Every Voice Matters: Citizen Engagement Plan

Abstract

This project was completed as part of the 2017-2018 Resilient Communities Project (rcp.umn.edu) partnership with the City of Ramsey. In 2006, the City of Ramsey embarked on a major overhaul of how it approaches public participation through a grass roots public engagement effort known as Ramsey3. Although the City has made great strides in engaging with residents about land use decisions, street reconstruction projects, and project proposal reviews, a biannual citywide survey suggests that residents would like additional civic and volunteer opportunities to get involved in their community on other issues. Students in Dr. Dan Milz’s Planning and Participation Processes class evaluated the city’s current engagement methods, identified guiding principles for effective public engagement through a literature review and case studies, identified a range of engagement methods and tools for the City to consider, and offered recommendations for the City going forward. A final report and poster are available.