Arlington Vision 2020 Survey: It's Been Around Since 1995

ARLINGTON, MA — Right now as Arlington residents are getting the annual census in the mail, they're also getting directions on how to respond to the Vision 2020 survey, which for the first time since the 1995s will be online.

What exactly is Vision 2020? The initiative started back in the early 1990s with a group of concerned citizens, who were not happy about the communication (or perceived lack-there-of) between the government and schools. They brought in outside facilitators and then sat down with selectmen and the school committee and came up with this overarching set of goals for the town, said the Arlington Town Manager. In 1993, Town Meeting voted to adopt it.

"What has lasted to this day is a stable set of principles and good communication between the town and schools," said Town Manager Adam Chapdelaine.

It also launched a number of volunteer task groups based on that set of principles. The activity and participation on said task groups - everything from a Spy Pond water quality group to arts and culture, education and diversity have varied over the years. But, says Chapdelaine, a good number of them have been active throughout.

"It's a good first stop for an interested citizen to get involved and help influence town government," he said.

Nearly three decades

"It's hard to just pin point direct tangible accomplishments, because most of it is planning and dialogue related," said Chapdelaine who has only been in his position since 2010.

"But the fact that the town and the schools have agreed on budget numbers for the better part of the past decade and were able to pass an override in 2011, and multi debt exclusions since then have a lot to do with the civil dialogue that the Vision 2020 has laid out in the community," he said.

Town Meeting Member Juli Brazile who has been the Vision 2020 Standing Committee chairwoman since 2014, says the survey has helped provide vital information for the town and been a constant and valuable vehicle for people to express their opinions and share their thoughts.

"It impacts things large and small. Some years you learn something actionable, others it's something that informs next steps," said Brazile. She pointed out how the economic development at the planning office put in a bunch of questions about people who work out of their homes a few years ago, took it and the data ended up helping to bring WorkBar to town. The library has asked questions about services being used, to help decide when to stay open, based on how survey respondents say they used the library, she said.

At least one other community has reached out to Arlington to model a program on Arlington's, said Chapdelaine.

So what's this survey about?

Each year the group puts together a set of questions based on what seems pertinent and based on what town departments and groups need.

Various town departments both guide the questions as they consider making budgetary decisions, and use the responses to see if they're on the same page with what voters are interested in.

Questions this year focused on Arts and culture, learning more about community choice aggregation program to see how it was received and whether the town explained it well and what the town can do better in the future. There's also a question about trees. That, says Brazile, stems from the spotlight on the issue on Cowett Road in 2017.

What happens when 2020 is here?

The leaders of Vision 2020 have started a dialogue looking at a name change and an update to make sure they're still as effective as they were when they began in the 1990s.

"Arlington is so different, now," said Brazile. "Back when Vision 2020 was started, the internet was barely a thing. There's stuff we want to rethinking and update and engage."

"What's unique about this is you're not serving on a board or commission per say, so you don't have to run or get elected but yet it still gives you and op to have a voice and engage with the leaders of the town," Chapdelaine said.

"It's been a really interesting thing to work on. It's an awesome testament to Arlington and it's fun," said Brazile. And speaking of which, the volunteer effort is looking for a few more people to help enter and analyze the data this year.

It won't be as arduous as previous years when it was all paper copies, completed and tabulated by hand, she promises. "It's always been a labor of love," she said. "It's a great way to give back to Arlington," she said.

As of noon on Saturday only 700 people had completed the survey, but there's still time.

Some 6,400 households have responded each year for the past four years, she said. "That's a lot of data."

And, she says, it's evenly distributed across precincts, ages, and newcomers and those who are lifers.

And, yes, there are a couple paper copies available at the library or senior center for those who haven't mastered the computer, but Brazile says she's hoping not to have too many of those to enter manually into the system as they're much more more prone to error.

The background from the 2009 Arlington Annual Report:

Town Goals covering the areas of Business, Communication, Community and Citizen Service, Culture and Recreation, Diversity, Education, Environment, Fiscal Resources, and Governance were adopted as bylaw at the 1993 Annual Town Meeting for the “…Town to consider as it conducts its business.”

These goals are supported by individual task groups which have representatives on the Standing Committee. Three additional groups have formed under the Environment Task Group - the Spy Pond, Reservoir, and Sustainable Arlington Committees. The Standing Committee also includes Town leadership and a student representative from Arlington High School.

These endeavors range from awareness/appreciation pieces on Town resources, to planning for improvement of Town practices, to research and development of Town Meeting warrant articles, to forums on emerging issues, as well as publications, and actual physical improvements.

The guiding principles worked out? Check out the website.

Previously on Patch:

Arlington Residents Rally To Save Trees And Win — For Now

Photo by Jenna Fisher/Patch