Times Observer photo by Josh Cotton Wednesday marked the second of two days of meetings held at the city building as part of the comprehensive planning process. Those sessions included consultants on the project including Brandi Rosselli with Mackin Engineering, left, as well as many local stakeholders such as, left to right, Dan Glotz, Kevin Sheldon and Mike Suppa.

The priorities that will direct municipal government in the City of Warren for the next decade are starting to come into focus.

Another round of stakeholder meetings concluded Wednesday evening.

The first two sessions were held on March 23 and dealt with the downtown and business development.

Wednesday’s sessions included discussion of assets in the city as well as targeted areas for land use.

Brandi Rosselli with Mackin Engineering, the consultant working on the project on behalf of the city, said that this marks an attempt at prioritizing the action items – projects, proposals, funding sources, etc. – that will ultimately be presented to the city in the final plan.

This round of sessions was invite-only but a second public meeting is scheduled for May 10.

Rosselli said the feedback from these sessions will inform the recommendations taken to that public meeting in May. The final plan, then, will be written over the summer.

The first session identified some key challenges that the community faces, identifying that the community has a “big heart” but apathy and negativity.

“It’s just some of the blanket opposition to change of any sort,” Parks & Recreation Commission Chair Mike Suppa said.

“A lot of the best ideas come from a lot of you here together,” Denny Puko, a consultant on the project, said. “Plus just a lot of things you all know that we don’t know.”

He specifically asked attendees to identify ideas, tactics and programs that might be appropriately included in the plan.

Part of the asset discussion was the historic nature of the community.

Warren County Historical Society Managing Director Michelle Gray commented on the degree of historic preservation that the town’s residents have maintained.

“(I) found it remarkable, the upkeep, and how they main the structure in the historic district of their own accord,” she said, calling the downtown historic district a “great source of pride for this community.”

Possible priorities identified include boosting the availability of financing as well as the availability of information in the community.

“Resources in general is important,” John Papalia, WCCBI director of chamber operations and tourism, said, specifically in a new business context. “Often people just don’t know where to turn. There are resources out there. It’s an awareness.”

“There is a strong philanthropy in Warren County,” Puko said, identifying another asset.

He stressed the importance of getting “people to want to come to Warren.”

Discussion came up about other plans that have been developed in the past.

Rosselli said there have been a lot of plans but not a lot of implementation and that the goal of this planning process is to change that.

The land use session shifted from ideas to specific locations in the city.

Unsurprisingly, the first item was the city’s riverfront.

Other areas identified included the western side of Liberty St., spotty blight throughout the city, gateways and entrances into the city and items like sidewalks.