Long Range Planning review meeting

Last night we held a meeting to start the review process for our Long Range Planning. I was glad to see a good turnout - 20 people attended. We sat in a circle and had a wide-ranging discussion. I thought the atmosphere of our meeting was positive and forward-looking.

This was the first of three meetings to review our LRP efforts, as I explained in the April newsletter. I explained the process we've created to review the LRP, and handed out a Flow Chart to illustrate the process, and we discussed the plan. (I've uploaded these documents to a new page on our website where you may find them.)

Then I handed out a Brief History of LRP at St. Antony's, and we went over it. Many helpful suggestions were made to make it more accurate. The goal is to take this history and make it into a wall display in the narthex. The display will be a time-line that is very large and easy to read from a distance.

Most of the people attending were people who have lived through our various attempts to get a new building, and I expressed my appreciation for their years of hard work and dedication. I also stressed the need to communicate the history of LRP to our newer members. My goal is to get the whole parish to buy into the process so that whatever decision we make, it's a parish-wide decision.

I brought a new piece of information to the meeting which has the potential to change everything. We've been notified by the diocese that there's a piece of land at the corner of Clear Creek Road and Half-Mile Road that we may be able to buy for a reasonable amount. If this should come to fruition, it would mean that we have an entirely new set of decisions to make. However, I still think it's a good idea for us to start the LRP review process now.

It was clear by the comments in the room that some people are in favor of moving ahead with the plans we've developed so far, while some are reluctant to take on such a big project and would prefer a more modest approach. As we move through the process, everyone will have a chance to give their opinion.

It was a good start to what may be a long process!
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