Online survey will help Shelby Township determine its 2023 priorities

SHELBY TOWNSHIP — The Shelby Township Board of Trustees is offering residents a chance to help determine the township’s top 10 priorities for 2023.

As part of the annual community visioning sessions that involve the public, the board and the township’s department heads, the township has a survey available to residents through Oct. 17. The survey can be found online at shelbytwp.org/visioning.

In addition to taking the survey online, the township said that residents can submit their feedback with staff at the Shelby Township Library, Shelby Township Activities Center, Department of Public Works or Township Hall.

For questions about the survey, residents should contact Planning Director Julijana Misich-Rasawehr at (586) 726-7243. The Planning and Zoning Department leads the visioning process.

Misich-Rasawehr said the community visioning process began in 2012 with moderate participation from the community. For the past three years, despite the pandemic, the participation in the surveys has increased immensely.

She said that Shelby Township officials each year brainstorm ways to get the public more involved than the past year, and one way the township hopes to do so this year is by increasing the opportunities for residents to submit their feedback at various township offices.

“The duration of the survey has also been increased. This initiative helps us set forth a desired future shaped by the entire community. Establishing this priority list also helps keep the Township Board and employees focused on accomplishing goals that are most important to the residents,” she said via email.

Trustee Lisa Casali said that during the visioning process for the 2022 township priorities, the township received clear feedback from residents that they wanted to enhance the amenities on the municipal campus.

“Because of this, we initiated the Civic Center Master Plan process to develop a strategic vision for enhancements, such as a new amphitheater to replace the old bandshell that crews demolished to make room for the new library. This plan and its components resulted from our residents’ feedback in the 2022 visioning process, and I can’t wait to see the ideas we get from the 2023 survey,” she said in an email interview.

Township Supervisor Rick Stathakis also commented on the survey’s importance.

“Because of the priorities and the support of the residents, our Board has been able to focus on major issues such as improving local roads, reforming township pensions and improving facilities. This is an amazing opportunity for our residents to tell the local government exactly how they want their tax dollars spent,” he stated in a press release.

The township combines the residents’ community visioning feedback with input from the Board of Trustees and township employees. All three groups receive equal weight when setting the township’s top 10 priorities.