Climb Higher. Lead Smarter. Elevate Performance
Apple Valley Senior Community
Focus Group - Notes
1 PURPOSE
Gather senior resident input to guide Town vision and priorities. Define: The future of Apple Valley
Assess: How well the Town is doing to make progress towards that future Prioritize: Obtain input on priorities to continue to make Apple Valley a great place to live 2 MEETING DETAILS
Date: May 4, 2026
Time: 9:30 am – 10:30 am
Location: Mariposa Community Center
3 AGENDA
Topic Lead Purpose
Greet Participants;
Individual Brainstorm
Troy/Kerry Build trust, launch visioning
Welcome, Overview Art Bishop/Kerry
Whitford
Welcome and thank participants /set
the stage for the meeting
Exercise: Future Vision for
a Great Apple Valley
Troy/Residents Obtain input; identify key themes
How is Apple valley
Doing?
Kerry/Residents Clarify progress, momentum and
areas for improvement
Town Priorities/ Next
Steps
Troy/Residents Identify top priorities or share
additional opportunities for input
Q&A/Wrap Up Kerry
Whitford/All
Review key engagement
dates/deadlines & share materials
4 PARTICIPANTS
There were 15 senior community representatives present from Sun City, Jesse Ranch and Solstice Senior Living.
5 DETAILED NOTES
This focus group was designed to obtain senior residents’ perspectives on a desired future for the Town while also building awareness and support for the community visioning project.
Senior community residents were invited to share their vision of a great place to live, provide feedback on how well the Town is doing in each theme area, and identify the Council’s top investment priorities that will move the Town towards the desired vision. Using a green (good), Climb Higher. Lead Smarter. Elevate Performance
yellow (needs improving) and red (needs attention) rating system, the participants evaluated Apple Valley against how well it’s delivering on their attributes of a great Town. The table below summarizes the results.
Attribute Green Yellow Red Examples
Safety 9 2 0 Personal safety,
roads
Shopping 6 6 3 Sams Club, Hobby
Lobby
Entertainment/Activities 0 6 3 For all generations
Infrastructure 0 3 5 Roads, sidewalks
Affordable/Diverse Housing 1 5 2 Housing for young
families
Sense of
Community/Friendly
6 3 0 Small town feel
Economic Opportunity 0 1 6 Better paying jobs
Parks & Recreation 2 5 1 Trails, parks for
families
Civic Voice 6 1 0 Friendly and
accessible council
representatives
6 RESULTS
Based on these results, the current top area of satisfaction is Safety as the senior residents recognize the recent Town’s efforts and additional investment in the area as a result of Measure P. One senior resident also noted that a key attribute of a great place to live was having a Civic Voice and most participants agreed this is an area in which Apple Valley excels. Town should maintain momentum in these and other highly rated green areas.
Shopping and entertainment are areas that senior residents stated have seen improvement, but that more needs to be done to provide convenience and increase enjoyment.
The issue that needs the most attention is economic development. These senior residents expressed deep concern for future generations and whether there would be a place for them in Apple Valley without a strong economy, additional living-wage jobs and family friendly resources. Their second highest priority area for significant investment was infrastructure, especially roads and sidewalks. They recognized infrastructure as a catalyst for economic development, a safety concern and means to attract newer residents.
The meeting concluded with completion of the “Your Town – Your Voice” community vision survey.