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Vision project turns a corner tonight Medford citizens' ideas will go to steering panel By JIM DAVIS Scores of Medford residents have spent the past six weeks coming up with their "vision" for the city on issues ranging from transportation to arts and culture to public safety. The first phase of the vision project will end tonight when the ideas brainstormed from those meetings will be passed to the city's Vision Steering Committee, said Preston Polasek, an assistant to the city manager. "This really is the culmination of the public participation," Polasek said. "It's a lot to get through in one night." The city's vision project -- a statement of the community's highest aspirations -- is intended to guide decisions by city government for years. About 339 people signed up for the project when it kicked off in February. About 75 people attended the last meeting last week at the Reston Hotel in Medford. The steering committee was hand-picked by Medford Mayor Lindsay Berryman to boil down the community's vision statements. Tonight's meeting will be divided into two portions: one for the youth project and one for the overall community. It is open to the public at the Council Chambers of Medford City Hall at 411 W. Eighth St. It can also be seen on cable Channel 30, the public access television channel. The first portion of the meeting is scheduled from 5:30 to 6:15 p.m. During that time, the steering committee will see a 12-minute video from Medford Unplugged, a forum held in February by 32 high school students expressing their visions for Medford. Nan Hannon, education coordinator for the Mail Tribune, will make a presentation to the committee. The Mail Tribune sponsored the youth project, and took in 547 entries of essays, artwork and other projects from children and teenagers. "It's going to be pretty special to hear what the kids came up with," Polasek said. "I'm looking forward to it." The second half of the meeting will run from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Each of the seven Technical Advisory Committees will present "their vision and critical elements of the vision," Polasek said. ``I'm expecting an oral presentation with a few visual aids." The steering committee will meet once in April and present a final report to the Medford City Council in May. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA