Entered by: City of Williamsburg

Every two years, the City of Williamsburg, Virginia gathers public input as part of its strategic planning process, called Goals, Initiatives, and Outcomes (GIO).

Due to COVID restrictions, the last time the City hosted in-person public input sessions for its GIO process was in 2018. That year, only about 50 residents — many of whom are familiar faces at City meetings — attended two sessions held in meeting rooms at a central location of the City. Those input sessions took place in the meeting room of a City building located in the downtown area and used a typical format to solicit the input - a prepared presentation of project ideas, followed by a facilitated conversation on suggested strategies.