Sustainability

Sustainability is the idea that everything that we need for our survival and well-being depends, either directly or indirectly, on our natural environment. To pursue sustainability is to create and maintain the conditions under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony to support present and future generations.

- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

Sustainability Action Plan (SAP)

The City is currently working on its first Sustainability Action Plan! The objective of the SAP is to provide a broad and comprehensive perspective on community sustainability and is intended to address environmental, economic, and social equity goals. The plan will consider interrelated issues such as climate change, population change, land use, infrastructure, natural resource management, quality of life, public health, and economic development. 


Phase II Update:

Phase II of the SAP is currently under construction. A draft of plan will be presented to City Council on October 25, 2022, at the 5:30 PM Presentation Meeting and will also be streamed on the City's YouTube channel. After the event, the link of the YouTube recording will be available on the website. 

To view the draft SAP Phase II, use the following links:

To provide input on the Sustainability Action Plan,

Phase I Update:

To view the previous community engagement of the SAP visit the project website at . The website has three key features: information on the previous December 9th, 2021, Public Workshop that took place at the Council Chambers inside City Hall (555 S Washington Ave); the previous Online Survey; and an Idea Wall where the community was able to discuss Sustainability. Additionally, watch the Youtube video from November 23, 2021, to learn more about Phase I efforts of the SAP.

What is Sustainability?

The goal of sustainability, as described by the U.S. National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) is to "create and maintain conditions, under which humans and nature can exist in productive harmony, that permit fulfilling the social, economic, and other requirements of present and future generations. There are three core pillars of sustainability: Environmental Protection, Sustainable Economic Development, and Social Equity. Venn Diagram of the three pillars of Sustainability.