Envisioning greatness

Imagine a community where all the pieces for vibrant future fall into place. A perfectly planned place where everything from schools to the environment to health care and even government operations are finely tuned for optimum living conditions.

That’s the forward-thinking objective of CDA 2030, a community-based project created six years ago to develop a vision for a bright future for greater Coeur d’Alene—and a plan to get there.

“Rather than being reactive, our organization strives to establish a shared vision of values and goals and then work to create a path for achieving those goals,” says CDA 2030 executive director Nicole Kahler.

“Community visioning offers communities new ways to think about and plan for the future,” she adds. “It’s a planning process through which a community creates a shared vision for its future and begins to make it a reality.”

Since CDA 2030’s inception in 2013, thousands of residents have participated in the community planning process through public workshops, forums and online platforms involving an alliance of citizen volunteers representing key public, private, civic, and community-based organizations, working in partnership to sponsor a ‘visioning’ process for our community.

The city of Coeur d’Alene has an integral role in the visionary process, said Hilary Anderson, the city’s community planning director who serves on CDA 2030’s board of directors and acts as a liaison between the city and CDA 2030.

“Of the 180 actions items in the 2030 implementation plan, about half are city-led,” Anderson said. Topping the list are aligning the visionary focus on updating the city’s comprehensive land use plan and the revitalization of East Sherman Avenue.

Other areas of interest, Anderson said, are expanding winter recreational opportunities, and moving forward with plans for a performing arts center and health corridor.