By Jason Miller
(posted 4.6.11)

Mark your calendar: On April 16, from 9 a.m. to noon, Concrete citizens will again gather to think about what they want their town to become. A “re-imagining” workshop will be held in the Commons room at Concrete High School.

It’s been two years since the citizen-driven visioning effort called Imagine Concrete held its first workshop in April 2009. That workshop generated dozens of ideas, which were prioritized by the attendees. Today, the partial fence around the Silo Park playground, the community garden, and a Superior Building that is on its way to a second life—all exist because a group of dedicated citizens came together and decided what they wanted Concrete to become.

At the April 16 workshop, we’ll revisit the five initiatives that grew from the 2009 visioning session, and give everyone a chance to discuss them and talk about new ideas. This is your chance to make your voice be heard! Don’t say, “I hope they talk about …” Come to the workshop and bring it up! Or send someone to float your idea and see what kind of response it gets.

Motivational speaker Robert Kiyosaki said, “The size of your success is measured by the strength of your desire, the size of your dream, and how you handle disappointment along the way.” Imagine Concrete is a great place to bring your dreams and desires, discuss them, and work to build consensus on which ideas will best serve Concrete’s citizens in the long and short term.

Nobody’s claiming Imagine Concrete is perfect or foolproof. In the end, it’s an advisory body for the Concrete Town Council, and for a number of reasons, not all ideas are pursued—however popular they may be. But at the two-year mark since the first visioning workshop, this “re-imagining” workshop will provide a new starting point for everyone with an idea of how Concrete should change or stay the same.

Come to the April 16 workshop. Don’t worry about being asked to execute any idea you mention; we’ll figure out who’s willing to do what in a follow-up workshop, which probably will be held in June. Simply come with an open mind, prepared to revisit the ideas that were generated in 2009 and ready to imagine new ideas that will help renew and revitalize Concrete.

Mark your calendar now: Sat., April 16, from 9 a.m. to noon, in the Commons room at Concrete High School.

Come help create the community you want to live in.