Strategic Plan

The City of Corvallis Strategic Plan is our long-range planning tool, which has been developed to help elected officials and City staff prioritize work and make informed long-range decisions.

The plan is designed to serve as companion to the community vision, Imagine Corvallis 2040. While the vision document laid out the community’s goals and aspirations, the Strategic Plan focuses on the City Council's framework for how municipal services can align with that vision. 

A New Focus on Strategy

Our strategic planning process started in 2017 with the first-ever Corvallis Strategic Operational Plan. This document served to highlight the policy work of the City Council and the operational programs and services required to implement those policies.

In 2024, the Council refocused and reimagined its Strategic Plan to more clearly define and prioritize the strategic outcomes the City is trying to achieve. This was important for staff and Council in supporting and sustaining the work for long-term success. The new plan was restructured to make a more concise and achievable strategic document to assist Council, staff, and the community.

The new Strategic Plan outlines five overarching outcomes with defined outcome statements and strategies that align with City priorities and resources. This greater clarity of the outcomes and priorities to achieve empowers the City’s ability to be dynamic, focused, and effective as we manage our resources and make decisions.

Taking Action

In 2026, the City rolled out an Action Plan to serve as a tool for tracking the steps the City Council and staff will be taking in order to meet the objectives outlined in the Strategic Plan. The Action Plan also serves as a tool to help the public understand how current City projects and initiatives support long-term policy goals. 

When challenging decisions come forward to the City Council dais, it's easy to forget that these nightly decisions are important stepping stones to achieve long-term policy objectives. The Action Plan shows how each individual action contributes to a long-term strategy and the success of the City.

The Action Plan does not cover all of the work that the City does in a given year. In fact, the vast majority of City resources are directed at day-to-day operation of municipal services, responding to changes in regulations or legal requirements, managing internal, operational, and capital projects, or responding to emergencies and unexpected work. Simply keeping these efforts moving along, with uninterrupted service for the general public, is the biggest accomplishment.

Following Along with Our Progress

The Strategic Plan established the policy priorities that the City is committed to in the coming years. The outcomes guiding the City's strategic efforts are:

• Economic Vitality: Foster a wide range of employment and housing opportunities where residents and businesses can prosper.
• Excellence in Governance: Continuously improve the effectiveness and efficiency of delivering services through respect and teamwork.
• Infrastructure & Amenities: Maintain, replace, and expand the City's capital assets for community development and growth.
• Long-Term Fiscal Sustainability: Provide stewardship of Corvallis's financial and physical assets to ensure the long-term fiscal health of the City.
• Safe & Resilient City: Support community safety and resilience.

We'll utilize the Action Plan to track our progress toward each outcome with quarterly reporting. The Strategic Plan and Action Plan both align with the City's fiscal year (July-June) in order to align resources in the City budget with the Strategic Plan priorities. Therefore, the first quarter in the Action Plan is July-September. The Action Plan items and timing may change and adapt throughout the year in order to reflect the current status of efforts, resource availability, or adaptations that need to be made in order to be successful.