MARCH 7, 2006 RETREAT
Page 1 of 1
Ruth H. Smith
From: robedye [robedye@regent.edu]
Sent: Monday, March 06, 2006 3:24 PM
To: Ruth H, Smith
Subject: Preserving Public Trust Proposal
Attachments: PROJECT RESTORE TRUST.doc
Distinguished City Councilmembers, City Manager, City Attorney, and City Clerk:
I have taken the opportunity to write a proposal on Preserving Public Trust, which you have on
attachment. This is a topic that affects us all; so please indulge me in coming forward with
some ideas and suggestions.
It is written from the perspective of my having a master of public administration and doctorate
in organizational leadership as well as my tenure on Council. This is by no means a one
person initiative, Hopefully we can address these issues on an ongoing basis as a
collaborative body,
If there are any questions or concerns, please contact me,
BOB
**********************************************
Robert M. "Bob" Dyer, PhD
Assistant Professor
Robertson School of Government
Regent University
1000 Regent University Drive
Virginia Beach, VA 23464-9800
Phone: 757,226.4745
Fax: 757,226.4735
**********************************************
'1 /'7 n flfIO<:
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PRESERVING PUBLIC TRUST:
BUILDING BRIDGES FOR THE FUTURE OF
VIRGINIA BEACH
A PROPOSAL TO PROMOTE TRUST AND UNDERSTANDING
BETWEEN CITY GOVERNMENT AND THE CITIZENS OF
VIRGINIA BEACH
.........................................................................
Respectfully submitted by:
Robert M. Dyer, PhD
Virginia Beach City Council Member
District 1 - Centerville
March 6, 2006
PROBLEM STATEMENT:
As Virginia Beach continues to evolve into a bigger city with big city
problems, we are confronted with more complex issues and problems.
The public looks to us as leaders to resolve these problems in a forthright
manner.
In the view of the public, perception is often reality in determining
their level of trust in government. It is therefore incumbent upon us as
elected officials to be sensitive to these perceptions of the citizens and
respond accordingly.
PURPOSE OF PROPOSAL:
The purpose of the proposal is to bring forward a number of factors
and considerations confronting Virginia Beach City Council and City Staff
with regard to the public's perception of our level of trust and
effectiveness, Widespread skepticism of elected officials on the local,
state and federal levels signals the need for intervention by government to
address and remedy these concerns.
This document attempts to identify certain areas within Virginia
Beach City government that deserve consideration on the topic of
strengthening trust relations with the citizens. It is not intended as being
totally inclusive representation of all problem areas. The intent is to
facilitate input from all appropriate players to achieve favorable outcomes.
The topics can be modified or expanded if deemed necessary. It is
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emphasized that this initiative must be a collaborative effort in order to
achieve any degree of success.
IDENTIFICATION OF PROBLEM AREAS:
1, Need to Establish Better Strateaic Plannina and Continaencv Plannina
The public expects its leaders to be able to react to any unexpected
or crisis situation. The recent Oceanal BRAC situation underscores the
need to establish better mechanisms to cope with situations preemptively.
The public will tend to have more trust in their elected leaders when
they observe appropriate and decisive actions by leaders during such
times. It is therefore incumbent for leaders to be visionaries in
anticipating any potential scenario that may one day adversely impact the
City, Leaders must entertain the, "What if' questions and develop
appropriate strategies to mitigate the consequences of such scenarios.
For instance:
. What if we do encounter a downsizing of operations at NAS Oceana
sometime in the future?
. What if we are not able to recruit and retain police and fire
personnel to adequate levels as the City grows and prospers?
. What if the Convention Center falls short of expectations?
. What if any of our revenue streams has a significant shortfall in
revenues?
. What if we encounter a Hurricane Katrina strength storm?
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. What if we are victims of a serious terrorist attack?
By developing a broad-based long term and contingency strategy we may
avert many of the fiscal consequences of otherwise unanticipated events,
A suggestion would be to utilize local "intellectual capital" to
collaborate on such initiatives, At a recent forum on redevelopment, the
speaker indicated that a major regional drawback to expanded economic
development was the fact that there are no prominent highet education
research capacities. The suggestion is for the City of Virginia Beach to
formulate a "think tank," utilizing the collaborative assets of our local
universities and plethora of intellectual resources that reside in our
community.
By integrating community-based intellectual capital with our
government process we can develop effective future strategies. This body
can also assume the task of performing relevant research and survey work
for the City, potentially saving the taxpayers significant costs,
This no doubt would be an initiative that requires significant time and
resources; however, this investment has the potential of paying high
dividends in return for our future economic viability. Significant
participation by citizen experts will foster trust in the leadership and
facilitate dialogue.
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2. Need to Diversifv Economic Development Strateaies
At this point in time the City of Virginia Beach is highly reliant upon
residential property taxes to sustain the local government. The ideal ratio
of residential versus commercial! industrial taxes is 701 30. Virginia Beach
relies on approximately 84 per cent from residential; 14 per cent from
industrial! commercial; and 2 per cent from the hotel industry.
Economic development initiatives are hampered by a number of
variables:
. Traffic congestion
. Lack of higher education research capabilities
. Lack of destination airport facility
. Affordable housing,,~tock for employees
..)
The reliance on residential property taxes places a significant burden of
the cost government on the homeowner. The City of Virginia Beach is the
City's second largest employer, following NAS Oceana. While considerable
efforts have been made to promote economic development, new and
innovative ways of fostering increase business activity are a necessity.
Due to logistical limitations, heavy industry requiring massive amounts
of manpower and materials is not feasible, Perhaps the option is to focus
on technology and defense contracting, which would also serve to protect
our military assets.
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To address the housing stock situation the City should work with the
Tidewater Builders Association and other concerned parties to develop
effective coping strategies. The increasing scarcity of our land assets
requires creative solutions The misconceptions about "affordable
housing" miss the point that workforce housing is a necessity to any
community. As our police, fire, and other city workers move to other more
affordable locations, we as a city lose citizens of significant value to the
community.
Proactive intervention in creating a more stable, diversified economy
will help to instill trust and confidence in government. We must realize the
logistic limitations that confront us and strive to provide relief to the
residential property owner,
In order to preserve the trust of the property owners, we must make
guarantees that no property will be confiscated for any use that would
result in personal profit for any individual or corporate entity. The City
must be transparent and coherent in all property transactions, especially
those that may require a taking of property. Any utilization of eminent
domain must subscribe to the strict guidelines as to public purpose
provisions established by law.
Given the magnitude and emotion assigned to eminent domain issues,
the City cannot afford the erosion of trust that would be the consequence
of the inappropriate application of eminent domain,
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3, Need for Balanced Growth and Development Strateaies
The public continuously expresses frustration with traffic congestion
as a result of growth and development. Our population, as well as those in
many other localities, has the perception that development is more of a
political process than a practical one. As the public experiences
frustration in what it views as uncontrolled growth and development, a
continued erosion of trust in government perpetuates. This situation was
evident during the recent encroachment crises regarding NAS Oceana.
A possible solution would be to form a Task Force on Growth and
Development. The recommendation would be again to utilize members of
the community to provide "intellectual capital," as well as representatives
from the Tidewater Builders Association, to determine solutions to this
problem, The City should examine zoning and code requirements in order
to make the system more "user friendly" and efficient. Review and revision
of the Comprehensive Plan to reflect current situations and needs may be
also in order,
Public safety needs are paramount to the public as a city grows and
develops. Consideration should be given to ensure that the numbers of
police, fire and rescue personnel keep pace with growth and development.
Given the City's current shortage of public safety personnel this would be
indeed a challenge. To ensure the trust of the public this must be viewed
as a high priority,
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4. Need to Establish More Effective Communication Methods
Within the confines of any large organization, effective
communication among all participants and groups is essential to achieve
maximum efficiency and organizational homeostasis, Generally in any city
that utilizes a council - manager form of government there will be inherent
conflicts. The size and complexity of Virginia Beach causes further
complications, resulting in a number of "turf battles" among many of the
entities that comprise our government.
Establishing continually improving communication loops is an
essential element of establishing and maintaining trust relationships
between government and citizens. Conversely, when the public senses
faulty or inadequate information skepticism in government perpetuates.
Inaccessibility to elected leaders or staff is also a point of frustration with
the public,
Communication and collegiality are essential in building trust
relationships with our state elected officials, school board, and citizens.
Budget constraints and limited resources create an atmosphere of
competition among the various agencies, compromising trust in the
process.
Council can address this problem by proactively devising a strategy
to improve the communication loop process. The public will always judge
elected officials by the quality of the decisions they make. It is essential
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that the decision process be based on information that is timely, accurate
and appropriate. The Council should devise specific procedures to ensure
this process is meets their respective needs.
Building a better bridge of trust and communication with our elected
state delegation and school board is a necessity, The public is sensitive
when observing conflict among various elected officials. Ways and means
to improve these relationships would be in everyone's ultimate best
interest and must be a priority to the Council.
Town Hall meetings (or Community Dialogues) can be a valuable tool
toward building better relationships with the citizens. A suggestion would
be to offer them to the public every calendar quarter on a rotating basis.
This would create an atmosphere of inclusion throughout the City while
engaging the public in meaningful dialogue. Dialogue promotes trust and
understanding, building a better bond between the community and
government.
The ability for citizens to speak before Council is a right and a
privilege, which many individuals exercise in a dignified manner. The
opportunity to speak to Council on the first meeting of the month has
proved beneficial to many. As a further extension of trust to the citizen's
needs, perhaps it is now time to open discussion to the prospect of
televising "open mike" presentations, Many citizens seek a more "open
government." By mutually extending dialogue and civility, Council and the
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citizens can better engage and interact with each other. The topic is
certainly worthy of discussion and debate.
In summary, Council and City government should continually strive
toward improving the quality and quantity of communication. There will
no doubt always be contentious issues to deal with. By having such
bridges of trust and in communication in place, favorable outcomes for all
are far more achievable.
5. Need to Establish More Efficient- Productive Budaet Process
As previously stated, Virginia Beach is a very large and complex
organization. The budget process is equally large and complex. The way
the City taxes and spends money is a major concern to the taxpayer. The
public trusts that elected official will be good stewards of its money. This
necessitates the Council having a full knowledge and understanding of the
budget process.
Given that the budget is presented to Council a relatively short time
before voting, little time is available to fully digest the implications of the
information given. A possible solution would be the inclusion of Council
into the budget decision loop throughout the calendar year. Perhaps a
Budget Task Force can serve a vital capacity monitoring the budget
process in an ongoing manner and present it a more business oriented
format. The task force can be comprised of Council members, appropriate
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Staff members, as well as respected members of the community with
appropriate expertise,
The budget process, given all of the activity of City operation,
demands much attention, By year round involvement, Council can better
oversee operations and make better decisions. By including citizens in the
process a message of inclusion will be sent to the public,
6. Need to Address the Problem of Voter Apathv
Voter apathy is a major problem in Virginia Beach. Apathy is a
symptom of distrust.. Devoting considerable time and attention to building
bridges of trust and communication with the citizens may result in more
activity from the electorate.
A debate must be engaged in moving the City Council elections from
May to November. There are good arguments for both regarding this
action, therefore it should be weighed carefully.
Another debate is whether the current at-large system of voting is
preferable to establishing a district system of voting. Again, there are valid
arguments on both sides of the issue. Regrettably, many voters are not
aware that they have ability to vote for any candidate running for a seat
throughout the city, This is a major communication flaw that must be
concurrently addressed.
A possible solution to both of these considerations is simple: let the
voters decide which system they prefer. Empowering the voter to have
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input into the election process would energize the electorate and engage
citizens in the process. This would no doubt promote trust and
communication.
The City can also be more proactive in encouraging the youth of our
great City to be more civically active. This can be accomplished by going
to high schools and encouraging participation. Also, during Town Hall
meetings or contacts with civic organizations and groups, City officials
should always encourage voter participation. When citizens vote, they feel
as though they part of government. This can go a long way with the trust
issue,
7. Need to Determine the level of Government Oversiaht Mechanisms
Deserved or not, today there is far more criticism and skepticism of
government and politicians than even before. These phenomena occur on
all levels: federal, state and local. Whether it is the press, twenty-four hour
cable news, or the internet, elected officials are under intense scrutiny.
Any event where a public official performs a misdeed paints all politicians
with a broad brush. The public expects that government be run efficiently
and honestly.
It is incumbent on elected officials to put in place mechanisms that
give the public a sense of confidence in their actions. Many cities have
successfully established Ethics Commissions to oversee various aspects
of government and this topic is worthy of further discussion with the
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elected body. The purpose of these bodies is to promote public trust by
oversight of government operations, The public has the right to feel that
its government is functioning on its behalf in an honest and ethical
manner.
The discussion of establishing such a body in no way implies
corruption or unethical conduct. The intent is to provide the public with a
sense of trust in their government, and give assurances that future elected
bodies would have to be in compliance with high ethical standards.
It would be in the City's best interest to discuss the establishment of
ethical or efficiency oversight. The elected Council serves on a part time
basis, therefore such a body can function as an effective bridge with City
Staff in many areas. City Council is ultimately responsible for all actions of
City government. Establishing a mechanism that promotes efficient
government and high ethical standards sends a strong message to the
citizens that trust is a priority.
CONCLUDING REMARKS:
The primary function of government is to provide for the health,
education, safety and welfare of the citizens. Citizens expect their leaders
to act in their best interests. Establishing a relationship of trust and
effective communication should be a major priority. The purpose of this
paper is to identify areas of concern and to facilitate discussions, ideas
and solutions that will lead to a better Virginia Beach.
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