WATERVILLE — Strengthening housing stability and expanding home ownership are among the City Council’s top goals for 2026.

The council voted Feb. 17 to approve the goals, which also include growing the tax base, diversifying funding and improving quality of life for residents. The council discussed the goals at a council retreat held Jan. 10.

Council Chairman Brandon Gilley, D-Ward 1, said Tuesday he’s excited by the goals.

“Waterville has momentum,” Gilley said. “These priorities ensure we grow thoughtfully, stressing housing, expanding opportunities, improving city services and promoting long-term fiscal stability for our residents.”

Councilor Rebecca Green, D-Ward 4, said Tuesday that she believes the goals are ambitious but doable. The council’s annual retreat provides an opportunity to step back, review where the city has been, look at goals of the previous year and set goals for the coming year.

Green said she thinks the goal setting process this year was the best one yet because it was held early in January and because Nicholas Cloutier, the new city manager, was present after several years of instability on that role.

Green, who stepped down from the council chair position in January, also chaired the city’s former housing committee, which started meeting in 2021 and completed its work and issued a report in 2024.

The council, she said, plans to review the new goals every three months. The top five goal takeaways are:

• Strengthen housing stability and expand home ownership: Councilors plan to work to increase stable housing, particularly single-family homes, while also trying to prevent housing loss; work with developers and property owners to help increase housing units; address blighted and unsafe buildings; explore infrastructure expansion; start developing a housing study; discuss reestablishing the city’s housing committee; develop funding avenues to address emergency housing needs; and improve public communication related to housing progress and resources.
  
• Grow the tax base through strategic development: the council plans to encourage redevelopment; enhance economic vitality and work to make the city attractive for families and employers by modernizing zoning that limits redevelopment; coordinate infrastructure planning with economic development needs; align with downtown and comprehensive plans; strengthen engagement with developers; and work to attract and retain families via school and community partnerships.
  
• Diversify funding in a sustainable way while being aware of capacity: Evaluate staffing needs and add capacity only if sustainable; use a grant-vetting process aligned with priorities; explore acquisition and sale of selective property; and leverage partnerships with regional organizations, nonprofits, schools and neighboring municipalities.
  
• Improve customer service and communication: Work to make city government more effective and accessible through improved communication and consistent follow-through by holding regular workshops for deeper public discussion about priorities; improving councilor training; strengthening communication with residents; and aligning budget decisions and policy work with council goals.
  
• Enhancing quality of life: Work to improve pedestrian and bike mobility; explore citywide mobility, parking and transit; support families and schools through stronger collaboration; and look at options for improving local public health coordination.

Green, the Ward 4 councilor, said she thinks it’s also important the council came up with “some concrete action steps which I think will be very helpful.”

“Obviously, increasing the tax base is always a goal, but there are some very specific things,” Green said. “We’re also trying to make sure that people are aware of what our goals are.”