Village of Tremont, Illinois to Undergo Strategic Vision and Action Planning Process

Tremont, IL, February 02, 2007 --(PR.com)-- The leaders and citizens of Tremont, Illinois plan to undergo a strategic vision and action process that will help them plan for and achieve future success. The Tremont/Winning Communities planning committee invites the public to attend the first planning session on Thursday, February 8 at 6:30 p.m. at the Tremont High School library.

Thanks to a combined effort of many organizations, the citizens and stakeholders of Tremont, Illinois will undergo a process to establish a vision and action plan for the future. Community consulting company Winning Communities, Inc. will facilitate the process and develop the plan.

“Given its relationship to the growing, central Illinois area, Tremont is taking the lead for the metropolitan area by developing their community vision plan,” said Jim Dittoe, founder of Winning Communities and facilitator of the Tremont strategic planning process. “This is a tremendous tribute to the leadership that exists within the Tremont community.”

The village is the first community in Illinois to participate in the Winning Communities program since Winning Communities received a formal endorsement from the Community Bankers Association of Illinois (CBAI) this summer. Two community bank executives, Jim Shafer of First National Bank of Tremont and Kendall Stewart of Tremont Savings Bank, were first to step up and lead the charge.

In late 2006, nearly 20 community leaders met to kick off the action planning process. A series of four community meetings will provide a majority of the input for the planning process. The group will examine issues and seek ideas regarding the trends, assets, challenges, and opportunities the community faces. The village has established a steering committee to coordinate the process. The steering committee, led by co-chairmen Brock Butts and Jim Sommer and Jim Dittoe of Winning Communities, will further develop the ideas gathered from the community meetings and various sources to help draft the vision and action plan. The Tremont/Winning Communities steering committee includes representatives from following organizations:

* Northfield Christian Fellowship
* Tremont Apostolic Christian Church
* Tremont Area Park District
* Tremont Baptist Church
* Tremont Betterment Association
* Tremont Commerce Association
* Tremont CUSD #702
* Tremont Fire Department
* Tremont Kiwanis Club
* Tremont Lions Club
* Tremont Masonic Lodge
* Tremont Planning Commission
* Tremont United Methodist Church
* Tremont Village Board
* Tremont Zoning Board

“We’re excited about the potential of the process and identifying the strengths and weaknesses of our community and then developing an action plan to keep our community strong for years to come,” said Brock Butts, co-chairman. “We’re hopeful that we get a good turnout (at the community meetings) because the involvement of as many people as possible will help us better define the direction of the community. We’re confident that the process and expertise that Jim Dittoe brings will make this a productive endeavor for all.”

The Tremont/Winning Communities action plan will outline a timetable, costs and resources needed, and the groups or organizations to coordinate follow-through. Upon reporting the findings to the community, the group will then establish action plan committees to follow through with the goals and objectives outlined in the plan, as well as to coordinate resources and help raise funding for new community programs and projects. With completion of the vision and action plan and appropriate follow-through, Tremont has the opportunity to receive the designation of “Certified Winning Community” by Winning Communities and CBAI.

The steering committee hopes to have input from as many individual citizens as possible during the process. The group will hold several other community-wide planning meetings for the Tremont/Winning Communities process, including February 22, March 8 and March 22 at 6:30 p.m. at Tremont High School Library. These meetings are also open to the public and the steering committee encourages all citizens and interested parties to attend. To confirm attendance at the planning meetings, please contact Chris Workman at (309) 925-3461. For more information on the process, please contact Winning Communities at (317) 402-0524, Brock Butts at (309) 925-3779 or Jim Sommer at (309) 925-3552 or email tremontbabc@yahoo.com.

About Winning Communities:
Winning Communities is a community planning consulting company that has facilitated numerous community vision and action plans for villages, cities, towns and counties. Jim Dittoe, President and Founder of Winning Communities, Inc., has been building community progress in the Midwest for more than 30 years. The Certified Winning Communities program is open to any village, city, town or county that seeks to create a vision and action plan for its future success. For more information about Winning Communities, contact Jim Dittoe at (317) 402-0524 or visit winningcommunities.com.

Media Contacts:

For Winning Communities:
Susan Young
AimFire Marketing
(317) 858-7669
syoung@aimfiremarketing.com

For Tremont:
Carol Miller
Independent Ad Services
(309) 696-6558
millerco@hughes.net

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