Learning Lab Webinars

Presented by Polco & National Research Center

Last Learning Lab Webinar:

Morro Bay’s Secret to Successful Community Outreach

Revealed: How to unlock the voice of hard-to-reach residents on crucial issues

When cities face complex dilemmas, community leaders need a greater variety of data to know how to proceed.

There is one tried-and-true resource cities can always tap into: resident input. But reaching residents and stakeholders to gather valuable feedback can sometimes be a challenge.

When short-term rentals, including Airbnb, started increasing quickly in Morro Bay, Calif., the City knew it needed guidance from its community on how best to act.

The City dove in head first, but did not start where other local governments might. Most cities may initially turn to social media to solicit feedback. But for Morro Bay, while some residents use the City’s social media sites, most followers are out-of-town tourists, not stakeholders fully invested in the community. So a plan centered around social media would not have been ideal. A more comprehensive strategy to engage elusive community opinions was needed.

In this Polco Learning Lab Webinar, join featured speakers Scott Collins, Morro Bay City Manager, and Cory Poris Plasch, Polco / National Research Center (NRC) Vice President of Client Success. Together they’ll reveal Morro Bay’s many secrets to successfully reaching verified community stakeholder voices.

You’ll also learn:

Creative and impactful ways to reach out and engage hard-to-reach residents
How pairing paper surveys with online results can impact insights
How to best utilize community partners to maximize returns
The crucial role community data plays in task forces and committees

Featured speaker Scott Collins has served Morro Bay as City Manager since 2017. Prior to moving to Morro Bay, Scott was the Deputy City Manager of Santa Cruz, Calif. Scott also served as Assistant to the City Manager for Boulder, Colo. and Senior Budget Analyst for the City and County of Denver, Colo. He received an MPA from George Washington University and BA in History from the University of California, Santa Cruz.

Host Cory Poris Plasch is the Vice President of Client Success for Polco. She previously served in leadership positions, including Executive Director of the Wisconsin City/County Management Association and Membership Director for the Alliance for Innovation. She worked as a 911 dispatcher and in the City Manager’s Office in several Illinois communities. She has spoken around the country on topics including the use of data, civic engagement, and innovation in local government. While employed at Northern Illinois University, Cory co-authored research papers for local government including an article on shared service delivery which was published in a peer-reviewed, professional journal.

Register now for this free webinar and discussion! Can’t make the date? Sign up anyway and we’ll send you the recording.