yes, recreation common entertainment.

Thank you.

Not recreational entertainment.

Recreation, comma, entertainment, commas, and cultural mediums that make forcement the destination for new and continuing investments.

That right?

Yeah.

That's really it.

Yes.

Opportunity.

We seek to provide a path for all citizens to capture their full potential by achieving their individual goals.

I think that's really good.

I think you need that lengthen it a little bit.

Well, we did, but we were thought we thought that's what we would do together.

Alright, so we assume that, but we messed up.

Good plan.

No, you're good.

Financial responsibility.

The city of Fort Smith will be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars.

Transparency, integrity, and honesty will guide our financial conduct.

We respect and recognize the importance of citizen-led accountability as well as outside audits to support our efforts.

Work ethic, hardworking community.

Our citizens are persistent and willing to roll up their slaves.

Sleeves.

And we did say sleeves.

We did say sleeves.

I'm sorry, if you go back to the finances of one of the things.

No, that's a better one.

I gotta face terror.

I gotta make hers, which is uh creates a problem.

We don't need pictures of talking too much about it.

My voice in Texas is not like me at all.

All right, sorry.

Yeah, it's instead of support our efforts, it should say review our efforts.

Because we're talking about accountability subjects about the feel like that.

Yeah, sorry.

No, let's go on.

Uh let's try this again.

Our citizens are persistent and willing to roll up their sleeves to do whatever it takes to put in the effort to provide them with families and contribute to the community.

Alright, so there's your values.

And let's I want to go back and I want to before we wordsmith them.

I want to go back and I want to ask these questions.

Alright.

Do these values match what we believe?

We've always talked about integrity always.

Absolute professional and accessibility for all.

We've always talked about that for the I don't know, three or four years we've done that.

Do these fit?

Do they match what we believe?

That's a really good question to imagine what we believe or does it match what the coal is.

What we are.

Yeah.

Yeah, I would probably go back and go on some of these.

We want to change the verb tense to be the same everywhere.

So in work ethic, we're saying our citizens are.

In other words, we're talking about present tense.

They are present, they're willing to roll up their sleeves to do whatever it takes.

When we talk about financial responsibility, we talk about future.

The city of Fort Smith will be responsible stewards.

I would change that.

City of Smith are or is a responsible steward of taxpayer dollars.

And I would even add if we are talking about something that we still think is not yet achieved.

To me, it's like when I'm correcting my son and say, I'm going to say you are better than this instead of speaking to the negative of it with the opportunity.

I would like to say that we will be responsible.

Even if if we thought whether some chip do, but say that we are.

I'm not willing to press tense.

Yeah, say that we are and uh speak that I think is a force of the.

So we will become that.

Yes, so we will become that.

Okay.

So if we go back and look at each of these, we start with safety.

We seek to continuously improve the safety of all areas of the city.

We value a safe environment for all residents, employees, and visitors.

That's sort of an overall question.

That's sort of a overall question under your experience and the work that you do with the economic development, etc.

I mean, is it not I get the point about present tensing things, but it's our are mission statements and vision statements and things like that.

Aren't they generally written future forwards?

So a vision statement is where we want to be.

A mission statement is who we are and what we do.

Yeah.

I mean, so when we talk about values, this is really we believe this is true of the city of Fort Smith, or or at least we are striving to get there.

One of these says that.

Here's a good one.

All right.

They're not all but quality for service.

We work to deliver the highest quality services to our residents, customers, and visitors.

We endeavor to other words.

We can't say we understand the needs of residents and visitors and treat everyone.

We can't say we but we strive to do that.

We endeavor to do that.

This is who we are.

We we work to deliver the highest quality services available.

We want to understand, we strive, we endeavor, and I think endeavors are the right word to understand the needs of residents.

So do the so that is it fair to say like this one, it seems that the first sentence says what we think we're doing, and the second sentence is what we're trying to do.

Is it fair to try to apply that to all of these?

Well, I mean, perhaps, but but with some of these, I think you know, safety is just this ongoing thing.

You know, those of you that are uh friends of OSHA, it's just an ongoing thing.

You're never completely safe.

You're always trying to improve safety.

We seek to continuously improve the same all areas of the city.

I don't think you can say we are a safe city.

Just simply say we seek to improve the safety of all areas of the city.

One instance of crime is not safe.

That's true.

That's exactly right.

Safer, but it's not safe.

Um I think you're good on safety, if you're good on quality poor services, quality of life.

Um we strive to implement policies that increase the attractiveness of our community, the businesses and job creation.

Now, while while that says we strive, I I would argue that's what you do.

I mean, your goal is to implement policy.

You strive to do that.

We recognize the importance of supporting recreation entertainment and cultural amenities.

Good.

Really good.

Should we say something about um fostering job creation or something like that?

We're not really when we talk about quality of life, we're not really talking about the economic opportunity piece of it.

I mean, the the first sentence, I think that's where we were going with is is uh job creator.

Business and job creator.

So the the goal is more competition for my services.

Me, Neil Martin, the IT work, or Andre good uh uh transportation logistics, you know.

So the the goal there, and if we want to blow that out a little bit, we can, but the goal there is in my mind was to add additional jobs, uh uh opportunities for my services to be in competition.

No, I get that.

I just sometimes there's a bit of a disconnect between the people at the top and the people doing the work.

If we were to let people know, I mean, we see we're we're creating these policies, um, you know, because to help the job creators because that's going to create jobs.

I don't know if sometimes people connect that to them personally.

Okay, then what what would you add to that?

I'm gonna I'm I'm good with it.

I want to make it as clear, I'd like to make that as clear as possible.

Yeah, and if it's not then let's clean it up.

I think one thing I don't like about it is that it doesn't say citizens.

Or that it doesn't, it looks like um I'm that statement.

I read it.

Maybe we're catering to businesses and job creators, not the citizens.

Not the citizens, and I'm good at that, but I don't know.

The language was good when I first read it, and I thought that's good, but then I thought what am I not?

I think it's good.

It uh it could say fine as is, but if we just added a little tweak about um because sometimes people think well, all we're doing is pandering to CEOs or things like that.

We're we're trickling it down to where everybody feels invested now.

So attractive is our community to business and job creators and to promote economic opportunity for all of them.

For citizen, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

I think that would be good.

If you have any issues with that, we wrote it.

No.

I that's that's what I that's what I would like people to see is ultimately the goal is citizen.

Citizency.

Raising my income level.

Yes.

That's the goal.

That's why I was sitting here thinking, but it seems like this is a B a break two cents or line for a business to come here.

Right.

But I'm thinking quality life.

I'm thinking quality of my life.

Right.

And I think I think in my brain, that's where I was going.

I was just like thinking, okay, well, we create jobs, but really the creating jobs are for the people.

Yes.

I mean the businesses will get benefit from it, too.

But otherwise it's a quality of investment for businesses.

Right.

Right.

And not quality of my life.

That's good.

I'm like, I want I want your lives to see.

So how do you how do you want to word this for sentence?

I think it's it's something that to encourage economic opportunity for all, or we can refine that.

That was just what possible.

Yeah, just adding to the end of that.

I think that's a good start.

That's a good idea.

Just adding to the end of that sentence.

Yeah.

Yeah.

To create.

Oh, sorry, but encourage.

To encourage economic opportunity for all.

Or maybe more forceful than encourage.

I just want it to be refined a little bit, like it doesn't look like we're just doing things that benefit just the people at the top.

Right, that's good.

Or to create economic opportunity for create economic opportunity.

What about just say something I'm just saying?

An example improved.

Attractiveness of our community to businesses and job creation for our citizens.

I like what Jeff said replacing courage with improved.

Well, ultimately, this is not for government to fix the problems, like to create jobs, but it's for us to incentivize an environment where it also so that people can have economic opportunity.

That's really good.

What about or to allow economic opportunity for all?

Do we like that better than improve?

Or do you like it?

I like improved.

And I think that starts to involve what I was trying to strive after.

I can this is great for businesses, but now you're going to be able to do that.

No, and anyone here, everybody's a thought.

Instead of for all at the end of that sentence, could you put between improve and economic, could you say to improve broad based economic opportunity?

Um I mean sure, what uh what do you what do you mean by that?

Well for all is broad base.

You know, yeah.

But it you just for all is very definitive like so you I mean against the extent that anybody's ever gonna read these and waved in our face and post count before it.

I mean, would you want somebody who's struggling you know who feels like if we've had some growth and then you know, well, you said for all.

It didn't trickle down to me by golly.

I mean I'd buy with it as it is.

I just broad base is a little more a little slightly conveys the same thing in a slightly more generalized way.

But everybody likes for all, that's if again we're we're angry the angle's general public and the general public is all just all to think about me.

Sure.

You know, basis, you know, it could be uh uh all big you know relevant here, yeah.

Yeah.

This is not big thing for uh using it.

Not that we can necessarily do it.

Well, because I mean honest to goodness, you could talk for and I think the seven of us would be more than capable of having a talking all day about what that means, what what pol the word policies means to each of us individually, probably I suspect certainly means a lot of a lot of different different things.

So I mean we have this, I think it's good.

I just think we need to remember as we move forward in the trying to live this from the page onto the stage that we have grace and patience with one another when ideas come forward that because I think there's a lot of different things that can fit under that umbrella.

I just wanted it to be a little more specific so it doesn't look like we're just trying to improve a company's bottom line for shareholders.

Like even like with train, you did such a good job of relating that to this many jobs.

It's $25 an hour where people can really see, oh, this benefits me, even if I'm not a shareholder or C suite.

Sure.

I think that looks good.

I think y'all did a really good job on that.

City Fort Smith will be responsible stewards of the taxpayer dollars.

Transparency, integrity, and honestly will guide our financial conduct.

We respect and recognize the importance of citizen life accountability as well as outside office to review our home.

I like the one we said a little bit ago about present intensity, so you can say the city for Smith is a responsible steward of tax media value.

And and I think what's what's good here is the focus on citizen.

Not just in this but in all of them.

The focus on the citizen.

What do we mean by citizen accountability though?

I mean, I like it.

But what does it look like?

People come to our meetings talking to us about it, people serving on like the taxpayers.

Think about all the committees we have.

It's parts commission, all have finance responsibility of some sort.

But it's it's done correctly and openly and honestly, and there's no shortage of financial data that people have access to and budgets and line by line and everything else.

And obviously it's the it's the folks, it's the citizens that use those things and review those things.

That if there was some accountability from a citizen, if a citizen reviewed a budget document and reached out to us and said, hey, you know, you guys are going to get ready for this meeting, or you're talking about this subject, and you know, I saw something in the in the budget for this department that you know that I don't understand that, or it doesn't make sense to me, or you guys should have look at this different way.

I think we would all be open to that feedback if someone was using our transparent you know, financial budget document process to make a suggestion or say something to us.

I mean, I I get that now from engineers sometimes who have got projects, they'll call and say, hey, you know, this this doesn't look right, they're not pricing this right or things like that.

I mean, I always appreciate it.

How about opportunity?

We seek to provide a path for all citizens to capture their full potential by achieving their individual goals.

So let's lengthen this.

Let's elaborate just a little bit.

What do you have in mind?

Opportunity.

Well, you guys mentioned that it was at some juncture it was originally a little longer, or there was some there were some extra things that maybe you turned back on, like what were some of the other things you all were kicking around?

Um I think we were just from one of the things we wanted to try to do, which we now that I've read y'all's, it makes me think okay, we can go back and do ours, but I I just wanted someone to read these values, like safety is small, it's pretty straightforward, you know, and I'm thinking I can read that and understand it.

And I wanted the I wanted the everyday citizen to look at this and go, you know, something short and not fluffing into the clouds, but it's like we mean it, you know, kind of thing.

But I think at the same time, I think maybe linked it.

Um so for me, I think we talked about the opportunity was the idea that you would want to be here because here is a great place to go to your full maximum capability without leaving.

Like you you could right here, you could rise up and we raise up our own or come back here.

Or move.

Yes.

And so it's sort of expanding that.

Not only do we have a quality life, you had quality development, and frankly, we want you to be a part of the development that's here.

Not that we build you up to send you out.

Right.

But uh that's my take on that.

How to add words to that.

I think that's my spirit.

Oh, like I'm talking about.

Well, I mean, we talk a lot about how people leave and they don't come back.

So should we touch on something about um creating like j talking about generational opportunity um creating pathways through hard work and persistence?

Um every generation.

I know we can't use the word opportunity in it, but talking about how generations you always want the next generation your kids have more of an opportunity than you had.

I I this is one of one of my what uh what I was thinking of is there's opportunity for me to achieve achieve my goal to grow, to develop, to increase financially, um to raise my family, you know, all those all those things are here, and wanting folks to realize that that's here.

It's uh elsewhere too, but it's here also.

And this isn't a place that we just grow people and send them out.

We're not stepping stones.

We're not a farm, we're not a farm team.

We're not stepping stone here, right?

This is a this is a city this is a permanent city that is growing and needs you to stay here to continue to.

And maybe this maybe the second sentence of this leads into you know the the idea of you know retention, retaining our current citizen base, but also attracting new talent to our community.

I mean, the leaving the first sentence like it is, then expanding it to say we want people to stay here, we want to attract new people here because of the opportunities.

Should we talk about how we want to do it, like creating pathways through policies?

Right.

Well, you know, in in my thought when we talked about you know representation.

That was part of that.

Individuals want to be represented until they have to uh be involved where they aims for their in part of the process.

Yeah, I think we both got different sentences of how create pathways for every citizen.

Here's what our bottom is we are committed to creating a city where everyone has access to learn, grow, and succeed to make our city better.

I just scribbled down.

The city of Fort Smith seeks to be a community filled with a spirit of growth, success, and fulfillment.

Our desire is to nurture and retain talent to make a positive difference for our future.

I like nurture and focus part of it rather than uh this I think the city benefits from that as well, but I like citizen focus.

Readers again, Judge.

Uh City Fort Smith seeks to be a community filled with a spirit of growth, success, and fulfillment.

Period.

Our desire is to nurture, retain, and attract talent to make a positive difference in our future.

What could we blow out to make a positive difference for our future?

Could we make that bigger?

Like bigger point.

No, no, no, just make it make it happen.

Make it more make it here, higher.

Like, not just to make the positive positive contribution, but too much.

I like what you said.

No, I can't.

The only thing the only thing about attracting, I don't know that I'm looking to attract other people here.

I'm looking to create opportunity for the people that already have to be able to do that.

I mean, you can attract other people here because you you are gonna get you're not gonna keep everybody.

You are gonna get some people to leave because we don't have Disney jobs or you gotta see, but I've got I got but I don't know how attracting other people creates opportunity for the people that are already here.

Because if you bring the right person in, maybe that helps somebody else.

I like to think we have a good thing going that people will want to be a part of our good thing.

I mean, I just don't think somebody comes from Minnesota here to make a talent and training on free kids like moving here talent to be a part of the team process.

That just doesn't.

I mean, I'm not saying I don't want new people coming in.

I I just don't I don't know.

Let's put it up there.

Unless we got longer.

I like that.

Looks a little longer too.

I mean we all like I I don't think they're mutually exclusive.

I mean, I don't think cities that you know are thriving and and growing, you know, I don't think that uh necessarily that a like native person in Los Angeles or in Austin feels like there's not something there for them if people move to those communities from elsewhere.

I mean it's a dichotomy, yeah.

You don't have to solve it yet.

And just we want any and I think it's something you can't stop if you do it right anyway.

I mean, if you're if you're a place that's attractive, even if your main focus is on nurturing your talent and not being a farm team and being a homegrown big league club, you know, even in the majors, the teams that are mostly homegrown with their roster construction, if they win a bunch and are doing successful free agents want to go there.

I don't know what farm team means.

Uh like double A, triple A, so you go and you're there for a while, and then you're good enough that you move somewhere else.

You go to the next team at the next level up.

Okay.

So that it that's a basic that's a baseball.

Baseball's such a hard sport to get to the majority.

Like there's multi- there's working ball, there's single A, double A, triple A, and then a sports person.

So you gotta go through those to get there, and the really good ones start work working their way up.

Some of them get the double A and then they're boom, they're gonna they go up to the major.

It's basically like, do you want to be a city that keeps your talent, the talent that has grown up in your community, no matter how you define talent.

Like do you want to be a city that keeps most, if not all of that to the extent possible, living in your community rather than educating, growing up here, and then going, oof, I'm gonna go apply my trade and spend my money and use my expertise elsewhere, or do you want you know you want to be a place to be or a place to be from?

Right?

So if you if you uh but I would also extend that by saying if you do a good job of being a place to be, people in other cities are going to look at you and go, yeah, I'm kind of tired of the way it is in Will Rock, retired of the way it is in you know, Tulsa or wherever.

I think I might move there.

So it's it's and we have had people move in here, like you meant so I mean it's people from Washington State.

Jared I mean people are moving here, it's really interesting.

I'm I'm very interested in those people.

I like why for Smith.

Not in a Live Force Myth, it's uh what caused you to be here.

What was what was the impetus for you to come here?

It's just it's really interesting.

I think you have one more to work on work ethic, hard work and community.

Probably need to figure out what we're gonna call this.

Alright.

Our citizens are assistant, are persistent and willing to roll up their sleeves and do whatever it takes, put in the effort to provide to the families and contribute to the community.

Well, I I had a buddy of mine that that used or a guy who used to work for me that um went and kind of did his own thing.

And he was working for it kind of in the IT world as a consultant, that kind of thing.

He's like, you know, here in Fort Smith, we have people just as good as the Googles and the Facebook.

We did it.

They're smart, they're intelligent.

Just we don't have enough.

There's just more out there.

Like there's more in Silicon Valley.

That's that's what I want to what I'd like to get to here.

It's not just we're persistent, hard working, we can swing a hammer.

It's they're smart.

We got smart people, we have intelligent people, we have um innovative people.

Yeah, you know, and and um talented, but talented, and they're hard working, they're persistent, they're willing, they're willing to roll up their sleeves.

Um I I think I think that I see that.

And for me, this value when we were talking about values of our community, the reason I wrote hard work on my tablet was uh it's the one thing I can think of when I think of Fort Smith.

Who are these people?

And they're hard working.

So there's that sentiment too that I've thought of.

No, I think that's good.

Yeah, I mean, I think those things go together, and my husband works in tech, he's works 10, 12 hours a day sometimes.

And I would say to echo your point, he has said even when he worked at Walmart or these big companies that some of the best developers he's worked with are right here.

Right, right.

And you don't even think about that because we're we've got a history of a manufacturing town, but we have talented people that can compete with anybody uh around the world, not just around the world.

So is it is it titled work ethic, and then is it hard working put down in there?

And is it with you know innovative innovators and uh everyday you know, hardworking Joe's?

Well, I don't I don't know if we need to necessarily differentiate between the two because you could be innovative in any capacity, you know.

Um so uh I'd like to I'd like to they're they are persistent, they are willing, they are innovative, they are intelligent.

I you know, I I think that would be we can add to that.

I don't think if we're talking about we value a work ethic, then really what we're saying is we value someone's contribution to society.

Right?

I mean, should we work that in somehow didn't we already say that in another value?

Or no, we said they're in the community.

So I think when we wrote the uh contribute provide for their families and contribute to the communities, I think there is the sentiment of part of what makes them hard working is I'm doing what it takes to take care of my family, but I do love our community, and I'll do what it takes to do that too.

They give them all.

If you use work and think you can just put that with there by itself, people are thinking talking about the city, you know, the government.

Yeah.

I was trying to put the world community talking about them.

I think about small business.

Well, I think about it.

I think about the line worker on the line for 12 hours a day for three or 20 days straight.

That's what I think about.

So it's out there producing.

I mean, I think both.

I think I'm not sure.

I mean, in my mind, because that's the world I cover.

I was thinking of small business who's also contributing to silent auctions.

They're agreed.

Things like that.

I guess we all have our perspective we're coming from.

I mean, those folks, the small business people.

That'd be the scariest thing in the world.

I mean so maybe you call it hard working instead of work ethic.

You know?

Is it hard working?

I mean, that's right.

That's where you all put hardworking communities the perverse thing.

Because I think of the people working day to day, provide for the families.

They're not afraid to get out there and roll our sleeves up when we all need to be community when we need sandbags or you know, higher, you know, uh take care of storm de re damage for clients.

Yeah.

That's who our community is.

I mean, is it some kind of city of Fort Smith celebrates the hard work, innovation, intelligence, and contributions our citizens make each and every day.

We will do everything we can to highlight and support the life-changing difference they make in our city.

Like the present is the purpose of the value that we want to sort of like state and reflect that like we recognize and celebrate like how awesome the people that live here are.

Like, is that kind of the spirit behind it?

Because I because I think it is, and that's kind of what I sense, and I think that's actually pretty cool and pretty unique.

Like if I was just a person who lived here and I looked and stumbled upon this, like it would make me feel like oh, like they they have a respect and recognition for the caliber of the people that we are.

Um, like the mayor always says, like the fortress person seems with good people.

Just uh the city of Fort Smith celebrates the hard work, innovation, intelligence, and contributions our citizens make each and every day.

Uh we will do everything we can to highlight and support the life-changing difference they make in our city.

You know, something I this is a bit more directly just saying, like the city or the we the community.

What if we throw that up there so you can all read it?

Yeah, I like it.

I think instead of saying we'll do everything we can, maybe let's expand that a little bit and say how our role here will enable that.

Here's the whole JP.

I'll need to send still in between.

So I didn't see a phone or cell phone or I posted it.

Intelligence.

I always I sent some text messages from Andrew's.

I remember West in Trump's office, you know, since the first term.

They caught him, they caught the camera caught him, and he was pulled out his phone, and he did his uh his passcode and it was like one-one with changing difference there.

What you were saying about your best case.

We will do everything we can to highlight and support the lot changing difference they make in our city.

The important thing to reflect and speak to, and again, I just don't I think it's fair if you balance go to most cities, you know, mission value statement kind of page and see like no, like y'all are the secret sauce.

You know, I've just I've loved it for seven years.

The mayor always says, you know, the cities burst up and seems to be good people, and it's true.

All the examples y'all gave, like instead of saying we'll do everything we can, we say we'll foster an environment where we can highlight and support the library.

Or we will highlight and support what we're getting support.

I feel like it could be long.

I mean, because they're saying we will highlight and support the library.

So if you take out do everything we can to, like we highlight and support.

Oh yeah.

Is there any redundancy though?

Because this feels long.

Well, I'd rather be long in praising the systems that shouldn't press the system.

I think where I'm thinking about those in the future.

I would hope we could do something with the blue line, especially when you walk in.

I would love to have these printed out or something that people can see.

Big display.

So when they come in, it's like welcome.

We're hard working and we're financially responsible.

I think that's a great answer.

Heck, even if it's just for us.

Yeah.

But then if you're busy, we're not doing it about it.

And then yeah, they just make it make a big font walk and they can read it.

I thought on this one, the phrase to the life of the community right there seems like words that might be redundant or uh community.

And the third line from the bottom.

I mean, if if we take out the phrase to the life of the community, then it reads contributions our citizens make each and every day.

Yeah.

Yep.

There you go.

That's good.

Yep.

They've got to be more than just words.

They've got to be what we live and what we believe, and especially for me with the financial responsibility that needs to be informing every decision we make.

Or that's why I think banners is going to be important, not a website that nobody sees.

Yeah, we'll have pictures around.

All the pictures can go to hallways for all I care.

I want when you come in, bam, and model.

Yeah, I want it to look like a showcase.

So it's like those jokes.

Is this the right thing?

I like Dash Josh.

That would be something we can see.

I like the idea also of whatever we get put into a short.

I'd like to do that.

In addition to put them on the hardware, we think out of the way we're at the I like hard working community.

I feel like it resonates with an everyday person.

I thought we had like oh, okay, innovation.

Okay, yeah.

Because when you read it, our citizens are persistent and willing to roll.

I mean, that's what hard working can we almost call this importance of the citizen.

You can take out two, because you say provide for their families and contribute to the community.

You can take out contributions.

Because I think City Fortsman celebrates the hard work, innovation, and intelligence our citizens bring to make uh celebrate well wait to say provide for so actually you could say provide for their families instead of contribute the first contribute, say provide the families and make uh it's just you we shouldn't say contribute any contributions or innovation.

I mean if we like that's that's perfect if we didn't improve.

There you go.

All right, the second break, it's 1030 ish late.

Are we agreeing with that?

If you're gonna I think I think we've already studied.

I think we're we're if we leave, we'll have to do that.

Yeah, I don't want to I don't want to miss the swap.

I don't understand, I don't lose the bojo we got going on.

So well, frankly, I also sort of have the epiphany of you're gonna do something with open bridge.

So there will be no shortage of bridge-related get together.

Yeah, yeah.

They gotta get to the other side of the website.

They're probably gonna be a lot of people there.

Yeah, let's take a little break and then we'll uh we'll talk about it.

All right, I guess we have three convenes uh the meeting here.

Uh Dr.

Ross, what's that?

Dr.

Ross.

Yeah, not been promoted.

Thank you very much.

All right.

Do you have the documents?

No.

I feel like Dr.

Ross.

Sorry.

Why do you think that's been as much?

Alright, so what we're gonna do is we're gonna kind of uh review our mission statement.

The good thing about a mission and vision statement is you need to treat them as living documents, but ultimately they really need to be stable.

So the more stable we can make them better off with.

Uh our mission and our vision ought to really our mission and our vision ought to really um be pretty stable as time goes on.

Alright.

So here's our mission statement.

Uh the city of Fort Smith is committed to providing high quality resident focused services for the advancement of a thriving community.

So we're just uh gonna take a look at this.

Do we believe this?

Is this us?

Here's all the questions I really want to ask.

Is it clear?

Alright, so when we talk about clarity, is this mission clear and is it easy to understand?

So let's go back to it.

Let's answer that question.

City of Fort Smith is committed to providing high quality resident focused services or the advancement of a thriving community.

What are we what did we mean by high quality when we have high quality?

I mean, but like, I mean excellent.

Yeah.

What do we do better when we think about that?

What would we think of?

What do we do better than other cities?

Well, what are we applying about the same thing?

I don't think it was a comparison.

I think it was more just like if we're providing you a service, it's gonna be your water's gonna be the highest quality, we're gonna provide your sanitation in a you know timely manner.

Yeah, yeah, part I mean, dependable.

I mean, there without having to necessarily think about it.

I mean, it's not causing issues or part of mine was I don't remember we had a lot going on with policing.

So uh it was the focus on community policing, you know, opposed to just being police angular.

So is it clear and easy to understand?

Purpose.

Does it reflect why we exist?

Does it reflect why we exist?

The city of Warsmith is committed to providing high-quality resident focused services for the advanced sort of thrive.

I mean, what I think it does, but it makes me want to go back to the original question of clarity.

Is that what is that what we're really doing?

Are we really resident focused?

Well, I would I would say it's somewhat aspirational.

I mean, we're that's what we want to do.

Right, right.

Are we doing it?

That's that is a different question.

I think it's a is a question we need to ask.

Um does it reflect why we exist?

Does it I mean what what do we need to be doing as government?

Two of our services.

Essential services to be good.

Yes, services that people can't, I mean, probably inspire.

Right.

So from a relevant standpoint, does it align with our current work and environment?

Is it relevant?

Is it inspirational in other words?

Is it energized and unite staff and stakeholders?

I guess that's where I'm hungry.

That does not energize me.

I read that statement and I go, so does Van Buren.

It is not in our invigorate me at the end of the year.

Right?

I mean, we do more than just provide services.

I mean, we're looking at policies for economic development and growth.

I mean, it's more than just core services.

So is this the cities?

Good question.

Is this the cities?

So look at the board of directors, they should say.

Yeah, so this is the city.

The city of Fort City.

So we put together two years ago.

So look at our vision.

Look at where our vision is.

Our vision, we strive to be a dynamic business, family, and military friendly destination that welcomes people from all over the world.

We will come back to that.

That is that is aspirational.

That's where we're where we want people to see us as, okay.

But our mission is this is who we are.

This is what we do today as a city of Fort Smith.

So is it clear?

Does it have a purpose?

Is it relevant?

Is it inspirational?

Is the scope too broad, too narrow, or is it just right?

I think this reflect what makes us distinct.

It needs to be broad.

I think it's too broad, but I think it should be broad because it's it's the goal.

Well, how would you how would you go back to the statement?

Well, is it a is it a is it a list of some things?

Because like I never thought high quality, and I didn't think police.

I didn't my brain didn't go there, but after you said it fire, I was like, oh, I'm gonna have parks, parks, it's everybody it's every waves.

It's related to the core.

Is there a way to talk about all those things?

What we didn't want to do is make it too small where nobody could grasp it.

Yeah.

Like what we just did with the other ones.

It was trying to be very consort concise so that way you can be it feels very impersonal.

Okay, it lacks energy.

It does lag me.

That's the work.

But we're good.

That's not very much.

How cool can it really be?

I mean, I think it's the government.

But this isn't government.

This is uh community, our employees and partners relate to and supported it.

So this is for the city.

This is for the city of Fort Smith.

So is is that for the city, the people, or is that for the entity known as the city of Fort Smith?

The Jeff Demon is the city.

And a thousand people report it.

Yes.

That's just for that's just for government.

That's just for government right there.

That's right.

So purpose for being here.

What's our purpose?

I think we should talk more about, I mean, not make it too long, but more than just the the core services, like talking about fostering economic growth and infrastructure.

I mean, infrastructure is important.

What do you think of what does a government do?

I mean, it doesn't have to be really long, but I mean we do more than just services.

I feel like we were all real excited about that two years ago.

Now it looks terrible.

It's always good to be.

I think what's hard is I feel like it takes when I read it, I have to ask something, and then it takes explanation.

Yeah, I mean, I I appreciate that it doesn't give you the rasp.

And that's maybe we can rewrite it, but I I glance a little bit at the suggestion that it's confusing or in any way.

No, I don't think it's confusing.

I mean, or that it's hard to grasp what the point that's being made is.

I think it's just kind of the bare minimum.

Could we have maybe one more sentence and flesh it out a little bit?

Is there another way of saying something that says resident focused services?

Maybe we can just those if there was language, you know, keep high quality.

Is community providing high quality, and I like for the advancement of a thriving community.

Yeah.

So the weakness to me is the resident focused services.

But I'm also I remember that discussion we focused on what we wanted the residents of our city to understand that we're focused on that.

And providing those services for them.

But I'm open to options.

I don't have any.

I'm not saying I'm not trying to keep it up saying that I I'm open to any option.

I mean, I struggle that I see the critique, I don't see the option.

I don't I don't know.

I'm not bringing forth a good idea, and I feel that.

So I'm willing to do that.

What do you just think of service?

Do you think like police fire?

Yeah, you know, the core services.

Clean water, fire department, police, parts, I mean like you said.

But don't you see infrastructure part of that?

I I see infrastructure as something separate.

Is the infrastructure statement or is it a mission statement?

I don't want to have strives to be a dynamic business, family, and military-friendly destination that welcomes people from all over the world.

I recall from two years ago when we put this together, we're like, man, I think it was near the end of the day, and we're like, we need a grim area to kind of work on that a little bit, and then we just tapped out.

I think.

What's kind of grammatical about that?

Well, I don't think it's even grammatically wrong.

I just think it can be cleaned up a little bit.

And they're still trying to get two million dollars for their bridge.

And they've got this bridge that's crumbling, and it's heavily used.

And that's something, you know, they have a big truck route through there, and you know, seeing we don't have issues like that.

We have high quality infrastructure here.

That's an asset, that's something we're providing.

I just still think of the I like I I wonder if it's a vision only because it feels still aspirational than the fact that we have a water transmission line that's going to be massive investment.

You know, we have a great Lake Fort Smith.

But the we have a massive project there, and then we're under consent decree.

So I feel like it's aspirational.

I want to write it in too, but I'm like, is it a vision statement addition or is it a mission statement addition?

I would say the fact that we have Lake Fort Smith speaks to infrastructure we have.

What do you think over there on that side of the road?

Well, I'll just do some Googling while we were talking and just like a smattering of cities, like seeing like, okay, from a mission statement point of view, like do you have one?

Because not every city does.

And then if so, like what are some things that you see?

And so I mean the three that I can even find that have them.

Uh Fayetteville said his mission statement is to protect and improve our quality of life by listening to and serving the people with pride and fairness.

Lots of cities under the most of our don't have them.

Uh Austin, Texas, is to make Austin the most livable city in the country and to be the best managed city in the country.

That would be a vision statement.

Well, they have where we want to be, right?

And it's interesting though.

I like it too.

And Chicago's was build and maintain excellence.

So yeah, kind of like I I love the style of short, crappy things that somebody could walk out and remember.

But I also understand and appreciate link.

So something to ponder between.

And then, you know, you could think organizationally, because it is like this weird, you know, fusion, right?

Of the city of Fort Smith is you know, everybody who lives here, but there's also you know the people that go to work every day and work for the city, and so you know what are you trying to have them do or aspire to, or what motivates their work, and so like you know, at Mercy at Mercy, you know, we always had it was as the sisters of mercy before us would bring to life the healing ministry of Jesus through our compassionate care exceptional service.

That's like the mission statement for Moses, and then uh over it at uh eight at the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education.

It's uh to educate and train a diverse group of highly competent and compassionate healthcare professionals to create healthy research sport facilities and to provide healthy living environments to improve the lives of others.

So like you can go short, you can go long, but it seems like an organizational mission statement that would live on like the city of Fort Smith website.

I think should really probably be 80, 20 or more trend towards like if you work here and you're employed by this institution, like what is motivating you, like what is your purpose?

Like what's your North Star that you should look at as an employee?

Christina, what were the additions you were asking?

You're saying like infrastructure and what else economic growth?

I mean, when I think about what is my mission as a city director, what do I want to provide my citizens?

Um, I want to make sure we're financially responsible.

I want to make sure we're business-friendly community.

I want to make sure this is a place where you can raise a family, just my personal mission.

Um, but uh, you know, so that kind of I was talking about besides essential services, you know, something maybe something about economic growth or infrastructure we could highlight, maybe not, maybe leave infrastructure off.

I was just thinking about the side of that with the bridge.

Well, City Fort Smith is committed to providing high quality services, and then comma uh world-class infrastructure.

World class infrastructure, comma, economics playing from the advancement of a thriving community.

Oh, instead of committed to the street, yeah.

Yeah, dedicated.

I don't know exactly what's on the city.

We should have just putting infrastructure in here when we're under consensus.

Yes, I'm not.

Yeah, like that's scary.

At the same time, though.

I mean, we could have worked, right?

We can vote in the sales test.

I mean, infrastructure is just historically.

Some people don't think we have great roads because there's no down our state highways or our our straight roads.

I mean it was just a suggestion.

What the hell I'm going to die on I was just throwing, I was just thinking about the guys with the bridge that's crumbling.

I think you're right.

And I think we do have to mention infrastructure because again, if that mission statement is that thing that you always want, you know, to kind of if we're gonna hang it up on the wall and things like that, if you want that to be a motivator as us as decision makers, employees as workers, to the point that's been brought up about the consent decree and how we got here, like maybe this is a part of that aspect of going, hey, we recognize moving forward that we always have to have an eye towards our infrastructure because on the stated part being because we don't ever want to be in a situation again where you get so far behind the eight ball that you get into a uh a bond.

Well, think about what we'll be voting on over the next three years.

A lot of infrastructure.

A lot of infrastructure, but I think if we say we're we're dedicated to providing high quality services, uh world-class infrastructure and economic development for the advancement of a thriving community.

Now I go, bag up, let's go to work.

And our citizens show that they prioritize infrastructure when they voted for that sales tax reality.

Well, and even in all the discussions leading up to that when we were at their board meeting saying we need to prioritize, we mean make this a prone or other.

But I mean, I also understand the opposition to it, so I was just trying to get the discussion started up on the bond for that.

Well, I could be able to do that.

I like a whole paragraph.

I said you don't have to make my change.

I'm saying dedicated to providing high quality services.

I think resident focus.

I like resident focus.

Yep.

Okay.

Okay, services, comma.

Then we were talking about infrastructure and economic development.

Or the advancement.

I'm not necessarily saying we have to have resident focused services, but somewhere in there, I like to listen but if it goes there, if it goes there, great if it doesn't hinder.

I think it's a good spot for everything, all the services we offer.

As the as he re rewrites this, economic development is what we've talked about.

But so if you say that, is there some people say the government shouldn't be involved in economic development?

Well, and ship is sales.

And whether it's active, we're just creating the environment that allows it.

Well, for example, Jared and both your right.

So uh there's gonna be both next year by everybody in the state.

SJR 15 that's gonna allow for cities to make economic development districts to allow you sales tax dollars for development.

So you're both right.

Today no, but in the future, yes.

I mean, but creating an environment where we think the environment.

I think we voted the other night with the I like that, create an environment.

I I like the environment.

I I struggle with government ends and private.

We believe in the free market, but um, create the environment for that marketing.

The environment.

Are you saying creating an environment for economic development or creating environment for advancement and private community?

Create an environment for economic growth or economic economic advancement.

Okay, I like that.

And then just period, instead of a thriving community, is that like an add-on?

Oh, you're got the it's got advancement of a thriving community.

What if we could say a private community?

Economic advancement of our private community?

Our private community.

Economic advancement says business, but also me.

Yep.

Or let me does it say me individuals since or actually no, that's this is not since I will I I'll bring this up not to be not to be difficult.

Um I think if we're in putting something in a mission statement, and and I got the vibe from the session so far today, and we're talking about not only work we put in on these, but wanting to display them, you know, etc.

That there really does seem to be an appetite to you know try to take the work we do here today and live by it and live with it and live with it in front of us a little bit more, maybe than in years past.

You know, my mind goes to the notion of you want to not put anything on the page or on the wall that you really don't think is achievable or universally understood in the same way.

My mind goes to the notion of you want to not put anything on the page or on the wall that you really don't think is achievable or universally understood in the same way.

And so I wonder it is world class the descriptor that we want to attach to infrastructure.

Do we want the I I think I said this to Carl?

I don't need the Tosh Mahal on our sewage or water.

Just get the water down efficiently, cost, but I'm not sure.

If we're gonna vocalize things and live by it more and all this other stuff, every time, because I think you could you could really blow this out in the in the salon conversation level and talk about you know, does the United States in most of the United States have world class infrastructure when you compare it to uh different parts of the world?

I mean, presidents of both parties for the last 15 years have talked about the struggles we have compared to other countries with roads, airports, bridges, time, cost, etc.

etc.

etc.

So build some.

What about what about outstanding?

Like synonyms.

Well, let me ask a question.

Okay, I'm doing that.

What about saying resident focused infrastructure?

World class services.

I think he's saying do you put world class on it just like we're gonna do it?

World class is something that if we're really gonna use this document a bunch, put it up, live by it, keep it in front of us, and have it be seen more and understood more and assessed more by the public.

What would you forget?

I think you open yourself up to undo an unearned criticism by if you say world class is up here, but you're flying up here, you're still doing better than you were before, but someone else this world class to you like.

Maybe outstanding.

When I think of world class, I think it's Dubai.

Yeah, places are like that.

That's kind of yeah, exactly.

So let's see if we set out outstanding.

World class for world class, outstanding infrastructure.

So I would reliable.

It takes it, it brings it down as well.

Reliable dependable.

Well, when we talk about infrastructure, we're talking about stuff under the ground and rely on bridges, right?

Is do we do we want world class or do we want reliable?

Reliability.

So let me just make a couple of suggestions here.

I try not to do this.

I did just have to.

Um how about something like reliable or high quality?

We are not going to be, no offense.

We are not going to be world-class enforcement Arkansas.

I like the I don't mean that to be integrated at all.

Not at all.

I just mean we don't have that kind of mind.

I don't know why we can't because we do we really think we have to keep resident focused because if you just said providing high quality services, infrastructure, and economic advancement.

You could say high quality and reliable services, infrastructure, the flow.

I just I think the resident just says we're focused on the resident.

That's all I keep.

But I'm I'm open to everybody wants to change all the time.

I mean, reliability dependability is the whole thing.

So remove high quality?

And use high quality maybe somewhere else.

Providing resident focus services, high quality infrastructure.

Reliable infrastructure.

Reliable.

Okay.

What would go reliable on I don't know if I like reliable.

I kind of like the way you wrote there, maintaining high quality infrastructure.

You don't like that?

Well, I do I do I want my infrastructure to be high quality.

I just want I just want to do what it's supposed to be.

Yes.

People have some people see you.

I don't know.

I think that you can you can certainly emphasize both because like I think you do want because like reliability or dependability, there's scales to it.

Reliable resilience, not bad.

Resilient infrastructure.

Well, it can it'll stand up for time over time.

Yeah, but isn't the same thing as reliable?

That's what I'm thinking about.

Yeah, okay.

I don't know.

Listen to what you guys say.

Yeah, correctly, right?

Seven of you.

Right.

What do you want?

Do we want to take that?

So we're saying for a thriving community, because I don't know if everyone in the community feels like they're thriving.

Because I don't know if everyone in the community feels like they're thriving.

Well, we got A earlier.

Oh, okay.

Because we have A earlier, not the hour, because I always talk about our community.

Well, it's it's us.

It's us, all of us.

The word A, you're talking about sounds like for four, yeah.

Yeah, ours, everybody.

Okay.

What?

Yeah.

I'm open to it.

Is it weird to have the two and I'm struggling with that?

I'm struggling with that.

We can take out one of those.

No, no, I think the word candout can allow the results.

Reliable reasoning infrastructure.

Why don't we do that?

Why don't we just take out resilience?

Yeah.

Just make it reliable infrastructure.

Okay.

That would be aspiration.

That's the paper that's going to be.

Does that get you that one fuzzy completely?

I'm wondering the need for our thriving community.

Economic on advancement.

I want people to know we're thinking about that.

Much more than focused.

It's okay to say twice.

I have a question.

Are we creating an environment that fosters economic advancement for our community?

Or are we creating an environment that fosters economic advancement and a thriving community?

And we're doing it.

Yeah, but that's orange code.

I like that.

Yeah, that's right.

So I feel like there's saying our community's already thriving, and I know a lot of people don't feel like they're thriving.

This common and it's called and I've never heard of it.

I like the Office of Engineering.

It makes sense.

I don't know what Skep Brothers mean.

We should become the S.

Well, there's another break for today.

There we go.

These work.

Right.

We are at least warmer and fuzzier than we were.

Oh no, I'm getting there, but I'm just typing it to rework it in grammarly.

It does not need that comma after it.

I don't think that's mine.

I don't know that.

I don't even know that.

No.

It doesn't have to be one sentence.

It's true.

The city of Fort Smith is going to be something totally different.

Just throwing it out there.

I just took the exact thing.

The city of Fort Smith is committed to offering resident focused services, maintaining dependable infrastructure, and fostering an environment that promotes economic growth and a thrive.

That's good.

I still like dedicated better than committed, but that's better.

That's similar to what I got on check to sure flows.

Alright.

Yeah.

What was that?

Do you want to put that?

You want to type that up to the second one?

No, don't race this one.

No, I was gonna offer it update.

Why don't we do a second one and that way we can look at them kind of compared to delete one and forgive that?

Services commonly in the multiple infrastructure common offering the environmental.

Yes.

Okay, so that there and then we can go back and forth.

I think it's dependable infrastructure.

So we got two of them.

A and Bullets better?

I like that.

This is what's up on screen better.

It's pretty clean.

Did you do that through uh AI?

No, I'd bring in grammarly.

Yeah, okay.

I know Chad.

I chat, but I mean I didn't.

Chad's got like three sentences.

Jared's my grammar, because he just writes like a I just I don't like it.

I don't know.

I don't like the fostering environment remotes very much.

Can we take out the last and and say for the benefit of a thriving community or for the betterment of a thriving community?

I like four.

I like the four subs.

And it promotes if we replace the last and with four.

And I'm not grouped four.

So I think they both work.

Because I mean that's the goal.

That's the mission, is we want a thriving community.

Maybe if we put and it looks like the community's already thriving.

Well, it is.

But it can always be doing better.

I'm not disagreeing.

We'd always be optimizing.

Uh it can always be you can always get better.

We take we change growth to advance.

Well, this is this is leads.

Oh, I just throw out this is leads.

You gotta be all the one and two, right?

We totally choose two up in the way it needs.

We're all we're so close to the second one's better.

First or second one?

So we like the pentable better than reliable.

I like reliable.

I kind of like reliable as well.

I'm gonna take, yeah, make it more reliable.

All we did really here is made a flow of it, not necessarily.

I mean, it's not the symmetric.

I mean, people already depend on it.

We want it to be reliable.

Yeah.

I like that.

It does interchange.

He's pumped up now.

I think it takes out the world class and the high quality, and it's like, oh, come on.

But I'll say also the mayor's not here.

The mayor always likes to say we're Premier City.

I think that's a goal he he likes to work towards.

Yeah, oh definitely.

But I mean, and I will say I just feel like pains to remind us of this, but if we're gonna live into this more and look at it more and see it more and everything else, I mean, you know, there's gonna be costs associated with these things.

Well, that's that's that's that's that's what's scary.

Not saying anyone it's unrealistic or just so this is uh hot quality.

This is the Center for Economic Development.

This is our vision statement, this is our mission statement, and these are our values.

And we keep them in front of us all the time.

So this is this was revised in uh June.

So the vision, I'll get to the vision.

Let's do the mission.

The Center for Economic Development empowers regional growth through consulting, training, and networking opportunities that maximize success for individuals, businesses, organizations, and communities.

So that's our mission.

And so we keep that in front of us all the time.

We remind ourselves that's who we are.

That's what we do.

Our values, we just list them.

We we responsiveness, proactivity, excellence, inclusivity, connection, and collaboration are the core values that guide everything we do.

We've kind of like you guys, we have a paragraph that describes responsiveness and things like that.

But the idea here is if I keep it in front of us all the time, I'm better to want to do it.

Yes.

I'm more apt to want to follow that.

This is the problem for these kinds of things.

You create it, and then you don't talk about it.

You put it to get together on the shelf, and it's good.

And you you have to keep it in front of you all the time.

So it's uh like our university mission statement.

I always have to read it.

It empowers empowers the social mobility of its students and the economic growth of the river valley through exceptional educational opportunities and robust community partnerships.

So we do two things social mobility of students and economic growth.

We do it through exceptional educational opportunities and robust community partnerships.

And I just have to remind ourselves that's why we exist.

And so same thing with your mission statement.

You exist for the residents.

Um City Four Smith is dedicated to offering resident focused services, maintaining reliable infrastructure and fostering an environment that promotes economic growth from the problem.

I wonder if we should put, like we did talk about the values putting in the inference of blue line.

Should we put mission statement?

Absolutely.

No, no, something just like you.

Absolutely.

So not when you walk in the four years, but when we're in the meeting, we can look out, we see that.

Something that's vaporable from where we're at.

Sure.

It's open on the walls and the sides.

So we're that way, we're always up in the audience, we're gonna see them.

Yeah, and our mission, our mission is on the tagline of our emails, it's on the top of every time we do it.

Yeah, I was thinking about it.

Because that, I mean, again, I like the more you have it out, the more you live by it, the more you don't put it up on the shelf and forget about it, and the more you make it seen, the more the decision making process stays focused on that and removes itself from like the politics of the day or particular issue.

So if you have it up there for months on end, that we have we're committed to maintaining reliable infrastructure, and then we have to make a decision about an investment of a piece of infrastructure, and you get 20 people that stand up and go, you can't spend this on that, you know, water main punk or whatever.

You're like, folks, look around you, look what we're talking about.

Like, obviously, you want to be a good steward, you want to find the best price if you can and all that, but folks, we've got to maintain reliable infrastructure.

So this is what we're trying to do.

I never met Robert.

I don't know, I've never met him, I don't know him, but I know his rules of order really well.

All in favor, say ah.

Here's our vision.

Fort Smith strives to be a dynamic business, family, and military friendly destination that welcomes people from all over the world.

Here's my questions before is it clear, is it easy to understand?

Uh do we understand its relevance?

Is it aligned with our current environment?

Does it describe this compelling future state of where we want to be?

Does it inspire us?

Is it aligned with our mission and values?

Is it inclusive?

Is it help long-term plan?

It is inclusive.

I think you can arguably answer yes to all those questions.

Yep.

And you know, could things always stand to be improved, modified words, or whatever.

Yes, it's why you do these sessions on semi-regular basis.

But the central tenant, I know that motivated the creation of this one was this notion that hey, we've got this military mission coming.

Not only does that mean there are going to be more people and families from all kinds of different places, but like we just want to be friendly and supportive to the extent that we can and the things that we do for that military mission because it's such a big impact and driver for the community.

And that if I recall correctly, we just kind of schooled out, you know, what are some of the other things which we always wish to strive to be as friendly to as we can be.

And I think we all recognize and know that it's a pretty family-friendly community and a good place to raise a family.

And we talked a lot about business worlds and whatnot today.

So I like this statement.

I don't have any additions.

And during the time, we remember when we have a whole lot of negative uh social media posts about the coming and what they're gonna do for our community.

Yeah, so we were trying to be absolutely positive.

Positive everybody.

Because you know, this is you've got military, but you're also welcome.

We do doctors come in here and do people going to medical college and other people.

So we're not just talking about we've got to work bringing people here now.

I do like public even the word destination.

I mean, I know I'm just picking on one thing here, but like that is a pro of what Parrot Island is.

I mean, it does have a lot of people there.

There are things that we're doing that also could create destination.

And so I think in some regards, I like that.

I like the fact that business is in the front of that, dynamic, and we're talking about we're pro-business.

I think it's it's a good statement all around.

I think the word dynamic also, you know, an implication behind that is that you know you're willing to make adjustments, you're willing to be creative, you're willing to consider different approaches or options or ideas.

We're not trying to be that like well, what's fateville doing?

Well, we're not trying to be fate bill, we're Fort Smith.

I like it as it is, but uh I do want to question.

Do you remember Wow?

Or do you guys have uh an opinion on the word dynamic?

That's kind of what I just said about what the ability of the ability the word has to represent that you're open to different approaches and willing to try.

No, I talked about destination.

I mean, military towns, when this thing pops off as planned, and you truly have countries from all over the world.

You're not lying.

I mean, you are truly a unique little diverse city.

You just saw recently what's going to happen.

We got these the bees coming.

So the FMS project's expanding more acreages and more areas.

Already.

And it's easy.

Maybe we've got the five percent.

So it's and I'll mean I should say yes.

Like it's like I've lived in eight different states, and my dad was in the military for 31 years, perfectly since I'm blue and base.

Like they're they're all like there are military installations all over the country.

Like there are some communities that are more friendly to it than not.

Like it's it's funny because a community like us that is friendly to it, it's almost like this, like, well yeah, like no doubt.

Like, of course, we're but like it doesn't, that's like not automatic.

Like it doesn't have to be that way.

What does that look like so that's not friendly to the military?

There's just no, there's no appreciation of it.

There's no celebration of it.

There's no things like the school district is doing to be welcoming.

There's no special attention paid by the chamber of commerce.

There's no, there's no like, it's just like another industry.

Like Yeah, yeah, take a number of calls about you know about your thing.

And even worse, it can be well, the reason the military base is the reason for the bad things in our community.

I mean, that would be like sometimes there's you know active community uh resentment fence line protests, and you know, how dare you come here and be loud and you know, build your war machine and blah blah blah.

I mean, I think it just was in its identity with the F-16 missions that was here for years.

I mean it was a boy growing up.

Oh, yeah.

Yeah, I was looking at the sky, and oh yeah, the air show.

Yeah, do you remember the community that was fighting for them to bring that in Michigan?

Michigan, yeah.

You remember?

We had 500 people came here, all positive.

They had community up there, everybody was negative, they didn't want the air pollution.

You know, that's the difference of welcoming and not.

That's the reason we got it, maybe it just seems so natural.

Well, because it is for us, and so we may as well lean into it and highlight it.

Right.

Yeah, I was gonna say it's welcoming people from all over the world.

I mean, that that's the American dream, you know.

Like you come and you you're here, and that's what my family did, and then you you're welcomed, and you get to build a life here.

Yeah, I mean I don't think it's hyperbole.

It's not tend to be hyperbole, and I think it's also statistically accurate that we are the most what if not one of the most diverse cities in Arkansas.

I mean, I I it's gotta be at or near the top.

I mean, for the religious perspective, even the other day, I was my kids were talking to me and they're like, yeah, all there's other religions, and I'm I was like, yeah, well, because she said she saw temples.

And she's like, yeah, we have temples.

I was like, yeah, yeah.

Well, we have temples.

I was like, we have we went in the whole conversation of you know uh all the temples and the different things we have in the city.

I mean, they were like, oh.

Yeah, we're very diverse.

I would say based on my time living in Fayetteville, we're much more diverse here, and I think we really celebrate our diversity in a way that's a little more authentic than when I lived in Northwest Arkansas where someone's felt a little poor.

I think it's it's people come here and they just naturally kind of melt into the fabric of the community.

Because people here are so welcoming.

Yeah.

I think it stands, I think if you make it longer to ruin it.

Yeah, why are we making this apart?

I thought we liked it.

Let's move on.

Is it lunchtime?

It's not a good thing.

Are we on target?

We are perfect.

Absolutely.

Eight minutes.

Six minutes ahead.

Well, I like it called earnest.

Isn't that modern?

What?

We'll catch up.

We're gonna be fine.

Or five.

Yeah.

Maybe I should put my bottom on it.

Yeah, but we're going to do that.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Peanut butter, but they don't.

Yeah.

Um the ultra.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Okay.

So like pictures and pictures of our.

Oh.

Oh.

78?

Broke out of there.

So we do it.

I don't think.

76?

We have two.

We got one of those things.

I'm like, all this does is turn the air off.

67 hours.

Yes.

No.

I was over seven hours.

67 degrees in the middle.

You layer your cover.

You are absolutely right.

So we wear smart hours, so it's two o'clock.

And I thought some famous work.

Okay.

Six.

I've just flashed water on myself and we're supposed to go.

We've got the old skill.

I just thought about bitter real quick and I'll do it.

Yeah, you're good.

Welcome to lunch.

Yes.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Joe, andy, please eat.

Oh, yeah.

Oh, we can do it.

Can you keep your house cold?

The battery.

Yeah, there we go.

So it's our house was built in 1960, and I think air conditioning was still kind of a novelty at that point.

It's a good idea.

We're ours is 48.

We have beats on pain for it, but our class is pretty well insulated where it's not.

I never noticed it the winter time of the summer.

The weather's not super.

I do have to do five minutes.

Is your Orleans?

We've talked about this once before.

We're going to talk about it again.

This is your lens.

You are the voice of the citizens in this process.

So when we start talking about the strengths of the city of Portsmouth, I want you to think in terms of this is what the citizens of Fort Smith would say are about strengths.

So that's what we're going to start.

I like to start with our strengths.

What is it that we as the city of Port Smith do really well?

What do we feel?

Uh proud about in this city.

And then what traits or what abilities does the city have that will help us to reach future success?

So on your handy name and little notebooks, I'm gonna let you put two down.

Oh good different.

Sure you do.

Yeah, sure.

So two strengths.

And uh what we'll do is we'll compare our strengths to what we indicated they might have been a couple of years ago.

So it could be environmental itself, not necessarily.

Like a location.

So the the city itself, the location of the city itself.

What is it that we as the city of Fort Smith, what is it that we do with it could be services we provide, or it could be just the fact that we're close to God's center.

What do we feel proud of about the city?

What does the city have that will help us reach what we would call future success?

I think we said our vision was strive to be a dynamic business, family, and military-friendly destination that welcomes people from all over the world.

So what do we have that helps us reach that future success?

Right down two, right?

Two.

I know that's what's right.

Okay, I'm gonna narrow it down to the.

We just save them like we go around years get repeated.

It's great.

Alright, like number one.

Or just give me a number one.

Development.

I know I kept it broad because that uh for me development is I think of the peak innovation, the doctor's college, and now in town.

I think of Chappie, which was as a boy, nothing that's developing.

Um I think the the schools that have expanded, I mean the millage that supported it.

I mean, it's even the consent decree.

I know it's it's a positive.

We should have researched your system.

Yeah, to me, we're developing.

I I don't know that I'd characterize the consent decree as a positive.

I mean, if we don't face it at some point, it was I think it's to me that's the catalyst for change.

Well, I hope those get negotiated away.

What you're saying is that we now have fixing it to catalyst for change.

I mean, regardless of whether we're doing something today that's but that's what we do well is being under a consensus train?

Or or adapting to change.

I think the current city itself is developing.

It's focused on development.

Alright, so your strength is developed.

A, B, Chat B, all the others.

Yeah.

Neil.

Well, I I thought the F 35 military.

Um falls under development, but it's something something new for us of in terms of what we're bringing to the city.

Yeah, completely different kind of person is coming here, and the growth that's associated with that.

Yep.

Okay.

That's where I put like some of my answers like that.

Like what abilities does this.

Are we answering these individually?

No.

Because the group is.

Oh, okay.

Okay.

Um so well, I had, you know, we've got we've got the college here, we've got UA Portsman, we are geographic location.

We've got rail, we've got water.

Um, this isn't like 20.

Well, I I had geographic geography.

Or I had location.

Geographic location is a good thing.

Also, too, when we're you know looking at what we do well, I mean, the people here that like we talked about earlier, they value the dignity of hard work.

They're interested in invested in our community.

Um, you know, I think our our strengths are our citizens.

Just one.

All right, I'm done.

Do you like that play with um rail?

Well, I don't know which one was getting used.

Okay.

Well, you're doing great.

You pick geographic location.

See, I've broken it down into three.

I thought we needed two for each one.

Oh, well, you're gonna do well.

I'm coming back to you in a minute.

I'm gonna say uh the way we welcome our welcoming of new people and ideas.

Public safe.

Police and fire.

That was done.

I did write five times.

She's not operated, so military presence.

Past and presence.

You could you could kind of take mine and I was gonna say mine's uh change on the number.

Okay.

If I do that, yeah.

If I say military military presence past and future.

History of our community.

I have that one, I didn't say it.

Yeah, that's not that's funny.

Back to you again.

We're a very adaptive evolving community.

I thought you did history of our community.

But too, that's my second one.

I'm going back to the snake routine.

Snake rotation.

It's like keep it in line, man.

Walkability.

Some of them under cover.

The other one I wrote down was said already about Jeff, it's as a being welcoming.

Because again, I I think it's it's something that Fort Smith does really, really well.

It's something I've heard from a lot of other people who transplanted here, such as myself, and having lived a lot of other places, like it is not that way everywhere.

That's true.

It is not.

You know, the military's aspects have been mentioned, and Jerry mentioned it earlier this morning about just the fact that a military town, you know, could be a good or a bad thing, but in our sense it's a good thing.

I think that is a strength.

In terms of I mean, not just the fact that the military is here, but how the community has responded to it.

Has responded to it and and and wants it to be here.

It's welcoming and which one can we use all here in 20 minutes?

I already gave you all mine.

I want uh used geographic location.

Give me another one.

Uh well, I mean, one of them was the college.

Um maybe we touched on that.

Colleges, maybe maybe the whole thing.

Yeah, I mean, we have the ability to influence future success through our education.

I wrote down education.

That was good.

Um availability of transportation.

You know, you could you could bring back to geographic location, I think.

That's kind of some of the steps that you're seeing.

Yeah, are we thinking are you thinking in terms of the fact that we have interstate rail, water all the time?

Yeah, so we've got another one.

Um I have I do have um growing industry.

Like we're we're seeing growth happen in places.

I mean, we've got a we've got um FMS.

But we have other businesses growing up.

I mean, just for instance.

Yes, there's they're not trained.

Mars.

Um the conveyor belt, who is what's high, yeah.

Stuff that has not been 20% of our workforce is being natural.

Yeah, pretty present.

Well, and and in reality, we're still under job growth numbers of our peak, which is 128.

I mean, I uh close.

125, I think is the is the peak.

We're like 11, something like that.

I want to get over.

So that argument is that was back in the early years where your robotics wasn't there.

Right.

So the growth you're seeing today is not in isn't job growth, but it's more of a technician.

But it just means we have to do more to get that.

Well we don't we also have the population to support it.

That's a problem.

That's what we gotta face too.

That's one that's another one.

All right.

Family oriented.

Alright.

Kindle it's fun maybe before you run out of room.

I think there's two other big strengths that aren't on there.

Yeah.

Um just the local healthcare system.

You know, there's lots of places that you know, we obviously could always grow and have more and room to grow, but those places don't even have what we have.

Think about Mercy committing over 200 million dollars in the last year and a half.

That's that's amazing.

And uh the natural beauty.

Yeah, you know, the river, yeah, you know, parts, uh trails, yeah.

It could be geographical.

I'll let you come up with several.

Yeah, I gotta go back to Christina.

She had 20 and I only had two.

Um, I would say two hours history.

We've got history, we've got that.

Yeah, we've got history of our community.

Okay, I had um, you know, our citizens who value the dignity of hard work, which I guess that could go towards workforce.

Um just people that have an interest and a willingness to be involved, you don't see that everywhere.

Citizen involvement.

So this engagement.

Yeah, it's just an engagement.

If it's government for nonprofits, yeah.

But I I would also say small business.

We have a really strong small business community.

Sure.

Well, it's the that's truly the backbone of what how much of how much does small business make up?

If manufacturing is 20%, do we know how much small business is?

That's a ton.

Okay.

No more than 20%.

No, it's not more than 20%, but I don't think.

Because we have people willing to invest here.

I mean, and for a lot of times, I mean, especially people like me, it was my life savings.

It was all the money I had.

Yeah.

Alright.

Gabriella.

No, please.

I am going to write down our strings from two years ago.

And then we're gonna add them to the list, and then I'm gonna let you vote.

What's that?

I don't know about that.

I don't like it.

I like the voting.

I don't like the voting.

Is that a good one?

Because now your strengths are so many.

You're missing some stuff.

Yeah.

But I think this is like, okay, what do we what do we accentuate?

We're going for the top strength.

What do we accentuate?

I think it's pulsing the board too.

I think it's interesting to see the dynamic of it uh what's in Neil's hit.

Right.

I'm gonna be interested to see what our what we said of strengths were last year.

I know water was one of the two.

And I'm wondering if that's less than it is a strength because you're starting to see communities.

Well no, that's another one.

Well, have you have you followed I heard this guy on the podcast?

Cloud seedings.

It's really interesting.

Would you c would you say clouds?

Cloud City C.

So we'll send drones up and they it's in plant C the as in the plants.

That's what they think.

It's it's uh Texas for those ones.

Right, right.

They do, but basically they they put silver iodine to attach to the water molecule that's too small, or it's not heavy enough to draw.

And so they send a drone up there to attach those on there.

And it was creates rank.

And um, so they're doing that.

Like I didn't realize what this was.

Isn't that what divide us?

They're doing it.

Uh it may very well be.

But they're doing this uh more than I guess I ever thought.

But it just kind of makes me concerned.

Is that becoming less of a really because you don't have the cloud?

And you're gonna have a certain amount of humidity for discards.

Right, no, I agree with that.

It's just interesting.

The technology is really interesting.

Okay, so you uh you do some of your strengths.

Um I didn't, if they duplicated, I didn't put them up there.

So what I want you to do is you've got six dots to vote with this time.

I want you to vote for your six strings.

So we know where we're three from last time.

Yeah.

I'm just gonna take this one here, because otherwise I'll be like six.

I'll take it all.

There's an odd number there.

It's really great.

All right, then okay.

Well, Mary can get it done.

Yeah, they got it done.

Okay.

This is 2024.

Is that yes?

Josh.

Yes.

Happy birthday to you.

Happy birthday to your mayor.

Happy birthday to you.

Thank you all so much.

Three.

I think so, yeah.

No, just poking the one.

You can vote, I think we can vote on those also.

Oh, we can vote on the thing.

Yep, you can spread your votes across both pages.

That's not a mess.

Well, so this would have already ones from the paper group last time.

Yeah, yeah, go ahead.

Yeah, oh shit.

I want to get a double list.

We we'll already have this somewhat.

Yeah.

Well, that's it.

Well, it's not good.

Yeah, well, get ready to dress.

Congressional delegation was there with the exception of both of them.

Boseman and Woman for it.

Uh no, woman, uh Western.

Well my class.

Yeah, it's anything.

Uh George.

I was talking so you still just talk about it.

You know this morning that I was getting here.

You said it that way.

And then seeing it.

I don't know.

I think they took it back into the initial assessment.

And then I'm not sure.

So we had a giving it one more hour.

And the girls are raised more money than the boys.

And if they sent these two leaves go by these point.

And that's why it's written in.

Oh, isn't it like a creamy pile of just take to the face?

I just wanted to.

So I've seen it.

I had really on the cell stuff.

So that's the least.

No, it ain't.

I'm trying to get my figures.

I mean the figure looked more like meal.

I'm going to tell you, I'm trying to get it now.

I'm not exercising a little bit.

You know, every every year before we go to DC.

I'm not just thinking that it's like always before we go to DC.

It's like you know, I don't normally have to wear six or so that's the time.

Yeah.

Yeah, that's uh and you know now.

I'm just okay now.

Yeah.

I gotta make sure I'm around for like I'm saving all this money for retirement.

Like I've got this I gotta I gotta know it figure out.

But I want to enjoy it.

You will.

Uh huh.

What I'm saying.

And so I kinda kinda in multiple.

I feel like I'm I feel you're I'm gonna be fine.

It's just maybe five.

When you really think about this guy at times, the numbers say you like 14, 16 years left.

Now I've got good genes by other than the other four.

So I think I'm gonna go for a while.

I think the wall of those lists like the double.

Less risky now.

You want to read the name?

Bill Perkins wrote it called Guy with Zero.

And the idea is don't do the model with shame, and then if you don't know what your health's gonna be, do it now.

I don't know.

My mom died.

Oh yeah.

Like that one year.

But you got a phone.

Alright, here we are.

And so uh I want to make sure that you got it.

Here are your streets that you have identified.

So you've identified geographic location and uh UAFS education as your top strength.

And then FMS.

Alright, which is uh number five, a military presence, water supply, landfill, five.

Dang the water supply.

There's nothing on water supply.

Well that was holding number one.

Oh you guys must get you that.

Let's compare this to what we did last year.

Somebody went somebody went a little more ill.

So it's not me.

Does anybody anybody not have their three?

So this is where we were this is actually two years ago.

This is one of the top strings that you had.

Don't look at the number of the votes because they're probably different.

But so foreign military sales was top streak that we had identified.

Strong physical conditions, water supply, landfill, policing public safety, youth as education, philanthropy.

Okay, so that like healthcare medical college was on that sheet and all the letters.

That's correct.

Well, so I didn't put it up there because we had to just what you've identified as your strengths.

Okay?

Well, at least from two years ago.

I mean, so I think we have healthier power lists.

But we didn't say it was a strength of this year.

No.

Development.

Well, okay.

Some of those things.

Like some other things that have more high weight.

I'm not necessarily the same, but most of the things we've got.

Right.

Sure.

I mean, like what's interesting about things like the water supply or like landfill is that they are things, and this is, I think, an illustration of why they are strengths.

They're things you kind of have to be like in the know about to recognize that they are strengths.

There are that they are in fact strengths.

Hey, what's a great strength of our community?

No one's gonna say landfill.

Well, it's not a but because you have to kind of know about that.

My goal of when I thought about water supply, it was okay.

Well, okay.

But our own.

I mean, look at the look at the exercise on California else.

I mean, is is that being useful?

Someone's going out and selling four things.

Is that being useful?

But it could be, but there we also know the factors are all the mistakes, it's not us.

It's state factors.

You know, with uh with the stresses being pulled on it.

Well, what's it have to do?

I think I think we have the water.

Yeah.

That isn't starting to get it.

They won't have the water to sewer.

That's sort of the state cards we were talking about.

When can you lower things?

Yeah, that's right.

I think the other thing too is uh even more like maybe this is not a lobby piece, but inside, but in our purview.

I mean let's remind us.

And in the citizens showing up.

Oh, these these are our strengths.

This is our SWAT analysis.

It could be one poster.

I don't think it needs to be, you know, that's something they could look at.

Absolutely.

I was on straight.

Like you really insider.

Yeah.

It's not something that a lot of people have these things.

Let's uh talk about our weaknesses.

This is always fun to do this, right?

I got a problem with this one.

So what things do we need to work?

Yes, two please.

What things do we need to work on in our city?

We're gonna do this exactly exactly the same way we get our strings.

All right, but what do we need to work on?

What exams, what things, what traits or abilities owes our greatest weakness to our success as a city?

And what frustrations or disappointments do we encounter within the city?

These are our weaknesses.

Oh, you saw it in the whole list.

Sorry.

Just two.

I'm still thinking, yeah, we're gonna need some just my train of thought.

I'm training my trustworth right now.

Which one do I start with?

That's the question.

Mr.

Mayor, I'm going to start with you.

I just want one weakness, please.

Okay.

Long range planning.

Seeing it.

I had uh accountability and transparency as one.

I I don't know if if the transparency piece of it is as important to me is the accountability because I feel like in most instances we have the transparency, it's just the lack of accountability once we get there.

Oh poverty slash low week.

Lack of high higher paid jobs.

Okay.

But it's I'm thinking like they would do it if they had the opportunity.

And that starts more manufacturing side.

I have some training money to help with that.

Well if we'd be ready to engage.

Yeah, we can talk.

I think part of it is what I meant by that is the thing is twofold trained workforce means like we said earlier, it's not enough people in town to fill the jobs we have.

Right.

That's kind of what the ones we have are not trained.

So it takes longer to keep them on board.

Sometimes they leave because they don't they just can't get caught key.

Um across kind of cutting corner from the post office.

Uh-huh.

Yeah, I I saw it.

I looked up their Facebook page and it's got pressure and all the years.

Yeah, yeah.

Oh, okay.

Not community-wide.

So just yeah.

It's not criticisms of individuals.

But at times, inadequate or incomplete communication.

But since I believe that communication is a two-way street, you compare that with sometimes there's you know, a willful ignorance around the reception receiving or lack thereof of information.

I think that's a big bigger one.

I'll say aging infrastructure.

Um I mean, I not just sort of city infrastructure, but also housing stock and things like that.

Sure.

Yeah.

Aging infrastructure.

I mean, like there's a lot of aging housing infrastructure as well.

That's not just pipes, but like neighborhoods.

Well, I mean, just and just houses that I mean, in terms of you know, need for redevelopment or infill type of development in those areas where houses maybe uh the vibe conversation.

Yeah, I mean, or even sort of what happens after you've dealt with a blighted property, what happens to that property?

Uh who?

Um trap right now.

Yeah, well, I'm sure.

Um, I think I well, that was a different one that I sort of alluded to with me.

It was sort of a lack of infill development or redevelopment.

That's a good one.

I thought about it.

Yeah.

Well, it's not so many.

I mean, you can even just go just north of Garrison, you see so many areas that used to be big residential neighborhood, but then all the houses are gone, and it's just a you can see stoops at you know, steps that went up to a big house at one point, but it's just an empty block.

Jared.

Uh again, from a lens of the organization, you know, kind of a reactive versus a proactive mindset.

Not all the time, but a fair enough amount of time that's hard to organization to fight that.

I agree.

Um so yeah.

Um I'm gonna get another sign?

Oh, uh animal services and welfare.

Yeah, that's well, some things uh maybe strictly that's the same thing.

Yeah, I mean I kind of took that as a deal.

Yeah, but but uh but if you don't put it in my it needs to be.

But it's gonna take time to get it.

That will be a success story in the future.

Yes.

Strategic alignment.

I feel like there are many times competing agencies.

When you think about homelessness, we need strategic alignment where we future Fort Smith Committee.

I I personally, when I looked at that document, was like, man, you know, I think we we even had a task force for homelessness in 2011, and they identified all these ideas that the city was going to do, but now you know, Hope campus isn't seen that way.

So it's we we have great ideas, but then they we got we have to align them to action.

And we have we have so many people involved in yet we're not making it.

We're not we're not we're not being strategic in alignment.

Right.

Um slowing growth, either in population or just general growth.

And population is probably where you can measure the most but we are growing, but we're growing less less than our peers.

Well, you you look you look at the population trends from 70s, 80s, they were good, double-digit growth.

And then the 2000s came, and we just single digits.

Um I mean, single digits.

And and you look at Jonesboro, you look at NWA, you look at Little Raw.

Um they are experiencing growth significantly.

Um inability to adapt to changing market conditions or economic conditions.

I mean, I think that goes to what Neil was saying, you know.

I mean, a lot of that growth slowed because we weren't in manufacturing anymore, but then also automation has replaced a lot of manufacturing, and we were slow, uh not really not that nipple at adapting.

Um just just better communication with uh our our counterparts at the state and federal level.

There's a better communication with Russia delegation and uh state representative.

So we talked about that where you were gone.

We'd love to have some sort of sit down where we bring uh just bring in our counterparts from the state and just really make sure they're aware of Fort Smith specific issues and just have an open dialogue.

And and I do I do believe that you did this and being went there, but doing uh the day at the capital, I think we getting getting back there and getting there is that another like we're doing in DC is is important.

I think she needs to go to Sandy's needs to be as much as possible.

Especially all the conversations that they're trying to do with Charleston.

Yes.

That's really where you are, you're so dead wrong on it.