South Central Dakota Regional Council
Report date
May 2017
What has been most instrumental to your progress?
Our Community Discussions and Educational Meeting were instrumental in learning those issues that need to be addressed in each community. This process told us what is being done currently and what needs to be changed for the future.
Gathering information from individuals providing inspector services and learning the steps that need to be in place to make a lasting change for the communities. Authority lies with the jurisdictions themselves, not with the state.
Key lessons learned
Consistent staffing is important to keep the project running smoothly. Staff turnover diverts focus from moving the project forward to training. Maintaining a continued vision through multiple staff changes is challenging.
It is important to continue ongoing discussions within the communities as the project progresses to keep our project in the forefront of the region.
Ordinances for cities and townships must be in place for authority to exist. Developing a single program to serve the nine county region is not realistic due to travel time.
Reflections on the community innovation process
Increase collective understanding of the issue.
Progress toward an innovation
We identified that ordinances need to be in place to establish authority within jurisdictions to sustain change. The focus of the project changed to authority and enforcement per jurisdiction rather than a regional building inspector.
What it will take to reach an innovation?
Work needs to be continued with jurisdictions to establish and administer affordable ordinances while educating jurisdictions on their authority.
What's next?
Establish funding methods that will decrease costs to jurisdictions and supply them with updated ordinances and comprehensive plans.
If you could do it all over again...
Continue to move the project forward, keeping any down time minimal to keep the public engaged. Re-evaluation of the budget, making necessary changes as the project progresses. Required staff time was more than originally budgeted.