It all started with a bicycle ride. Former CSU President Dr. Larry Penley and Fort Collins City Manager Darin Atteberry, enjoying a leisurely ride through downtown, talking about creating better connections between the City and the University.
Within months, this conversation had sparked the creation of UniverCity Connections, a collaboration convened by the Community Foundation of Northern Colorado, and driven by the City of Fort Collins, Colorado State University, the Downtown Development Authority, and over 100 Fort Collins citizens. UniverCity Connections challenged the community to come together, imagine a great future and make that future a reality.
The Process
At the beginning of the process, the stakeholders identified the elements of a vision for the future of the study area. These elements became the Vision Statement for UniverCity Connections. All of the work that followed was guided by this vision of the desired future and the products of this work are intended to bring that vision closer to reality. 
The Co-Chairs and Coordinating Committee of UniverCity Connections led this effort beginning in August of 2006. (Pictured at right are Co-Chairs of the Coordinator Committee: Joyce Berry, Peggy Reeves, Mark Driscoll and Dave Edwards.) They identified stakeholders, refined the process and schedule, identified the study area, chose the name and logo, and planned the kickoff party. The process followed by the stakeholders was a step by step effort beginning with the development of a vision of the desired future.
The stakeholders, working together identified the elements of their vision and assigned a committee to write the vision statement. Stakeholders assessed the current reality in the area, including identifying the strengths to build on, weaknesses to overcome, opportunities to capture, and threats to avoid.
This preparatory work enabled the stakeholders to identify a manageable number of specific topics to focus on, and to form task groups for each topic. The remainder of the process was carried out by these task groups, mostly working alone, but occasionally coming together to share progress and address overlapping issues.
With the planning work of the task groups finished, the stakeholders brought this phase of their effort to an end. The next phase, implementation of these initiatives, is underway.
The primary steps in this process included:
Organizing - select the stakeholders, refine the strategic planning process
Assessing the current reality (analyze internal and external factors) strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats
Articulating a common vision of the desired future
Identifying key issues, the areas where change is needed
Developing goals and strategies
Creating detailed action plans
The next steps in the process included:
Implementing the action plans
Continuing to convene and be a catalyst for initiatives and ideasAugust & September 2007
Phase I - Planning the Process
Milestones
- Identify the key stakeholders and secure their participation
- Clearly define the roles and responsibilities of all participants in the process
- Identify staff and technical team
- Articulate the purpose and refine the process
- Organize a kick-off event to announce the project, introduce the stakeholders, and begin the Planning Phase
Phase II - Strategy Development
- Create a vision of the desired future that captures the values of the entire community
- Assess the current reality - what is our starting place on the road to the desired future
- Identify areas where action is needed in order to achieve the vision
- Develop goals and strategies for each action area
- Create detailed action plans to achieve the goals
- Steps to be taken
- Who is responsible
- What resources are needed and where they will be found
- Timeline for implementation
- Measurable indicator of success
Phase III - Implementation
- Implement the actions
- Evaluate the impact
- Adjust if necessary and implement again
Downloads (PDF - Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view files):
- Report from the Stakeholders 05-31-07 (32 pgs, 6.2MB)