Countywide Services: A High Priority?
During the recent City of Ocala elections there were several comments on our blog about consolidating some of the city and county departments for more efficiency and cost savings. Some of the governmental functions mentioned for consolidation on a countywide basis included: police, fire, planning, and zoning and building. As you know from some of our bloggers, this is not a new idea.
Most of those who were elected to city council have said they want to pursue the possibilities. Additionally, there is at least one county commissioner who has supported the idea. We imagine there would be others who would also see the potential of consolidating some functions.
With a commitment to smaller government by most all of our elected officials, we believe the countywide services concept has much merit. The test will be putting politics aside and doing what is best for the taxpayers; something that isn’t happening as much as it should at the national, state and local levels.
Here is our question for you:
Should the consolidation into countywide services of certain City of Ocala and Marion county functions be given high priority by our elected officials? Why or why not?
posted by Blog Master @ 6:52 AM
44 Comments:
The city of Ocala is just the tip of the ice berg in looking at county-wide consolidation of services. Belleview, Dunnellon, and others need to be brought into looking at this. Many other communities around the U.S. are also looking at regional and county type combinations of services. The big issue—watch the unions cry about this. Unfortunately, many unions are part of the problem. Make Ocala and county consolidations work and other local towns will follow.
A number of years ago, Duval County and Jacksonville and several other cities in Duval County merged. It has been a big success in both efficiency and services rendered throughout the area. Atlantic Becreah and one or two other coastal cities declined, and I assume they just function like other small cities.
I like Mr. Dodge, the new city manager of Belleview having followed him in St. Pete etc, but for a city the size of Belleview and even smaller Dunnellon pay the money they are paying for city administrators, when consolidated government would function sooooooo much better is wrong.
Critic, you are right about the unions, but believe me, it was elected officials who killed Charter Government 8-12 years ago. They brought their following into line and they won and we all lost.
Masybe this time . . .
--pwf
I hope Jim Payton and Dan Owen team up on this. They both have the balls to tackle something controversial like this. Most other politicians will just sit on the sidelines and do nothing.
this is much too progressive and forward thinking for politicians in our city/county government. i'll be dead and buried before a consolidation of anything ever takes place.
I think this might be a good idea for a city resident. However, I don’t know what the benefit is going to be for a county resident. Seems the county is taking on more responsibility and costs that will need to be paid by county taxpayers. Looks to me like this is just cost shifting.
This is going to be a tough sell to any unions.
What I am waiting to hear is some comparison of the level of services we expect.
In the city we can get a cop to the house is 5 minutes for a serious matter. I doubt you could dream of the same in the county. (FYI, I lived in the county for around 10 years, and the city 20 or so, off and on.)
I am told the county fire folks have to go back to the shop for a second load of water (where I lived) and after that, I don't have a clue because I believe they have only one refill tank.
My friend Walt's business in the county pays about $5500. in fire tax, while my wife's identical business pays nothing.
What do we do with those matters?
There are a lot of complicated issues in consolidation that need to be discussed, so lets get on with the discussion. We hope the elected officials read this, so lets help out. Derisive comments to the effect our elected officials can't foward-think, or conclusions, are not the most helpful methods of persuading politicians to see your point of view. Lets bring up issues and discuss them.
What causes me the most concern is that so few municipalities have done this. There has to be a lot more to it than we have seen to date on this blog.
Charles,
The way we get that information is by talking about it. Honestly, I have not a clue how it would work in final shape, but I do know how it COULD work.
Combining law enforcement should not cut the level of service in the city at all. You would keep the same number of officers (perhaps expanding that number) and have them assigned to the city precinct -- just as Deputies are assigned to specific areas.
The savings would come from administrative savings -- purchasing, buildings, dispatch, records etc.
I will not say how I would vote on the issue, but I do know we need to discuss it.
--pwf
I agree with Charles, but in the course of this dialogue I believe we MUST examine how we got here (and who brung us). If necessary change partners!
I think there are some good opportunities to combine county and city services in several areas much easier to accomplish than fire and police. Someone had mentioned human resources, purchasing and parks. Why not give these a shot first before taking on the bigger issues?
Ya know, parks may be a real great idea. Whether I am from the county, or the city, I use what ever park I want.
From the government's perspective the issues seem to be selection, and the quality of care.
What other variables are there?
Sometimes it takes a crisis to get anything done. It looks like the death of a little boy now has our elected officials interested in fire services. We'll see what happens at the next County Commission meeting when this is discussed.
It's tough for either city or county to argue "turf" when there is a tragic death.
If you never believe anything else about government, believe this:
Government can do whatever and whenever they want. And if they really want it to work, it will work. So what I am saying is if it doesn't work, it is because the people in charge, be they staff or elected officials, really didn't care.
--pwf
I'm with Charles on integrating the parks departments. A good first step.
I hope that the city and county don’t see an “agreement’ on fire services as the final solution. As a stop gap measure its fine. However, I’m still for looking at a consolidation. Even the joint agreement may not get done. The city has asked for county funding to expand its fire service to the county. That will be an interesting and important discussion.
An editorial in today’s newspaper prompted an important thought about consolidation. If we depend only on elected officials to pursue consolidation opportunities, it is likely that nothing will ever happen. There must be push from the community to get this moving. I have already included this issue on my 2006 “civic projects” list. I hope others will also join the effort.
Consolidation is an idea that county/city taxpayers need to embrace. It can be cost effective, provide better planning/service, and recognize that new structure is necessary for efficient government. We are a growing county and local “boundaries” are getting tougher to define.
Today's editorial Stan refers to has two things I would comment on:
First, they quote some professor (I think) as saying the community "elites" must make it happen. I suggest we need the men and women, teachers, retired persons and business owners who are tired of paying double taxes, etc to make it work. Oft times, the "elites" are not.
Second, I think, at least in Ocala, they overplay the role the Chamber of Commerce will play. Years ago, in the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's, the Chamber was a major influence. Unfortunately, they have not been for about 10-15 years, and I don't see it happening for a while to come.
I spent more than 40 years as a Chamber member, and they have found it more important to "be safe" than to lead. Maybe someday they will step out into a leadership role again. Maybe then they will again attain 2,000 plus members.
And unfortunately, the Public Policy Institute referred to has a reputation of being a branch of the Democratic Party, and has never achieved the importance that had been expected when it was formed.
--pwf
As Tammy Moore takes over the job of Belleview Mayor, I hope she will do two things. One, remember that she represents all citizens of Belleview and doesn’t just become a puppet of the Committee of 50, or whatever that group calls itself. Two, pursue opportunities for consolidating certain city services with the county. This includes even the controversial idea of police services.
She must do what she says she will (i.e., “not be politically correct”). It will take fulfilling this commitment to do the right thing for the citizens of Belleview. Having our own services in every government function is not necessarily the tax/customer efficient way to do business. Why, it might even be a good idea to eliminate the Mayor’s position, the City Manager and the whole idea of a City Council. Now that would be taking not being politically correct to the ultimate level!
I agree with two comments made, we need a grassroots effort to make consolidation have any chance of success. Show the folks in the cities how this can reduce their taxes and give equal service and it will get support.
However, I’m more positive about the role of the local Chamber of Commerce than one of the gentleman is. If the membership gets behind this it will be successful. I don’t think the leadership of the Chamber will need to play that critical a role. The leadership will just coordinate whatever the membership directs them to. I hope that one of the Chamber committees picks up on the consolidation idea and runs with it.
Jim, I wish I could be more positive, but I have been there and watched as the chamber has dwindled in its effectiveness and its position in the community.
However, if you can make it work, I will be there to work with you you.
I have on my desk a copy of the proposal for a unified law enforcement department developed by then Sheriff Don Moreland with then Police Chief Lee McGehee way back in 1990. Much of it is still relevant today . . . I'd be happy to share.
--pwf
I would integrate all the planning and zoning activities first. We need some central oversight and control over these functions.
i'm not sure the county fire chief's proposal i saw in today's paper goes far enough. it is a start but i believe further combinations of county and city are necessary.
I think the comments about our Ocala/Marion Chamber are very correct. This group does not currently have the leadership to have any impact on the consolidation issue. Unfortunately, there is a political factor at play that is causing a poor perception of the leadership. This may not be fair but it is reality.
I notice that some nitwit has linked the political affiliation of the head of the chamber of commerce with whether or not that individual can be successful. What a narrow minded view. This is what is wrong with our country today. People can’t seem to get beyond whether someone is a democrat or a republican. The chamber head can be any political party. And I don’t think this matters at all in getting the job done.
Jim, I just re-read your comments, and want to re-print a paragraph and then comment:
You wrote "However, I’m more positive about the role of the local Chamber of Commerce than one of the gentleman is. If the membership gets behind this it will be successful. I don’t think the leadership of the Chamber will need to play that critical a role. The leadership will just coordinate whatever the membership directs them to. I hope that one of the Chamber committees picks up on the consolidation idea and runs with it.
If the membership of the chamber ever got involved, things would change. Unfortunately, most people join because someone asks them to, and they are never heard from again until the renewal comes due, and then pay up again.
And unfortunately, many people can tell you stories of how they tried to influence the direction the chamber takes, and quickly found out the leadership is the chamber -- they frequently do not follow the membership, and the membership then quits paying dues. I hope it will chnage, but tradition does take precedence.
The Chamber has about 1,500 members today, and there may be a total of 100 that are active. We have a population of about 300,000. When we had a population of say 120,000 to 150,000 and the chamber had about 2,000 members.
And we then had about the same 100 to 200 who were active.
Looks like the trend of membership vs population is going the wrong way to me.
But that's the story in any and every organization I know.
--pwf
Thanks, PWF, for the information about the chamber membership. You are right, things don’t look good from a history standpoint. Maybe it will get better and the consolidation idea can be a chance for the chamber to get new life. We will see.
Perhaps one of the best consolidation opportunities was mentioned in another section on the blog. How about some multi-county combinations of school districts? Now that would be a good way to get rid of some high paid administrators and school boards!
Any new ideas out there on the consolidation topic?
I like the suggestion about the county taking over the city parks. The county parks my family and I have gone to our a lot nicer than those in the city. Maybe the county could run the city parks better than they are.
Anyone read Brian Creekbaum's letter in the Star Banner? For once I agree with him about caution on haivng the county take over municipal function.
Well, I did! I wrote it as a resident of Ocala. The Star-Banner editorial board is pushing consolidation. To the best of my knowledge, none of the three members of that board lives in Ocala.
My family will gladly continue to pay a little overhead to maintain municipal control over our services and to avoid having the county suck fire protection resources and the like from Ocala and to avoid the county government circus.
Here’s a quote from the Republican Executive Committee of Marion County website: “the most effective government is government closest to the people.” Yep. And the government closest to me is the City of Ocala government.
BC,
How about the idea the state has come up with to sunset departments? Wouldn’t that be a good alternative to consolidation to improve the efficiency of local and county government? Someone had mentioned this in another section. Only negative might be giving the commission a chance every 5 years or so to eliminate the library. What say you?
I haven’t studied sunsetting, but I’d say you are letting the county commissioners off easy with a once in five years decision. They have the opportunity to eliminate the library every time they meet. They haven’t. Every time they haven’t, they have effectively held an implied vote in favor of keeping it.
Randy Harris has had the opportunity to propose eliminating the library from the county budget every time the county commission has met since he became a county commissioner in 1993, and he’s never proposed it. I don’t follow the county government as closely as some, but my understanding from an editor at the Star-Banner is that in the most recent budget sessions the other commissioners asked Harris for a list of what he wanted to cut, and the library wasn’t on it. Not surprising, given the library has 135,000 registered users, and Harris is addicted to his government salary. Especially not surprising going into an election year.
Harris mouthpiece John Lund, who has publicly stated we should not have a library, has also publicly stated any politician proposing its elimination would be excoriated by the Star-Banner so they can’t do it. In other words, he knows Harris won’t really deliver on eliminating the library so he has to find an excuse for him. Harris told then Star-Banner columnist Lucy Tobias a few years ago, by the way, that his family had a library card. In his 2002 campaign, he actually used an image of the new headquarters in a print ad, claiming the new building as an accomplishment.
Last year, I attended a candidate forum at which the husband of one of the library board members had on a McClain button on. I said, “I guess you would like to see the library board eliminated.” He said, “I don’t want to eliminate the library board; I want to eliminate the library.” His reason was essentially a libertarian one. I’m pretty libertarian, but not so much so that I would axe the library.
McClain said in that election that there was waste in the county budget but refused to give specifics, saying he would have to study the budget once in office. Well, he got in office, studied the budget, and didn’t propose eliminating the library.
The library isn’t going anywhere because it has a lot of community support and the politicians know it.
Correction: Harris was first elected in 1994.
Already the county and city can't agree on fire services coverage. How in the h... does anyone think that they can make the consolidation idea ever work. A good idea that needs to be taken out of the hands of politicians.
As a resident of the City of Ocala. I’m satisfied with the City’s current bargaining position on fire services. It makes great sense for the City of Ocala to go ahead and assume fire service responsibility and revenues for the urban service area they will be annexing anyway. The County’s concern about immediately “losing density” is nothing more than a euphemistic expression for the desire of county politicians to fund fire service to rural areas of the county on the backs of urban dwellers.
There are pros and cons to living in an area with high population density and pros and cons to living in an area with low population density. One of the downsides to living in a rural area is that it’s less efficient for the government to provide fire service to you. People who choose to introduce such inefficiencies by living in rural areas should not expect others to subsidize those inefficiencies. My family maintained a summer home on Little Lake Weir from the 1940’s through the 1980’s. When we did so, we did not expect people living in Ocala to subsidize fire services to our home in the country.
It looks to me like the city is trying to stick it to the county on charging for fire services outside city limits. Probably a good way to not provide the services and blame the county for not reaching an agreement. Who loses, all of us.
I believe Dan Owen has it right on the solution to the city/county fire services issue. All these half solutions being proposed are not the answer. Councilman Owen, as was his position during the last city election, believes the answer is “consolidation of the two departments”. I’m in agreement.
Let’s quit pussy footing around on the issue and do something that is right for the longer run. Thank you Councilman Owen for sticking with your position on fire services! Now get Commissioner Payton on your side.
I would like to be more positive about consolidation, but I don't think it is going to go anywhere. Maybe if the PPI and Chamber get some influential people behind it.
Look at what's (not) happening with fire services.
Based on what I read, this is not going to work.
Fire and police services is the wrong place to start a consolidation effort. Pick something smaller with less politics at the top of the two organizaions being merged. You will never get the City and County Fire Chiefs to make this work.
I attended today’s county commission meeting. The discussion on fire services by the county and city was very disappointing. It looks like politics on the city’s part is keeping the issue from being resolved. It is time to consolidate the fires services. Both sides better face up to this or it will really become a political issue. Voting out a few city councilmen may be the best solution.
It looks like there is a solution to the fire services issue: Annexation by the City of Ocala.
Why didn't they do this in the first place?
i like the one in the letters to the editor in the star blunder. let’s combine the county commission and the county school board.
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