In the limelight of being part of this huge victory for Hamburg reform I have been pondering some of the changes I would make if it was actually I that took a seat at the bench in January. What would I do, how would I proceed, and what proposals would be made? I’ve said quite a few things over the last couple of years and here are some of the ideas I came up with.
First I would eliminate the Animal Control positions from the town budget. We are paying way to much money for what we get there. I really think that job could be done by private contractors for a fraction of the cost. We then could incorporate the dead deer pickup into that package and save the town several thousand dollars more.
I have always thought that the Police Command Officers Union was outrageous and anti-taxpayer. We are the only township that has one of these as far as I know of. I would eliminate those positions from the budget and recreate new positions, such as Police Sargent, and then make sure they are filled as Management Confidential. This is very doable. The only stipulation for this is that if a position is eliminated and then recreated under a new title, the new title must have more job duties then the last one. That shouldn’t be hard to do.
Our town golf course has been costing us money and I think it’s time to sell it off to a private venture. Not only would the sale infuse town coffers with cash, it will alleviate the cash going into the place. Similarly I would look into which town playgrounds are decrepit and a haven for vandalism. I would then sell off those properties for home development (not commercial). This would solve a lot of problems and bring in more cash.
In fact the entire Town Recreation Department needs to be looked at. I’m not saying shut it down but a lot of changes need to be made. I just listed some big ones but a little changes that could done are things like, incorporating the hockey pro-shop into the job duties of the rink management at the Nike Base Town Arena. Again more cash and some consolidation.
I also would give the Town Supervisor a lot more authority to hire and fire within the town. Currently he has little ability to do that. Several Departments would have to be reassigned to his control and taken away from the Clerk and Highway Superintendent.
Their are several town codes that need changing. Some are very specific to non-elected board positions. For instance terms for board members on variance and planning boards should not be more than 2 years. They currently are 5 year terms and that is way to long for non-elected members. I would also like to see codes changed about things like allowing you to keep one unlicensed automobile in your yard or driveway if you wish. Right now they must be placed inside a garage or be licenced. That is idiotic if you ask me.
I have a whole laundry list of changes I would like to see. What are some of yours?
Well to me it sounds like you want people to keep junk cars in their driveways and to convert the playgrounds into homes instead of the greenspace they are meant to be.
If someone wants to have a hobby car or parts car they shouldn’t have to worry how they want to store it. It’s their own property. As far as the playgrounds. This town has quit keeping them up years ago and they are nothing more than a place for kids to do drugs and cause trouble. I say identify the decrepit ones and sell them off to home development.
Looking over your proposals, I have a few comments. In some areas I would say I agree, and in some I either disagree or have some serious questions regarding feasability.
1. Animal Control Positions
I have a hard time arguing against the idea of eliminating the animal control positions from the budget. For the size of our town, and the probable infrequency of dealings with wildlife, it is difficult to justify the current full time positions. I would however have concerns for simply contracting out on an as needed basis. Firstly, this is difficult to budget for, given that wildlife intrusions and dog attacks may fluctuate greatly from year to year. Secondly, once the Town is out of the business of animal control, you may find that the private contractors operating in this area severely increase their prices knowing that the Town does not have a viable alternative.
Instead, I would look at training a few police officers in the areas of animal control necesary for certification. One, they are already on the road and patroling the town, so having them respond to animal attacks and/or nuisances would not be logisticaly difficult. Secondly, even if the Town gives officers who take on this duty a slight pay upgrade, by eliminating positions with full benefit packages, the town would save (your going to pay out the police officers benefits one way or the other). This also may be attractive to the police union, as it would be a way to provide officers with upward movement, and it solves the private contractor problem.
2. Management/Confidential Police Management
While I agree that it is ridiculous to have the police chief and the assistant police chief in a union, your proposal to eliminate all of the current supervisory positions and recreate them as m/c positions is legally flawed.
You state that the only stipulation for eliminating positions and re-reating them is to add more duties to the newly created position. While it is true the NYS Civil Service law allows for municipalites to create their own titles, it also requires that the local civil service division (in this case Erie County Civil Service) approve and classify these positions. Now, if a town has just created a popsicle stand (I know, ridiculous, but it serves my example) and needs to hire a popsicle server position, Civil Service would most likely approve the new position and work with the municipality to create job specification and duties. However, there is not much of a justification to overhaul the titles in a police department. The job specifications and duties are already long established, and the town would need to show that something other than their desire has created a need to reclassify position. Also, reclassification is a long and tedious process, and most succesful when the employer, union, and civil service are on the same page. Obviously your proposal would eliminate the union in its entirety, so the likelihood of the union be on the same page… well, enough said.
Also, you state the town simply needs to recreate the positions as management/confidential. The Taylor Law gives only one body authority to classify positions as management confidential, and that is the public Employment Relations Board (PERB). The stipuations for this classification are very strict, and basically state that the position either (1) has the sole authority to hire and fire (not the case for any of the positions you sighted), or (2) directly participates in collective negotiations for the employer (also unlikely for 95% of the titles you specified).
You also state that we are the only municipality with a commend staff union. This is innaccurate. Plenty of other municipalities in the area have command staff unions. I would guess though, that Hamburg was probably the only municipality that recognized the positions of Police Chief and Assistant Police Chief in the union.
3. Privatize the Golf Course
I don’t know enough about the golf course, its operations, annual revenues and expenditures, and comparisons in user fees between private golf courses and the town’s to comment on this proposal. If you have any of this information, maybe you could post it?
4. Reducing the Number of Town Owned Playgrounds
I agree that the number of playgrounds needs to be reduced, however I think the decision of what playgrounds to eliminate and sell is not as simple as looking at which ones are decrepit. I think looking at past vandalism problems and crime alone would be unfair, as using this criteria would most likely hit the areas of the Town where household income is lower. Eliminating these playgrounds does not eliminate the core problems that cause the vandalism and drug use.
Instead of simply looking at what playgrounds are out of shape, it would be more effective to look at geographic location (Parker Road has two playgrounds within a mile or so of each other), child population in that area, and likelihood of usage of the Town Rec programs at these playgrounds (some playground rec programs may see one kid a day, and some have enough to put together their own softball teams).
Eliminate those playgrounds that are duplicative in a geographis area, and those that are completely underutilized, then reallocate the funding that was attempting to upkeep all of the playgrounds to capital upgrades to the remaining playgrounds (the revenue gained from the sale of these playgrounds could also be allocated to this purpose).
There is also a systemic problem that helped create this overpopulation of playgrounds around the town. When developers create a new neighborhood, they almost always are the one to create the new playground. They use it to attract buyers, and are able to right off the value of the property on their taxes. This is all fine and dandy, but the Town is then left with the upkeep and maintenance costs on this property forever. The Town needs to stop blindly accepting the ownership of these properties, and instead do the same type of geographic analysis as I described above before acepting ownership of the property.
I would also hesitate to say that all of the playgrounds should be converted to residential. Some may be able to converted to commercial depending on their geographic location and surroundings. I only point this out because should the town be able to zone a property as commercial and have a succesful business locate, the revenue is much higher than a residential property, and the amount of services that would be provided is substantially lower.
I have to go right now, but I will comment on the rest of your proposals at a later point.
Thanks.
Very good response. The big thing about my proposals are they would be open to public scrutiny and input. I would never try to jam this stuff down the public’s throat. However that being said, I would expect discussion and informed decisions to be made. That is something the Democrats have failed to do for years now.
Okay, I’m back now. Thanks for the compliment on my response. I would suggest however, that if your serious about making a difference in town government and pushing your ideas to the forefrunt for serious policy debate, that you tone down the purely poltical portions of your blog. Unless there is some type of miraculous count in the absentee ballots, your canditates won!! Now, you can make this blog into a serious policy debate that could get the attention of those that occupy the public offices within our town. I’m not saying eliminate the political discussion, but by focusing more on public policy debates, I think you will attract a wider audience, which will clearly get the powers that be’s attention. Just a suggestion.
Now, to move on to the rest of your proposals.
5. Performing a Complete Analysis of the Recreation Department
I couldn’t agree more in this area, as far as your broad based suggestion of examining every function that the recreation department performs. I don’t have any specific knowledge with respect to your proposal on the Nike Base operations, but I do think this department warrants very close scrutiny.
I’m not saying the Town Rec department does a poor job by any means. Quite the contrary, I think that department does a wonderful job in coordinating and managing all of the programs they do. My agreement in this area has to do with whether the Town should be in the business of recreation to the depth that they currently are. Government’s most basic functions can be boiled down to three basic functions; (1) Public Safety, (2) Infrastruture Development and Maintenance, and (3) Education. Any function that a government is currently performing outside of these three areas bares scutiny, and the question needs to be asked; Is there a private enterprise that is in this business, and can they do it better and/or more cost effectively than we are performing it right now?
Let me be clear though. I am not a proponent of wholesale privatization of services currently provided by the government. In fact I believe that the government currently provides health care much more effectively and cost effectively than private industry, and am a proponent of a single payer national health care system. I am simply saying that the rec department provides a service that in many cases may be able to be provided by private enterprises more effectively than town government, and sometimes it may be quite the oppositte. But how do you know unless you investigate?
6. Increasing the Supervisor’s Authority
Your proposal deals specifically with departments that currently have elected officials heading them (highway, and the clerks office). I’m not sure this is very feasable. I’m pretty sure, but not positive, that this proposal would require a revision of the Town charter which established the elected positions of Town Clerk and Town Highway Superintendent.
Revising the Town charter would be a very difficult process that I believe would involve the establishment of a charter review committee, recommendations from that committee, and from that point would require a referendum.
Beyond the feasability question, I guess I’m interested in your motivation behind this proposal. Probably 95 to 99% of Town employees are covered under collective bargaining agreements, and their disciplinary procedures are covered under these contracts. They require progressive discipline and just cause for a termination, so why the need for increasing the Supervisor’s authority in this area?
7. Decreasing the terms of the Variance and Planning Board members
I have no problem with this proposal, and I agree that for non elected positions, these terms are quite long.
8. Eliminating the Unliscensed Automobile Town Code
I must say that I disagree with you on this proposal. I can remember that years back, before this code existed, every neighborhood had that guy who had three junk cars on his front lawn, and one car in his garage that he was “working on”. Can you imagine trying to sell your house with a neighbor like that?
I can imagine the scene when the realator is trying with all his/her might to get the potential buyer to look the other way at the wonderful hedges that your other neighbor has worked hard at manicuring. Meanwhile, the wannabe mechanic is reving his car that he hasn’t been able to get road worthy for three years.
The bottom line is that someone who honestly is intersted in restoring old cars will have the facilites to do it, and will not have the need to park three of four junk cars on his front lawn.
Also, there are plenty of junk yards in the area if you need spare parts, and cannot afford the dealer price.
Okay, that’s it!! I will post some ideas that i have in the near future.
Also, sorry for the anonymous tag, but I work for Erie County and used to work seasonall for the Town, got my job through party politics, and am not interested in revealing my identity at this point. I will work on a name that does not give away my identity.
OK, let me respond to your last few comments.
5.) the Recreation Depertment is a mess in my opinion. Yes they have a lot of areas and programs they maintain but as you said yourself, government has no business providing recreation. I am a firm believer that people should be responsible to take care of their own kids and if they don’t have the resources then quit having kids.
6.) This is a huge issue for me. We all elected Steven Walters to run this town but he has little authority in hiring and firing. I think the one person we put in charge of the town full time should be running it as we exected him to do.
8.) I never said that I wanted to allow someone to have a lot of junk cars in their driveway. But here is what happened to me.
I purchased a used mini-van for some of its parts and put it in my driveway last year. We then had the October storm and no electricity for me to get the parts off the vehicle that I wanted. A day or two after I had the car sitting there the town inspector showed up and told me to get rid of it or face a fine for every day it was there.
I ended up getting the parts off but I should never have had to rush like that.
I propose allowing a resident to keep 1 vehicle at a time in their own yard for up to 1 year with a permit. It should be kept in the driveway and when not being worked on should be covered with a tarp of some sort. Remember it’s our own property and who gives these people the right to say what we can do with it within reason.
Hi Ford,
I feel the need to respond, because in some respect, I feel words were put in my mouth.
Firstly, I at no point suggested that the Town has no business in the recreation business. I did however lay out the core functions of government, and what I was suggesting was that anything a municipality decides to do beyond that point should be approached with caution. Let me be clear. I do not belive that the recreation department is a mess. On the whole, I think they do a pretty good job with all of the programs they are tasked with running. My point was simply that the rec department performs a function that does not fall within the core duties of a government, and what they perform needs a second look. That’s all.
I think the simplistic view that you have presented regarding people not having kids should they not have the resources is the wrong approach. I agree that ultimately parents must maintain responsibility over their children, but it is incredibly important that we provide a community in which children learn early the type of social skills that are necessary to lead a productive life. I think investing in targeted initiatives that allow our children to mingle with their peers in a controlled environment where they can learn these social skills is well worth the return.
Regarding your proposal on the Supervisor’s right to hire and fire. I’m still confused as to your concern on this matter. I see that you feel strongly on the matter, but I still do not see why.
My understanding is that the town human resources consultant reports directly to the supervisor, and as I stated previously, 95 to 99% of the town’s employees are covered under union contracts. So I guess I’m not seeing where the town supervisor is lacking authority in this matter. I’d really appreciate an explanation as to where you see a problem in this arena. I guess I’m missing something, but where does the Town Supervisor lack authority in this arena?
As far as the junk car issue, I don’t think your proposal is unreasonable. I will however say that prior to the code in question being passed as law, there were plenty of neighbors with three junk cars in their yards as I described earlier. I do however question the feasability of enforcing a code as you laid out.
I will say that in the midst of the October storm, the Town building inspectors could have probably found more producitve things to do rather than badgering you about a non working vehicle in your yard. Let me guess, his last name begins with an S?
I’ll try and explain the why I feel the Supervisor needs more power in the hiring and firing area. Steven Walters was elected to clean up the mismanagement of our town. Over the last 2 years he has been stymied at every turn. He is the guy we hired to be in charge of every day functions but he only has control over half a dozen positions. So if their is a performance issue with another employee then Steve has to deal with the political aspects of the employee. More often then not these troublesome employees are protected because of politics. Yes they have a union and yes their is progressive disciplinary actions that must first be taken but when he has to get another person to write the disciplinary referral and they refuse he is left with no options.
I feel very strongly that the town supervisor should have the ultimate authority to take personnel matters to the next level of discipline if necessary. He shouldn’t have to ask or argue with the Town Clerk, Police Chief or the Highway Superintendent to get this done.
He also should have a lot more say in the hiring. All to often its who you know not what you know in hiring in this town. Steve was elected to get the best people but he is hindered by the political machine in this town. As supervisor of the day to day business in this town he should have a hell of a lot more say in how things are done.