The Agenda for a Better Community (ABC) is a grassroots effort by a small and growing group of residents of Valparaiso, Indiana to put down on paper the elements that we believe are necessary in a healthy, thriving, just and sustainable community.
Valparaiso continues to grow and change; with that comes both challenges and opportunities. We cannot continue to use 20th-century solutions for 21st-century problems, but we instead must innovate to work toward the future prosperity and strength of Valpariso in ways that serves ALL OF VALPARAISO. We cannot shy away from difficult conversations, but we instead must address the issues that our community is facing head on with the view to serving the greater public good. We cannot sit by and watch the world change around us, but we must help to lead that change to ensure that Valparaiso is a city where all people have the opportunity to succeed.
7 Strategic Priorities For Our Community Include
Welcoming Community
Our goal is to make Valparaiso a truly welcoming city for all and serve as a model for other communities on how to accommodate to the inevitable changing demographics that all cities will experience.
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Affordable Housing
We support the concept of Quality Housing for All — which includes quality housing for those persons at the lowest income levels.
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Educational Opportunities
The right to education is fundamental to our nation and should be to our community as well. Education is only valuable if it meets the disparate needs of and is accessible to all seeking it.
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Healthy Community
Supporting and promoting access to high quality and affordable care services and ensuring that Valparaiso is a healthy community in which to live and work.
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Equitable Economy
Developing an economic base that offers all residents the ability to make a living to support themselves and their families and building opportunities for many different skills sets and experiences.
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Sustainable Environment
Acknowledging the importance and urgency of caring for our environment to ensure a healthy, clean and beautiful environment throughout our community.
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Safe Community
Creating a community this is committed to assuring that safety for all of the people who live or work or visit here.
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Addressing both the challenges and opportunities facing our city means working collaboratively throughout Valparaiso and empowering all members of our community to take leadership roles in these seven priority areas. It involves recognizing the many forms of community building that happen daily in Valpo to improve our city’sfuture and create a more inclusive community.
You can download the full Agenda For a Better Community here.
