Town council will prepare for retreat

The La Conner Town Council will hold a special meeting 5 p.m. July 11 to prepare for a six hour retreat July 24. That starts the creation of a preliminary SWOT analysis BERK Consulting will use to shape the retreat, Town Administrator Scott Thomas said Monday. The goal of council and staff will be to develop a five-year strategic plan by the end of the year.

BERK staff will take the discussion summary and combine it with the surveys residents have submitted all spring and with summaries from the meetings council’s ad hoc communications committee has gathered since March 2022. The consultants will be identifying concerns from the local government, residents and businesses to shape the retreat agenda.

BERK is a Seattle consulting firm. Thomas said BERK was the firm most cited by council members when he polled them. Its contract is for $13,000 and the total cost is less than $15,000 with building rental and food.

The retreat will be at Vaux Retreat Center in Bakerview Park in Mount Vernon.

SWOT stands for Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. An analysis allows members to think about the issues ahead of the longer session Thomas said.

The regular July 11 council meeting follows at 6 p.m.

Access the meeting on the Town’s website through the calendar/

Meeting ID: 858 1797 6188. Phone: 1-253-215-8782. Passcode: 140556.