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Peter Dunn
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May 21, 2012
Every week, Knowledge Network users post interesting new questions on the issues facing their communities and organizations. Here are a few of the latest questions and answers from last week.
And don't miss the Knowledge Network's blogs. This week, ICMA’s Cory Fleming finds new and innovative uses of 311 at the Association of Government Contact Center Professional’s conference, and CityLinks explores resilience to climate change.
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Peter Dunn
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May 14, 2012
Check out some of the new content and conversations on to the Knowledge Network last week:
Questions
Blog Posts
Documents
New! Don’t miss the new search functionality on the Questions page. Thousands of answers on every local government issue are now just a quick search away.
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Peter Dunn
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May 7, 2012
The Knowledge Network was busy with questions, blog posts, and more last week. Here's a look at some of the activity you may have missed:
New Questions
New Blog Posts
CityLinks has posts on how a name-brand dairy company is leading in international development and what North American communities can teach the developing world about sustainability. Read about transparency vs. privacy, linking citizens to local government, and starting a new contact center in the 311/CRM Systems blog. And don’t miss the chance to meet Alan Rosen of Washoe County, Nev., the current featured user, to learn how the Knowledge Network helps him do his job.
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Peter Dunn
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May 1, 2012
A rare overcast day in the biggest little city in the world, seat of Washoe County.
Our currently featured Knowledge Network user serves the public in a place that enjoys 300 sunny days per year. Alan Rosen, budget manager of Washoe County, Nev., recently came to Reno from Georgia. Now living in the “biggest little city in the world,” he has easy access to Lake Tahoe and Yosemite National Park, but there’s plenty to keep him busy with his work in Washoe County.
It’s no surprise that Alan’s main area of focus is budget, but he combines that with specializations in performance measurement and process improvement. Approaching these three areas together lets him “see the full picture of organizations and processes,” Alan says. When working with his colleagues and the public, this point of view “helps to clarify what’s important and how to provide services more efficiently and effectively.” Of course, there’s more to local government than running the numbers, and Alan appreciates the opportunity to learn about such a wide range of topics. “Public safety, recycling, air quality, social services, libraries, parks, the list goes on and on,” he says. “What other profession provides so much variety in one setting?”
The Knowledge Network is a very useful tool for Alan and other ICMA members to get quick access to information on those topics. It also “helps point me in the right direction when I’m not sure what questions to ask,” Alan says. “Sometimes when I ask, people’s answers move me in a direction I had not thought of previously and helps me understand the full breadth of my inquiry.”
After the budget books are closed, Alan’s passion is writing for film and television. While living in Georgia, he wrote, produced, and directed a show about traveling through the state on the cheap. “Georgia on a Budget” was even nationally recognized with an honorable mention in the Hometown Video Awards. No word yet on whether his next production will feature Washoe County native Dawn Wells, best known as Mary Ann from “Gilligan’s Island.”
Learn more about Alan Rosen in his Knowledge Network profile, and be sure to create or update your own profile to help your colleagues get to know you!
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Peter Dunn
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April 30, 2012
There was a great range of new conversations and resources on the Knowledge Network last week. Here's a quick sample:
Questions
If you have an answer, sign in and share your experience!
Documents
Several users submitted documents from their communities this week. Have a resource to share? Help out your colleagues by submitting it to the Knowledge Network.
Blog Posts
Lisa Soronen of the State and Local Legal Center reports on the immigration case before Supreme Court and what it means for local government. ICMA’s Cory Fleming posts on the changing mix of communication modes and 311 service level agreements. (311/CRM Systems)
See what else interests you in one of the Knowledge Network's 200 topics.
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Peter Dunn
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April 23, 2012
In case you missed it, here’s a quick look at some of the highlights from the Knowledge Network last week. There are plenty of great questions that are still looking for answers, so jump right in if you have any insight to share!
New Questions
New Blog Posts
And don’t miss new documents from Governing magazine on managing absenteeism and plastic bag bans as a local sustainability effort.
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Peter Dunn
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April 13, 2012
Filled with sample contracts, job descriptions, RFPs, articles, reports, and more, the Knowledge Network's document library is your first stop for local government research. But with more than 7,000 documents, which ones rise to the top?
In March 2012, our 42 most popular documents, listed below, were each viewed an average of at least once per day. They come from cities, towns, and counties large and small; from industry and association partners; and of course from the Knowledge Network partners, ICMA and the Alliance for Innovation. Covering a wide range of topics, including career resources, form of government, leadership, public safety, sustainability, libraries, special events, citizen engagement, and social media, to name a few, these resources reflect the diversity of the local government issues.
What about the rest of those documents? A total of 2,135 documents were viewed at least once last month, making this a remarkably broad resource for thousands of users looking for local government info. That leaves just under 70% of the library sitting untouched on the shelf, but those documents will be there when you need them!
Does your organization have a useful resource to add to the list? Submit a document to help thousands of local government professionals learn from your experience. Contributions directly from local government keep the Knowledge Network most relevant to its users.
Most viewed documents, March 2012
- ICMA Code of Ethics with Guidelines (ICMA)
- Putting Smart Growth to Work in Rural Communities (ICMA)
- Organizational Development Manager Job Description (City of Rockville, Md.)
- Sustainability Manager Job Description (City of Durham, N.C.)
- Maximize the Potential of Your Public Library (ICMA)
- A Manager's Guide to Evaluating Citizen Participation (IBM Center for the Business of Government)
- Coping with Crisis: How are local governments reinventing themselves in the wake of the great recession? (Carl Stenberg, ICMA Governmental Affairs and Policy Committee)
- Facts You Should Know: 2012 Fact Sheet - State and municipal bankruptcy, municipal bonds, and state and local pensions (ICMA, et al.)
- The Future of Local Government (Alliance for Innovation)
- The City of Carrollton, TX Celebrates 10 Successful Years as Managed Competition Practitioners (City of Carrollton, Tex.)
- Using Data to Right-Size Police and Fire (ICMA)
- City Manager Performance Evaluation (University of Tennessee Institute for Public Service)
- 2011 ICMA Solar Survey Summary Results (ICMA)
- First-Time Administrators Handbook (ICMA)
- ICMA's 2011 CAO Salary Survey Results for Cities by State and Population Group (ICMA)
- City Manager Evaluation Form (City of Bonner Springs, Kan.)
- March is National Ethics Awareness Month: Make Ethics Your Personal Cause (ICMA)
- Smarter, Faster, Cheaper: An Operations Efficiency Benchmarking Study of 100 American Cities (IBM’s Public Sector Strategy and Innovation Practice)
- ICMA 2010 Sustainability Survey Results (ICMA)
- Council-Manager Form of Government: Frequently Asked Questions (ICMA)
- ICMA 2011 CAO Salary and Compensation Survey Results (ICMA)
- Forms of Local Government Structure (ICMA)
- City Attorney Performance Evaluation Form (League of California Cities)
- Memorandum of Understanding for Land Purchase and Redevelopment (Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority)
- ICMA Code of Ethics (ICMA)
- Sample Library Strategic Planning RFP (Town of Mooresville, Ind.)
- What Works: Sample Procurement Case Study (ICMA)
- Recruitment Guidelines for Selecting a Local Government Administrator (ICMA)
- Local Government Use of Social Media to Prepare for Emergencies (ICMA)
- Report and Recommendations regarding a new Organizational Structure for the Police and Fire Departments (City of Walker, Mich.)
- Sample Manager Severance Agreement (ICMA)
- Benchmarking Challenges for High Performance Organizations (City of Carlsbad, Calif.)
- Citizen Feedback Survey: Business License Office (City of Atlanta, Ga.)
- E-Government 2011 Survey Summary (ICMA)
- County of Sonoma Executive Development IV (Sonoma County, Calif.)
- Organization Chart Unique with Circles and Topics (City of Novi, Mich.)
- Connected Communities: Local Governments as a Partner in Citizen Engagement and Community Building (Alliance for Innovation)
- PMP (Performance Management Plus) Project Proposal (Douglas County, Nev.)
- Volunteer Job Description Form (City of Roseville, Calif.)
- Special Event Comment Card (Town of Cary, N.C.)
- Process Improvement Tools: Progressive Techniques to Simplify Government Processes (Craig Rapp, et al.)
- What Works: Information Technology Sample Case Study (ICMA)
There's plenty more where that came from! Check out the full document library to search filter by document type, or browse documents in a topic of interest.
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Alexandra Iannolo
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March 9, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Kilgore, Tex.’s May ballot will include amendments to the charter, many suggested by City Manager Scott Sellers as a way to bring the charter up to date with the city's current standard operating procedures. (Kilgore News Herald)
- Flora, Ill. City Council and City Administrator Randy Bukas passed a resolution to update the control panel used by the Raintree Subdivision sewer lift station and another ordinance restraining the number of liquor licenses. (Advocate Press)
- Birgitta Corsello, County Administrator of Solano County, Calif. has announced the selection of a new Human Resources Director. (The Reporter)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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March 2, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Assistant City Manager of Mesquite, Tex. Jerome Dittman is hoping the launch of the city’s new shuttle service will help pave the way for a future light rail system. (CBS-DFW)
- Loudoun County, Va. Administrator Tim Hemstreet has begun discussion with the county on the two potential budgets he presented the board. One plan would decrease the average homeowner’s tax bill by 5 percent and the other would keep them at the same rate, with different cuts associated with each plan. (The Washington Post)
- City Administrator Joe Helfenberger has suggested providing tablets and laptops to Ottumwa, Iowa city employees to help improve office communication and save paper. (The Heartland Connection)
- In an effort to end an ongoing debate over the area’s water utility Falls Church, Va. City Manager Wyatt Shields has proposed joining Fairfax Water with the Falls Church’s system. (The Washington Post)
- City Manager Angel Jones announced that gains in 2013 budget will allow the Ciy of Gaithersburg, Md. to take on new projects and hire more people this year. (Gazette.Net)
- Stockton, Calif. City Manager Robert Deis has recommended city leaders hold their debt-service payments on bonds while they negotiates with creditors. (Chicago Tribune)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 24, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Interim County Administrator Frank Rogers announced that the Bedford County, Va. proposed 2013 budget will keep taxes and spending even. (The News and Advance)
- Bristol, Tenn. City Manager Jeffrey Broughton and the City Council are considering a five-year capital improvement plan to accomplish all the long put off projects throughout the city. (TriCities.com)
- Jackson County, Mich. Deputy County Administrator Adam Brown announced that the budget for 2013 would need to cut $500,000 in spending. (MI Live)
- Adam Chapdelaine, the former City Administrator of Arlington has been promoted to Town Manager. (The Herald News)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 17, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Sedgwick, Kans. County Manager William Buchanan is working with other local leaders to reduce the deficit to zero by next year. (Kansas.com)
- City Manager Chris Brady is working with local businesses to help start light rail construction in Mesa, Ariz. by spring. (The East Valley Tribune)
- Marin County's treasury has $14.8 million more than expected, and a third of the extra money may be earmarked to pay down pension debt.
- Marin County, Calif. Administrator Matthew Hymel recently announced that the city was unexpectedly able to save over $14.8 million this fiscal year. (Marin Independent Journal)
- Scott County, Iowa received at A+ rating on their county website. These high marks are due in part to a two year effort by County Administrator Dee Bruemmer and other county leaders to increase transparency through the website. (Quad City Times)
- Gilroy, Calif. City Administrator Tom Haglund reported that over the past fiscal year revenue from the sales tax has increased dramatically. (Gilroy Dispatch)
- County Manager Barbara Donnellan from Arlington, Va. wants to implement a 3-percent rise in the minimum hourly rate paid under the county government’s newly proposed “living wage” ordinance. (Sun Gazette)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 16, 2012
Compressed natural gas (CNG) is becoming a popular fuel alternative for many local government vehicles. As the price of gasoline continues to increase, local leader are looking towards the future of fuels as a way to save money now. Some tricks can help conserve gasoline in conventional vehicles, but these are not creating the long-term savings many districts need. Fueling fleet vehicles puts a particularly big strain on already tightening local budgets. Just as necessity is the mother of invention, when it comes to fleets, necessity is the mother of going green.
Last year Dane County, Wis. used a federal grant to purchase vehicles that run on compressed natural gas in an effort to save money on fuel. Some governments have taken this process a step further by developing their own systems for processing natural gas to essentially make their own fuel. After a political debate, DeKalb County, Ga.voted to produce compressed natural gas from its landfill. The fuel they create will power their own sanitation trucks and be sold to the public. Similarly, the City of Grand Junction and Mesa County, Colo. worked together to develop the Persigo Waste Water Treatment Plant so it could also convert naturally occurring gasses in the system into fuel.
There have also been many questions on the Knowledge Network about CNG benefits, uses, and processes.
This discussion includes information on what Pittsburgh and places in the United Kingdom did to develop and maintain CNG fueling centers for their fleets. You can also read more about CNG fuel options on the U.S. Department of Energy website.
This answer includes an affidavit for use of alternative fleet fuels from Chicago. The Clean Vehicle Education Foundation wrote a press release detailing safe transition practices for using alternative fuels. You can also view a sample contract for CNG services from the state of Texas.
The Knowledge Network also offers a number of documents and articles about CNG and how local governments are using it to save money and help the environment.
Diversifying Your Fuel Supply: The town of Fairfield, Conn. used a grant to incorporate CNG into its system even early on.
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 10, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Bruce Zimmerman, City Administrator of Hagerstown, Md., took part in a meeting where the preliminary budget for fiscal year 2012-13 was introduced. Officials are hopeful that they can balance the budget without a tax increase. (Hagerstown (MD) Herald-Mail)
- Bettendorf City, Iowa proposed a budget for the next fiscal year that includes a 10-cent decrease in the property tax rate; increases in the garbage, storm water and sewer fees; and no funding to hire additional firefighters. City Administrator Decker Ploehn stated that this was in an effort to preserve services to the public. (Quad-City Times)
- The city of Portsmouth, N.H. faces some controversy over a possible closing of a fire station. City Manager John Bohenko is working with officials and the public to reach an agreement. (Portsmouth (NH) Patch)
- City Manager David Molgaard of Charlestown City, W.Va. faces difficult police cuts due to budget constraints. (Charleston (WV) Daily Mail)
- With redevelopment financing no longer an option in Morgan Hill, Calif., city and state officials, including City Manager Ed Tewes, are in search of new funding sources to provide affordable housing to local low- to moderate-income families. (Morgan Hill Times)
- County Administrator Julie Ayers of Prescott, Ariz. instituted new requirements for Yavapai County employees covered by county-supplied health insurance to show documents when they add a spouse or child to their coverage in order to eliminate fraud. (Prescott Daily Courier)
- City Manager Frank Walsh from Saint Joseph, Mich. has given up his car allowances and taken on a higher health care premium to help non-union employees receive 1.5% pay raises. (The Herald Palladium)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 9, 2012
Frustrated by emissions and traffic congestion, many cities have begun to re-evaluate their dependence on cars. One solution that is returning to American cities after a decades-long absence is light rail, also known as streetcars or trolleys. Encouraged by the success of new light rail systems in cities like Portland, Ore., cities also hope that these transit investments will spur new development and support economic activity.
Detroit has faced many difficulties while considering the installation of a light rail system that would increase access to Woodward Avenue, the gateway to the suffering downtown area. Opponents have hotly contested the project, arguing that a high-speed bus system could be just as effective at much less cost. While the debate still rages, local leaders announced that a light rail system is definitely still an option for the city. While it would be smaller system than originally planned, the main goal would still be to help bring more business downtown.
Last year, many jurisdictions applied for a federal grant that would help fund mass transit systems. Gwinnett County, Ga. approved an 18-month mass transit study to help support their bid. Their plans included a light rail line that would lessen congestion in the crowded I-85 corridor, but their bid for the federal grant was unsuccessful. Hillsborough County, Fla. put in similar work towards the grant but was also unsuccessful. While these counties may have not have been awarded this grant, the planning work they put in has helped their communities envision mass transit options for the future.
In the end, the $25 million grant was awarded to Washington State. The money has gone to help extend the southern end of Sound Transit’s new light rail. As part of this construction the City of SeaTac, Wash. is celebrating the opening of its new light rail station, which will help improve driving conditions on Interstate 5 near the Joint Base Lewis-McChord and will connect downtown Seattle to Sea-Tac Airport. Bergen County, N.J. is also moving ahead with an extension of the NJ Transit in their area. Hearings began last month, and concerns over air pollution were among the reasons cited to support the expansion of the light rail system.
Light rail is not the right transportation solution for every area. Recently Montgomery County, Md. found that an updated and speedier bus system would be a less costly and more efficient alternative to developing a light rail system. Houston has also had issues while expanding its light rail system. Construction has been detrimental to local businesses, and additional funding has been not enough to cover the losses.
The Knowledge Network also a number of resources to help planning light rail and other transit systems, including user questions like these:
The Knowledge Network also features several related articles and reports.
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Peggy Chasler
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February 8, 2012
The Joys Of Living In A City That Is Easy To Walk In
Walking the streets of a city or town is one of the best ways to get a feel for the character of a place. After focusing on car traffic for decades, many cities are now returning to walking as an important component of local transportation. A walkable community can promote public health, improve air quality, give greater autonomy to non-drivers, and even reduce road and parking congestion.
Local governments must tend to many details in keeping streets and sidewalks safe, efficient, and attractive for pedestrians, but citizens typically have a more intuitive understanding of a place’s walkability. For example, smart growth advocate Kaid Benfield describes a simple neighborhood test: can an 8-year-old safely walk somewhere to buy a popsicle and get back home before it melts? If so, it’s a walkable neighborhood.
In his recent post at the Atlantic Cities, Benfield uses photos from his travels to illustrate how easy and beautiful certain places are to walk around in. Each photo tells a story about how transportation in these cities often means being able to walk from place to place. Your feet carry you from the store to school or from work to home as easily as a car does in many other places. I am lucky enough to have lived and walked in two of the cities he depicts, and I experienced firsthand what it is like to be a citizen of a walkable city.
phalinn
The first city was Galway Ireland. In the spring semester of my junior year of college I studied at the National University Ireland Galway. It was the first time I ever lived in a city without access to a car, and I quickly learned the wonders of walking everywhere. I discovered short cuts through quaint alleyways and bridges across rivers. I discovered coffee shops where there were always chocolate chip scones and pubs that played live music. Even when it rained—and with Galway being on one of the rainiest coasts in Ireland, it did—I walked. I wore out three pairs of shoes, learned the difference between “water resistant” and “waterproof” rain jackets, and fell in love with the freedom and flexibility of living in a city that caters to walkers.
When I graduated from college I was excited by the freedom to choose a new place to live. As I began to plan my move, something kept coming to mind. I wanted a place that felt like Galway. I was not even sure what that meant until I visited Washington DC, where I could walk everywhere. I had no desire to own a car, and wanted to live in a place that valued walking just as much as driving. I knew instantly that this was where I was going to live.
tedeytan
As sustainability becomes increasingly important to local governments, local leaders are becoming more interested in walking as clean transportation. However, many cities also want to make places more pedestrian friendly to support economic development, especially in downtown and Main Street shopping areas. Community health advocates encourage regular walking as free and easy exercise, especially for children going to school. If a place is easy to navigate on foot, then it most likely has many of the same qualities that so many people love in places like Galway and Washington.
Since so much of what makes a place walkable is the responsibility of the local government, the Knowledge Network has several resources to help build walkable communities.
- Designing Walkable Urban Thoroughfares: A Context Sensitive Approach, a report from the Institute of Transportation Engineers, describes the design process and the argument for more walkable urban settings in which cars and pedestrians coexist.
- An article from PM Magazine, Healthy Communities, A Vision of Connectivity,describes how Warwick Township, Penn. has built walking trails to increase the health of the community and the connectivity of the people who live there.
- Making City More Walkable, a case study from Arlington, Va., shows how local leaders took the community’s desire to be more walkable and made it a reality. local leaders
- The city of Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. conducted an inventory of missing sidewalks as a first step to fill in the gaps pedestrians face across the city.
For more resources like these, visit topic pages for information on Walking, Sidewalk, Street, and Road Maintenance, Transportation, Sustainability, Smart growth, Planning, and Active living.
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Alexandra Iannolo
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February 3, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- Kyle Jung will serve as the first City Administrator of Manvel, Tex. (Chron.com)
- The City of Laurinburg, N.C. is working with the National League of Cities to offer prescription drug discount cards for residents without health insurance, announced City Manager Edward Burchins. (The Laurinburg Exchange)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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January 27, 2012
The following ICMA Members made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his or her Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
- In the City of Oakland, CA City Administrator Deanna Santana, along with the Oakland Mayor, are proposing 105 layoffs in order to comply with a recent California Supreme Court ruling that upheld Gov. Jerry Brown's decision to eliminate redevelopment agencies. (Bay Citizen).
- Concord, CA Assistant City Manager Valerie Barone stated that the city will lose $7.5 million in redevelopment funding to the state, essentially freezing affordable housing, and its general fund will take an estimated $2.4 million hit. In addition more than 45 downtown events are being canceled due to funding cuts and seven Concord employee’s jobs are at risk. (Contra Costa Times)
- Plans to revise local zoning ordinances suggested by City Administrator Larry Paine of Hillsboro City, Kans. have been overturned due to complaints from the community that the changes would be more costly than beneficial. (Hillsboro Star-Journal)
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Alexandra Iannolo
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January 26, 2012
Local government websites have become one of the most important tools for leaders to connect with both the community and the world. City websites can promote the benefits of living and working in a community to outsiders while also providing a helpful resource for residents to find official information about local services, events, important contacts. More and more jurisdictions have been using their websites in new ways to address specific community issues such as transparency, citizen engagement, and sustainability.
In light of the current economic crisis, for example, transparency of government funds and taxpayer dollars has become an increasingly important issue for residents in many communities. The city of Palm Bay, Fla. responded to requests for such openness in their community by creating Open.Palmbay, a site dedicated wholly to tracking city finances and making them available to the public. The city of Mesa, Ariz. similarly developed a Recovery Act Information Website, where residents could see where recovery money was being spent. To see if your local government makes the grade on transparency, read the Sunshine Review’s transparency checklist.
Other communities have used their websites as a new tool for civic engagement. These one-stop resources make it easy for residents to stay informed on local issues and share their opinions with local leaders. A recent study completed by the University of Illinois at Chicago rated 95 government websites for their ability to promote civic engagement, and concluded that Seattle, Phoenix, and Louisville have city websites that best share information and offer opportunities for participation. Websites can also offer new engagement opportunities for individuals with disabilities. A report from the US Department of Justice examines the ways that government websites can be made accessible to all users.
Local leaders have also used website campaigns to promote community sustainability projects. An Albuquerque website has been helpful in moving the city towards the sustainable alternatives outlined in its AlbuquerqueGreen sustainability plan. Denver has developed a website that allows users to locate their properties and examine the benefits of solar power installation. Similarly, Frederick County, Md. developed a website centered on supporting sustainable living.
For more on making the most of a local government webpage see these Knowledge Network questions.
The Knowledge Network can also help you create or enhance your community’s website with articles and documents like the ones below:
Sample requests for proposals for website creation and enhancement:.
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Peggy Chasler
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January 24, 2012
Local Governments Finding Solutions to Complex Issues
During the economic crisis of the past three years, much of the conversation about responses has focused on the federal government and national-scale programs. From growing healthcare costs to shrinking government budgets, Americans are facing challenges on a scale not seen since the great Depression. While action at the federal level is imperative, some argue that the local level responses deserve more attention. With the federal government often gridlocked, it’s the leaders at the local level, at the heart of the many communities in need, who are often in the best position to be the real change agents. Here are a few examples of local governments tackling today’s challenges.
Emergency Management A recent Huffington Post article highlights several Mayors who are making real changes in their communities to directly meet their citizens’ growing needs. For example, Newark's Cory Booker, who was also featured in the Rolling Stone article “12 Leaders Who Get Things Done,” is known for his innovative and engaging initiatives. Since natural disasters happen at the local level, managers and other local leaders have long had emergency management as one of their primary responsibilities, Mayor Booker, however, took it a step further. During a snow storm, he invited citizens to post problems on Twitter, which allowed both emergency managers and citizens to be kept up-to-date in real time. Booker even personally assisted with the snow removal in some citizens’ driveways. See the topic pages for Citizen Engagement, Social Media, Innovation, Disaster Recovery, Emergency Management, and Public Safety.
Childhood Obesity In Allentown, Penn., the Parks and Recreation Department, the Health Bureau, and the School District partnered to help fight their community’s growing problem of childhood obesity. Their program includes a truck that delivers fruits and veggies to 20 playground sites and events around the city. The Morning Call describes the food truck like an ice cream truck that hands out fresh snow peas, grapes, and apples to children throughout the summer. This initiative was given a first place national award worth $120,000 this week at the winter meeting of the US Conference of Mayors. For more ideas, see topic pages for Health, Healthy Eating, Public Health, Children and Youth, Human Services, Parks and Recreation, and Innovation.
Economic Development The city of Sarasota, Fla. developed a local stimulus program in 2010 to help spur economic diversity and growth. When business in construction and tourism, the city’s main industries, took a huge hit, leaders came together determined to make major changes that would help their community bounce back stronger than ever. Their approach was to extend the Local Option Sales Tax that would support economic development by funding investments in road construction, public buildings, and improvements to parks and other public lands. Through citizen engagement and partnerships with the private sector, the community was able to create jobs and build a stronger, more resilient economy. For more ideas, see topic pages for Economic Development, Economic Crisis, Community Relations, Citizen Engagement, Strategic Planning, and Innovation.
Employee Health Care Costs A recent research study from the Center for State and Local Government Excellence highlights three cities, Asheville, Denver, and Oklahoma City that have taken on the great challenge of controlling rising healthcare costs for their employees. They show that solutions to challenges in healthcare, an issue that is often heated and controversial in the national news, can often be found at the local level. Some of their successful approaches have focused on wellness programs, chronic disease management, employee clinics, cost shifting to employees, changing plan designs, and trust funds. The impact these cities have made on such a major issue shows how other local governments across the country can create successful programs that are tailored specifically to their own communities’ needs and concerns. For more ideas, see topic pages for Citizen Engagement, Human Services, Health, Public Health, and Innovation .
These examples, and more, show that many of the nation’s most serious and complex challenges should be fought not just nationally, but at the local level, with the leaders and the citizens who know their communities best. Local governments are already stepping up with creativity and innovation to help to solve some of the nation’s most pressing issues.
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Alexandra Iannolo
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January 20, 2012
The following ICMA Member made news over the last week. Click on a member’s name to see his Knowledge Network profile or follow the news link to read the full article.
In other local government news this week:
- Virginia Beach, Va. has supported a state initiative that would close loops for big Internet stores like Amazon to avoid charging sales taxes even though their facilities are physically located in the region. (The Virginia Pilot)
- The City of Liberty, Utah officials are considering adding an accommodations’ tax on motels and hotels as way to increase revenue for future tourism projects. (Liberty Tribune)
- In an effort to deal with recent federal crackdowns on illegal immigration, local Denver courts have taken on a system of prioritizing cases. Local officials say some cases still open from as early as 1996 and rather than being resolved they have been piling up more quickly than the court system can handle. (The Washington Post)
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