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Ellen Belcher is the Dayton Daily News opinion pages editor. She writes about state government, education, the environment, higher education and all things Dayton.
Martin Gottlieb is an editorial writer and columnist for the Dayton Daily News opinion pages. He focuses on the political process itself and does such national issues as war, the economy, taxes and Social Security, as well as a hodge-podge of local and state issues.Home > Blogs > A Matter of Opinion > Archives > 2011 > January > 27 > Entry
Guest column: Consolidation will require ‘action plan,’ citizen input
This commentary was written by Mike Kelly, former city manager of Oakwood.
The Dayton Daily News and individuals in the community often suggest that thinking regionally is one important way local officials can assure government services are delivered competently and efficiently.
I agree, but I worry that many citizens are wary of regionalism — or even confused about what regionalism could mean. An “action plan” could bring the concept to life and be a starting point to involve taxpayers in the discussion.
Here are some suggestions:
• Take inventory. Dayton’s suburbs have benefited from regional governance for years. Examples include the RTA, the Miami Valley Communication Council, a tactical crime suppression unit, the Solid Waste Advisory Committee, the tax-sharing program called ED/GE, the Miami Conservancy District, the Austin Pike Co-op, Five Rivers MetroParks and the Miami Valley Planning Commission.
There are other instances. And there are areas where we’ve fallen short.
• Evaluate success and failures. Having taken inventory, we need to say what has worked, what hasn’t, and why. We must identify the common denominators behind successful efforts and be honest and knowledgeable enough about where we’ve failed to avoid repeating that history.
• Know the research. There are myriad studies of local government. Some are directly applicable to Ohio and metropolitan areas such as ours. Much of the research has similar conclusions — overlap, duplication and redundancy remain the rule. We have to know the literature and to extract recommendations that fit us.
• Reveal preliminary findings. A real action plan requires very public and straightforward presentations — not just with local government and business types, but with taxpayers. This stage is vital.
• “Ideate.” Another key planning component would be engaging public officials and citizens alike in a series of thoughtfully facilitated public work sessions. Why include citizens again? Because now we may be talking about the possibility of fundamental change in local government — their government. Moreover, who is to say that the citizens won’t have better ideas than their elected or appointed officials?
• Translate. One can visualize a range of suggestions that might prove easy to implement. A complete list would include hard options, too, including “remodeling” governments through legislation, charter changes, council of government contracts or actual restructuring.
• Staffing. This sort of effort would require staffing. There are talented staff available within the public and private sectors.
• Name champions. Nothing will happen without community champions willing to consider a variety of ways to streamline, regionalize or even consolidate local governments.
• Have deadlines. Without them, change seldom happens.
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