Megan Pratt, Pensacola City Council At-Large

Bay Bridge Comments

2011-08-24T11:02:00.002-05:00

The state has determined that the Pensacola Bay Bridge needs to be replaced. It is several years off, but they are starting the planning now. They are requesting comments from the public on any priorities that should be considered. Anyone with suggestions should access the Efficient Transportation Decision Making (ETDM) Web site. On that site, you can search for the bay bridge project, and there is a link for submitting comments.

Examples of the topics that some people have commented on include:

Bike lanes
Sidewalks
Break down lanes
Toll lanes/HOV lanes
6 lanes, 8 lanes, 4 lanes
West side landing, east side landing
Pretty lights
Road Rangers Services

Please share your opinions on the proposed project so that we can try and make it a bridge that will meet the community's needs for many years to come.

Council staff

2011-07-22T14:22:00.001-05:00

Since the first council meeting after the passage of the new charter, the council has been working to formalize the structure of this new government. And since that meeting, the council has contemplated having some form of council staff. The council is currently considering two highly qualified candidates and looks forward to the hiring of one of them.

Why does the council need a staff?
The legislative branch of any government has needs that differ from those of the executive. While the mayor has working relationships with many of the knowledge experts in the government, the councilmembers often need a guide to help them navigate the bureaucracy and research issues. The council needs a professional who will provide clear, unbiased advice on issues before the council, to serve as a sounding board for councilmembers as they contemplate an issue. The council also needs assistance in preparing agendas, particularly handling requests for council presentations and facilitating the appearance of experts for council deliberations.

These are all tasks that were done under the previous government and still need to be done under the new charter. Without someone to perform these functions, the council cannot adequately fulfill its duties under the charter. Council staff is a necessary element of good governance.

Is it legal under our charter?
Our charter gives the mayor the power to appoint, discipline, and remove all officers and employees. However, nowhere in the charter is there a prohibition of the council having dedicated personnel. Early in his tenure, even, Mayor Hayward directed the council that Mr. Coby would continue to be a resource for the council. And the charter does not forbid the mayor from respecting the wishes of the council.

True, the council can not send an offer letter, the council can’t sign paychecks. But the mayor can do those things on behalf of the council in the best interest of this city and sound governance.

Do other cities with a mayor-council government have council staff?
Yes. Hialeah has multiple council aides, as well as a relationship with the clerk. Hialeah does not expressly give the mayor the powers to appoint all officers, but it does not give the council the power to supervise any departments.

Orlando has an assistant for each council member, and their charter explicitly gives the power to have subordinates. In Orlando these assistants function much like the assistants for the Escambia County Commission and are paid in a similar range.

The council in St. Petersburg has one administrator and three assistants, but the charter prohibits the council from requesting the appointment of anyone.

Each of these cities has found a way to provide the necessary support to their councils. Each has a different format, and the one this council contemplates is different, too. But if they have found a way to make it work, so can we.

Can we afford it?
During the budget deliberations for the 2011 budget, before the first mayor under the new charter was elected, the then-council provided funding for the mayor’s staff as well as the council staff. The budget was balanced, but the funds for this council staff have not yet been expended. There are sufficient funds in the budget to hire candidates of the caliber the council considered during their recent workshop.

The mayor and city council are all dedicated to providing a strong city and want to ensure that decisions are made with adequate consideration. The council has spoken multiple times about the need for a staff person and has worked diligently toward the hiring of such a staff, including much debate and discussion since the mayor’s swearing in. This council staff is an essential element of good government, which is in the best interest of all the citizens of Pensacola.

Creating Jobs or Rearranging the Deck Chairs?

2011-07-19T20:59:00.000-05:00

the issue: number of city council seats

Over the course of a year, a committee set about the complex task of designing a new charter for the City of Pensacola. Among the issues which they discussed was the number of City Council members and the existence of at-large council seats. After considerable deliberation, they decided to leave the existing structure as it was.

Why did the charter commission keep the existing council structure?

People in our community are passionate about voting for those who represent them. And they should be. When a previous city-county charter commission proposed changing from elected to appointed constitutional officers, that issue was attributed to the failure of the entire initiative. If we were to change from the current system of seven district representatives and two at-large representatives on council, the voters of Pensacola would lose considerable control over their city government.

Under the current system, every voter casts four votes. One for the mayor, one for their district representative, and two for at-large council members. That means they have four out of ten city officials directly accountable to them. Why would the voters want to reduce their voice on the city council by two-thirds? But more important than how many votes they cast on election day, the current system increases the chances that their perspectives will be voiced during council deliberations.

The Wisdom of Crowds.

Each individual council member has a different life experience, different passions, diverse knowledge. Each asks different questions helping shape a better final decision that considers many points of view.

The more people participating in the debate, the more likely all angles of an issue will be considered and the more likely the final product will be better than any one person could have created.

Consider juries, which are typically twelve people, regardless of the size of the community. In decisions about jury size, the Supreme Court has stated that juries should be “large enough to promote group deliberations”. It is not a question of the size of the community, but rather a question of the size of the group which determines whether a sound decision will be reached.

But what about the costs?

Council members are currently paid $14,000 a year. In the scale of the city’s budget, each additional council member’s salary is a drop in the bucket. If more members provide better decision making on a $200 million budget, that $14,000 is worth it.

As we work under the new charter, we continue to have questions on implementation. This is not one of them. The commission made a clear decision on this, and we should spend our energies discussing more pressing issues.

Our community faces serious challenges as well as many opportunities to shape our destiny. We should not be distracted by how many seats are on the council, when the people of this community are more concerned about how many good jobs we can create. We have many, many important matters before us; we should not be worried with rearranging the deck chairs.

Library of Congress and July 4

2011-06-28T09:33:00.004-05:00

I do hope you are making plans to celebrate Independence Day downtown in Seville Square. The City is incredibly appreciative to the Pensacola Sertoma Club which organizes the whole thing, along with all of their sponsors. In addition to the fireworks at 9 pm, they hold free children's activities in Seville Square all day plus live music in the evening. Make sure to come down. Visit their site for more information.

In addition, this year we will have a special treat, the Library of Congress traveling exhibit. It will be in Fountain Park (south of Seville Square) on July 3 and 4. It is free and open from 11 am to 7 pm both days. The exhibit will include high-quality reproductions of many of the Library's top treasures including a rough draft of the Declaration of Independence and many other items. Thanks to the West Florida Public Library for sponsoring this exhibit.

We are very fortunate in this community to have so many wonderful events going on. I hope to see you at some of them.

City board openings

2011-05-02T12:40:00.002-05:00

The City Council is looking for nominees for two boards. Serving on city boards is one way that citizens can take a more active role in the city government, and I hope that you will consider serving on one.

First is the city redistricting commission. The results of the most recent census are in, and the city needs to redistrict to balance the council seats. Service on this board will be short since the supervisor of elections will need the information by the early fall. Members of this commission must be residents of the city.

Second is the Community Maritime Park. The CMPA recently expanded the size of the board to broaden the citizen involvement. Therefore, there are now three vacancies for the board. It is an exciting time for the project, with construction to be complete by the end of the year. While the board meets monthly, those filling these vacancies will likely have quite a bit of homework to do to get up to speed. Many important decisions are still awaiting the board's deliberation, and it will be a great chance to have a role in one of the biggest projects in our community.

Please let me know if you might be interested in serving on either of this boards. Nominations are due by this Friday, May 6.

Transit survey

2011-03-08T08:26:00.002-06:00

Would you like to share your opinions on public transportation in our community? You are invited to take the transit survey that will help inform the Northwest Florida Transit Development Plans. The results of this survey will help the West Florida Regional Planning Council in planning for future projects. Feel free to share other transit thoughts with me directly, as well.

Bands on the Bayou

2011-03-06T13:35:00.002-06:00

The city parks department is trying a new program, Bands on the Bayou. Bring a chair or blanket to Bayview Park Pier and enjoy the sounds of local middle and high school bands. Vendors will be on site selling food items. This free event starts at 6 pm. This program should be a great opportunity to enjoy music and one of our most beautiful parks.

The kick-off schedule is:

Date	Band	Music
March 25th	Warrington Middle School	Guitar
April 1st	Woodham Middle School	Jazz
April 8th	Escambia High School	Jazz
April 15th	Workman Middle School	Jazz
April 22nd	Washington High School	Jazz
April 29th	NO CONCERT - SPRING BREAK
May 6th	Bailey Middle School	Jazz
May 13th	Escambia High School	Jazz
May 20th	Pine Forest High School	Jazz

Great American Cleanup in Pensacola

2011-02-17T09:12:00.003-06:00

Clean and Green is coordinating many events in honor of the Great American Cleanup. They provide an opportunity for us to get together with friends, coworkers, and others to improve the looks of our community. It is also a great opportunity to get young people involved in making a difference in our community. Last year I had the chance to participate in the downtown clean up with my daughter, who was 7 at the time. Not only did she become much more cognizant of the impact of littering, I think it was the best anti-smoking program I could have ever come up with--she became disgusted by the numbers of cigarette butts we ended up picking up.

If you can't make it to one of these events, consider partnering with your neighbors to do a pick up in your local park. Or take a family walk with a garbage bag and see how fast you can fill it. If you do want to coordinate a special event, whether picking up litter, planting flowers, or sprucing up neighborhood entrances or public parks, contact Clean and Green and they can help provide support. Who knows--you might have so much fun you will want to adopt your neighborhood park.

Contact Clean and Green to sign up to participate in one of the currently scheduled events in the area:

March 12th, 8:30-11:30AM.
Downtown Cleanup: Coordinator Kim Kimbrough /Melissa Hulen
Area: Streets of downtown Pensacola
Meeting location: Plaza De Luna - end of S Palafox
Kickoff Time: 8:30 am

March 12th, 8:30-11:30AM.
Warrington Cleanup: Coordinator Kristie Sitler
Area: Warrington/Lexington Park
Meeting location: Lexington Park
Kickoff Time: 8:30 am

March 19th, 8:30-11:30AM.
Project Greenshores/Hawkshaw Memorial Cleanup
Meeting location: Hawkshaw Missing Children's Memorial - Bayfront Parkway (Across from the Veterans Park)
Kickoff Time: 8:30 am

March 26th, 8:30-11:30AM.
Thompson Bayou: Coordinator Karen Pritchard
Area: Thompson Bayou off UWF campus
Meeting location: Bldg 13 (Environmental Studies) at entrance to the Edward Ball Nature Trail (parking lot G)
Kickoff Time: 8:30 am

April 9th, 8:30-11:30AM.
Whitmire Cemetery: Coordinator Karen Pritchard
Area: Whitmire Cemetery, West of West Florida Hospital
Meeting location: Cemetery
Kickoff Time: 8:30 am

April 14th, 8:00 am-12:00pm.
This is a Thursday!
Mt Zion Cemetery: Coordinator Stephanie Planich
Area: Cross St and Guillemarde
Meeting location: Cemetery

April 16th, 9:00 -1:00 pm.
Union Hill Cemetery: Coordinator Mark Caro
Area:Fairfield & 69th Ave
Meeting location: Cemetery
Kickoff Time: 9:00 am

April 23rd, 8:00 -11:00 am.
Barrineau Park Cleanup: Coordinator Tina Tuttle
Area: Molino
Meeting location: Community Center
Kickoff Time: 8:00 am

April 30th, 8:00 am-12:00pm.
Landscaping: Latter Day Saints
Area: TBD
Meeting location: TBD
Kickoff Time: 8:00 am

Maritime Park public spaces workshop

2011-02-14T15:56:00.002-06:00

The Maritime Park board is hosting a public workshop to review the plans for the public park spaces of the park. Information about landscaping, lighting, benches, and other amenities will be presented for discussion. The meeting will be held at City Hall on Tuesday, Feb. 15, at 5:30 p.m. Come and see what is planned to make this park a unique destination.

9th Av traffic study

2011-02-11T06:36:00.002-06:00

Escambia County is holding a meeting to discuss improvements to the 9th Ave corridor from Underwood Av to Creighton Road. The meeting will be held Saturday, February 19, from 9 am to 1 pm at Cokesbury United Methodist Church. It will be a workshop, and there is no need to attend the whole session.

This workshop is part of a study to consider design changes and alternative routes to alleviate congestion and safety issues of 9th Av. A major focal point will be the 9th Av/Langley/Tippin intersection.

While much of the area under consideration is in the county, this is an important corridor for city residents as well, particularly those living in Scenic Heights. A presentation regarding some alternatives considered in this study was shared with the city council previously. Some ideas they are considering include closing the section of Langley beside the airport, routing traffic along McAllister Blvd. These changes will likely be significant, and I hope that city residents make their voices heard.

If you have any questions about the meeting, you could contact Dennis Moxley, the project manager in Escambia County.

No such thing as free parking

2011-01-25T18:02:00.006-06:00

--except in Monopoly

The recent article in the PNJ about parking at UWF has spurred me to share some thoughts on parking.

We live in a culture that cherishes the freedom implied by automobiles. Since the advent of the automobile, we have built our cities around them, easing their use. One thing that we have come to expect is ample, free parking.

But is free parking really free?

Take a look at the recent CRA master plan. Much of downtown is covered with surface parking (shown in purple and red), occupying our prime commercial land. That is land that could house businesses or residences. Businesses that would draw more people downtown, whether to shop or to work. Residences that increase the numbers of people living downtown. Both would contribute to our local economy and support our city services.

If the land were occupied by buildings, walking downtown would be much more pleasant. Consider how appealing walking on Palafox St is, with the variety of window displays to interest you. Compare that to walking on Romana St, past large expanses of parking. Or, a more extreme case, compare it to walking along 9th Ave beside Cordova Mall.

Businesses throughout our community subsidize parking (and, therefore, driving). The business must buy more land than it needs for its actual work and then pays taxes on the land that is taken up by parking.

But we “need” all of that parking. Most people can’t walk or bike to work, and our bus system is inadequate. To reduce the amount of our land dedicated to parking without an uproar, we must reduce the demand for parking. People need an incentive to consider an alternative to just hopping in the car.

What kind of incentive could there be? Many businesses downtown currently pay for parking spaces for their employees. Instead of paying for those spots directly, what if they gave the money to their employees, letting them make the decision for themselves about how much they are willing to pay for the convenience? Alternatively, employers could start paying employees who forgo their parking spot, a little reward for using a different, and mostly likely less convenient, way of getting to work.

I do not expect that such a simple program alone will make much of a dent in our transportation challenges. Nor would it transform our landscape overnight. However, it will be a regular reminder that there are options and there are incentives to try something different. Employees could switch to carpooling, the bus, or other means. People might start asking for a better transit system, and the transit system would have the riders to justify an increase in the service. And better service might draw more folks, and perhaps the number of people driving to work will begin to decrease. With less demand, perhaps businesses won't need to continue to subsidize parking so much.

The oil spill last spring was a horrible reminder of what our collective actions can do to our environment. The devastating results of our dependence on oil should encourage us as a community to step up and take leadership in changing our behavior. Small steps such as this can start the shift.

Choosing a council president

2011-01-06T11:30:00.010-06:00

Next Monday Pensacola embarks on a new era in our city government. The first elected mayor will be sworn in. It’s time to heal any rifts from a vigorously fought campaign, time for our entire community to unite in wishing Mayor Hayward great success in moving Pensacola to take its rightful place as one of the great cities in the Southeast.

But another important step will also take place on Monday--one that is also critical to the success of city government under the new charter. That is the election of the council president. And just as Mayor Hayward will shape the roll of mayor, the new president will have a vital role in determining how city government functions under the new charter.

So what qualities should we look for in a council president?

Diligence and attention to detail. The new president will work with staff to prepare meeting agendas. It’s not sexy, won’t garner applause, but it is an important and time-consuming function of the new council president. The president needs to thoroughly understand the City budget and be grounded in public policy and make sure that something as mundane as a meeting agenda helps accomplish our long-range goals.

A team-builder. The new council will blend new faces with old. While we may represent different constituencies, while we may differ on issues and vigorously debate our points of view, we must do everything possible to avoid a polarized council. The new president will need to be able to set aside his or her personal agenda to help create a team out of diverse viewpoints and talents. The council as a whole must be bigger than any individual member.

A bridge builder. The council president will be the liaison between the council and the mayor and the council and staff. He or she must earn the respect and trust and establish good working relationships with Mayor Hayward as well as with the city staff.

Able to recognize and tap creativity. We have a diverse and talented council. The president should tap the unique skills of the other council members. As committee chairs, council members can play an active role in setting City policy. (It would be a mistake, I believe, to place all of the power in one council president heading the only committee, squandering the depth and breadth of leadership that exists in the council.)

Able to run open, efficient meetings. The president must be respectful and open to citizen input, fair to all members of council, able to maintain discussion that is germane without being heavy handed, and respectful of everyone’s time. A complete understanding of Robert’s Rules of Order is a must.

Committed to making this new charter work. The charter is short. It broadly outlines the structure of our new form government. But there is a lot of gray area. The council president will collaborate closely with the mayor to create a functioning government that is consistent with the spirit of the Charter the citizens ratified and to serve the best long-term interests of Pensacola

Finally, the choice of council president this Monday will embody the council's vision for its role in this government. It is as important as any decision this council will make.

The deliberations of the city council are an important part of representative government. The mayor will act outside of the spotlight, while the council is the public face of decision making and a primary entree for citizen input. It is the open government branch. The council president will set the tone for these deliberations, from setting agendas to running meetings to empowering other council members.

This is an exciting time to be involved in the city government. Each of the members of the government have unique roles. We are no longer supporters or foes of candidates or of the charter, but we are all working together as supporters of Pensacola and Pensacolians. I look forward to working with the council, the mayor, and the citizens to create a government that is effective, efficient, and innovative—putting us on the path of becoming one of the great cities in the Southeast.

Technology Park and Admiral Mason Pond

2010-10-25T14:14:00.000-05:00

One question that I get asked often is what the city is doing to recruit high tech businesses, often with the request that the city use surplus property as a lure. I want to share with you a bit of information about two related projects that are currently underway. You might have heard about them at some point, but there is great forward momentum now, and I'd like to bring you up to date.

Technology Park

Several years ago, Ray Gindroz and his team of urban designers visited Pensacola and created a plan for the Pensacola Historic District. One of the main elements was to better utilize the field just south of the Civic Center. Currently it is used for parking for Civic Center events, as well as a little golfing, assembly for the military units who participate in the McGuire's St. Patrick's Day run, and housing elephants when the circus is in town. Not the highest and best use of a large urban parcel.

For several years, the city and the county (most of the space is county owned) have worked with the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce to create a plan for that space, which has become know as the Tech Park. The park is envisioned as a shovel-ready site for technology companies that want to locate to our downtown. Industries such as information technology and life sciences will be targeted, and companies purchasing parcels must commit to providing 50 jobs with an average wage at least 125% of the average county wage.

I'm pleased to share with you that recently the chamber finalized a contract for the development of the infrastructure improvements (a new road, sidewalks, streetlights, etc) for the project. Construction should begin in the next 30 days with completion within the next 8 months. Half of the approximately $4 million in infrastructure improvements will be funded through a federal stimulus grant (you might have noticed the signs on the property).

The chamber is currently in discussions with at least one company about locating there. However, the advantage of this project is that it will provide sites for companies who may not be able to wait very long for infrastructure improvements and the like, so we should see more movement once the infrastructure is in. It will be a great boost for our local economy, bringing more folks to our downtown, and will strengthen Pensacola's position for future economic growth.

Admiral Mason Pond

Well, you might say, "The county is putting up the land for the project--what is the city doing?" The city's largest role is rather unique. One of the biggest expenses for a new development is meeting the stormwater retention requirements. Most developments dig a hole, which isn't too hard, but it takes up valuable land. It also reduces the density of the project, making it less compatible with an urban environment (if it is a downtown project). To assist the tech park project, the city is building a stormwater retention pond.

This isn't just any old pond, though. This is going to be a feature of our downtown. The pond will be located at Admiral Mason Park, at the corner of 9th Av and Romana, adjacent to Veteran's Park. It is going to be an attraction, rather than something behind chain link fences. The perimeter of the pond will be quite long, about a third of a mile--a great exercise loop for the walkers and runners out there as well as a nice place for a quiet stroll. The pond will have fountains spraying in it, so it will likely be visible from Bayfront as you approach the city. The city council will likely award the $1 million dollar contract for the pond construction (funded through the annual stormwater capital program) this week, with construction beginning in November.

This pond will provide stormwater retention for the tech park. In addition, it will be able to accommodate further development on other undeveloped parcels in the surrounding area, increasing the potential for other economic development downtown.

So, in a sense, the city is providing city property for economic development. But the citizens are not losing any property but rather are gaining a new type of park, a new kind of attraction.

This entire project, the tech park and the pond, are an intriguing collaboration among many partners--the city, the county, the chamber, even the federal government--which is going to provide economic growth, a new park feature, increase density in our urban core, and even improve the looks of our community on one of the most heavily traveled gateways to our city. I look forward to the current construction efforts and hope to see new building sprouting up very soon.

Bayfront Sunday - October 24

2010-10-12T10:58:00.003-05:00

The second trial of Bayfront Sundays will be held October 24. Bayfront Parkway between Chase and Tarragona will be open to pedestrian and bicycle traffic from 8 am to 5 pm. This is a great opportunity to enjoy our beautiful waterfront and downtown while enjoying exercise, being with your family, and meeting others from our city. While you are downtown, do consider patronizing the downtown businesses--road closures typically negatively impact their business, but I am hopeful that an event like this will provide a boost to their typical Sunday crowd rather than an hinderance.

This trial had originally been scheduled for June, but the summer heat had already settled in, so we postponed until the cooler weather. This pleasant October weather is a wonderful opportunity for us to get outside and be reminded of why we endure the summer heat--so we can enjoy such a beautiful fall.

Attendance at this trial will determine whether the city ought to continue with a program like this, so if you'd like to see it continue, plan on coming down and help spread the word.

We have a facebook page about the event--check it out and share your plans for the day. Additional information about the event is in previous blog posts from last spring and the spring before.

Cyberbullying and other internet risks

2010-10-07T08:12:00.003-05:00

The unfortunate events of recent weeks have reminded us all of the incredible potential of the internet, for both good and bad. We all know that cyberbullying, big and small, is happening all of the time, but we often wonder what we can do about it, how we can protect the kids in our lives. I'd like to share a special resource with you.

The Pensacola Police Department has an informative presentation about cyberbullying and other internet risks which often affect teens. There are two versions, ones for teens and one for adults. I have been fortunate enough to have seen the adult version, and it is amazing, though, unfortunately, quite depressing. It definitely sticks with you and provides incentive and ideas for talking about the dangers with kids. The PPD provides this presentation in various forums, and if you have a group that might be interested in seeing the presentation, please contact Chris Wilkinson.

While most often we think that the police just chase down bad guys or give out tickets, they provide a range of services, including presentations such as this, online crime mapping, and the Are You O.K.? and Take Me Home program, to enhance the safety of our citizens. I hope that you will take advantage of these programs so that together we can work to keep our community safe.

Parks photo contest ending

2010-10-01T10:28:00.002-05:00

For all of you shutterbugs out there.... The deadline for submitting photos for this year's park photo contest is October 8. Winning photos will be included in the parks calendar for 2011. It is a beautiful time of year, finally nice enough to go out and enjoy our wonderful parks. Bring your camera along and shoot some pictures. More information and a listing of all of our great parks are available on the parks department website.

Talking Trash

2010-09-25T11:17:00.002-05:00

Recently I had a conversation with a friend. She mentioned how informative a tour she took of the San Francisco landfill was and commented how neat it would be to have such things here. To her surprise, I told her that we do have them, that I've been on the tour, and the tours here, too, are really interesting and informative.

I bet that friend isn't the only one who is curious about what happens to our trash after the truck comes. So, if you are interested in learning about the local landfill, you can take a tour on the last Wednesday of the month every month. Tours are at 10, noon, and 2 pm. They appreciate RSVPs, and you can call (850-937-2160) with other questions. I guarantee you will walk away with lots of information about trash.

If you can't get away for a tour, you can read my blog post about my visit. You can also view a video about the landfill. For other information about the Perdido Landfill, visit their website.

Environmental Book Club

2010-09-15T13:27:00.010-05:00

The environment continues to be a topic of discussion and debate. Many books have been written which can provide insight and ideas on environmental concerns, but sometimes it is better to have others with whom to discuss the books. If you'd like to discuss environmental books, consider joining the library's newest book club.

The environmental book club will kick off October 20 with a discussion of Silent Spring. The meetings will be held at Tryon library, and the first meeting might coincide with the installation of the gazebo in the park, providing the proper setting for discussing the natural world.

Meetings will be monthly on the third Wednesday of each month from 6-7 pm. The schedule for the first reads is:

October 20 - Silent spring by Rachel Carson
November 17 - Last child in the woods by Richard Louv
December 15 - Rubbish! : the archaeology of garbage by William Rathje
January 19 - Green metropolis by David Owen.
February 16 - The song of the dodo by David Quammen
March 16 - Song for the blue ocean by Carl Safina

I hope this book club is of interest to you. If you'd like to be a part of it, please call Gabriela Galescu at 436-5060 ext. 2227 or email ggalescu@ci.pensacola.fl.us.

Borrowing books from the library or a friend are ways to make this book club green beyond the topic. The library has (or will have) copies of all of these books, so check them out. The club is sponsored by the West Florida Regional Library and the Friends of the Pensacola Public Library.

I hope you will join the discussion.

Bryan Park update

2010-08-23T16:10:00.002-05:00

It feels like we've been discussing the idea of a natural playground at Bryan park, behind the new Tryon library, for a very long time. Much progress has been made, mostly behind the scenes, so I thought I'd give you a status report.

Last weekend I joined a number of people from the neighborhood near the park as well as many Navy personnel to help parks and rec staff get the park cleaned up. The park is on the site of an old street-sweepings dump, and there were many hunks of concrete and other large items that needed to be removed. Others cut back vines and other growth around many of the trees that will stay in the park. I spent some time pulling weeds out of the existing beds, giving a new meaning to "grassroots politics".

While the main idea of the park is natural, we decided to order some modern structures as well. Those items, including a net climber (right) and a new-fangled swing (left), have been ordered and might be in the park in September. In addition we ordered a gazebo for the park.

The parks and rec staff is excited to develop some of the elements themselves. They put in one test activity already, a set of stump steppers (right). A neat feature of their work is that some of it will be a reuse of equipment from the old Lavallet playground wooden play structure which was recently removed, diverting materials from the landfill.

Along with all of that, Home Depot has gotten on board (literally). They have store goals for community service projects, and this fits very nicely with their skills and resources. They have begun plans for a pirate ship, a bridge, a reading area, a sensory garden, and a labyrinth. They have been excited looking through ideas for natural elements, often adding to their list rapidly with "Oh, we should do that, too!" comments frequently. We appreciate their help on this project.

Some of the store bought elements will be in place in September, and we are aiming for some of the natural elements to be installed in October. The drainage project is finished, and the irrigation for the park will go in soon. Once the irrigation is in, landscaping will begin. Since many of the natural elements can be constructed by parks staff during the off season, it is possible that new elements will trickle in as we assess the park usage and what appeals to the users.

I am excited by the enthusiasm about this project and am eager to see the outcome. The park will likely become a popular destination by virtue of its location with the Tryon library, which saw 20,000 users in the month of June alone. Also, as a unique addition to our large park supply, this park will likely be a "destination" park, attracting visitors throughout our community. I look forward to seeing you there.

Connections

2010-08-02T11:18:00.000-05:00

One of the most important roles of local officials, in my opinion, is to provide connections. We interact with many people with many interests, and linking those people together can help strengthen our community. At the basic level is something like this blog where I attempt sometimes to connect you to events in our community.

There are also more powerful connections that can be made, too. For example, when Holly Benson was in the state legislature, she connected me, through my science education work at IHMC, with Gulf Power and the Escambia and Santa Rosa school districts to create a program to enhance science education. The outcome was I LOVE Science (Increasing Local Opportunities for Volunteers Enthusiastic about Science), a program that brings community volunteers into 5th grade classrooms to lead hands on activities aligned with the curriculum. The program is now entering its 5th year and has been very successful. (Keep your eyes peeled for forthcoming information on volunteering this year.)

Most of you have a robust network that connects you with many resources throughout this community. These connections have a significant impact on you, your finances, and your health. Did you know, for instance, you are more likely to be overweight if your friends' friends are overweight? Your connections provide an extended knowledge base, helping you navigate through many of life's challenges (did a friend help you figure out how to get your first mortgage? have you gotten a job because someone told you of an opening?). The impact of your circles is critical to your well-being.

Unfortunately, many in our community do not have strong connections. Or their connections have a detrimental impact on their quality of life, linking them to damaging behaviors or not linking them to important resources and skills. Unite Escambia's Poverty Solutions Team realized that by connecting those living in poverty with new circles, they could have a positive impact on reducing poverty. To this end, they have created the Bridges to Circles program which links allies with families living in poverty, connecting them to the knowledge, skills, and resources many of us take for granted. Of course, they are always looking for new allies in this program, and information is available on their website. I encourage you to consider this opportunity.

By increasing our connections in our community, whether participating in local government, helping in the schools, or serving as an ally for someone trying to break the cycle of poverty, we can strengthen our city together. Let me know if there is a resource or a group that I can help connect you to.

Recovery toward a green future

2010-07-22T10:48:00.001-05:00

For several months the entire focus of the Gulf Coast has been on oil. We have watched black tar wash onto the shores of our white beaches. We have learned a whole new vocabulary and more details about oil rigs than we ever wanted to know. We also look to the future, a future of damaged fisheries, a poisoned Gulf, and a damaged reputation with tourists.

And we have seen firsthand the perils of our national and worldwide dependence on oil.

With the clean-up progressing and hope for an end to the gushing, the talk now is of how to target assistance to rebuilding our economy and our region. It is time for local leaders to come together with one voice to tell the federal and state governments what would help us the most.

Local leaders have begun the process, and many lists have been generated. Instead of a generic wish list of projects, though, we need a driving vision, a focus for how we can emerge from this catastrophe as a better community. Since the challenge has been caused by dirty energy, the rebuilding should target green initiatives, improving our local environment, strengthening our economy, and also giving the Gulf Coast the cache of the “Green Coast”.

Many ideas have been suggested. Some tap existing federal programs, such as

Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grants
EDA grants for infrastructure development at former superfund sites.

Others might be region-wide projects that could make our transportation network more green, including

Implementation of a recommended passenger rail service between New Orleans and Orlando
A targeted pilot program of the Marine Highways program to encourage shipping through a less energy intensive means.

But if we are to become a greener community we should consider new programs. These programs could be region-wide, including:

Support for new, green industry in the area.
Assistance in creating in-fill housing to reduce residents’ commutes
Grant programs for residents or businesses to improve the energy efficiency of buildings
Incentive programs for businesses to encourage employees to use alternative transportation

In addition, communities could create a list of targeted projects unique to their needs. Projects for Pensacola might include:

Ferry service between downtown Pensacola, the beach, and NAS
Infrastructure for the port of Pensacola to increase the range of materials which may be shipped through the port
Improvements to the ECAT bus system to increase ridership
Enhancements such as bike lanes and sidewalks to encourage the use of alternative transportation
Acceleration of efforts to clean up our bayous, including additional stormwater vaults.

These suggestions should not supplant other proposals which provide traditional incentives and support for small businesses. However, we need to move beyond the idea of business as usual toward a new vision of the Gulf Coast. We also should not count on others to do it all; we need to consider local initiatives, like transportation reduction incentives and green certification, which I will explore in a future blog. Where currently we are so devastatingly impacted by dirty industry, we will emerge as an environmental leader. White (sands) and black (tar) should make green (initiatives).

Transportation Project Priorities Workshop

2010-07-12T15:27:00.004-05:00

Many of you have expressed concerns about how we get around here in Pensacola. You have another opportunity to help shape the priorities for state-funded transportation projects for our area over the next few weeks. The Florida-Alabama Transportation Planning Organization, who oversee the transportation expenditures by the state in our area, will be having public input session on the priorities for the upcoming years. These priorities encompass all modes of transportation--pedestrian, bicycle, public transportation, highways, ports, airports.

The sessions will be held:
July 12 5:30 P.M. Navarre Community Center, 1917 Navarre School Road
July 13, 10 A.M. West Florida Regional Planning Council Offices, 4081 E. Olive Road, Pensacola
July 14, 10 A.M. Escambia County Extension Office, 3740 Stefani Road, Cantonment
July 15, 5:30 P.M. Santa Rosa County Auditorium, 4350 Spikes Way, Milton
July 29, 5:30 P.M. Southwest Branch Library, 12248 Gulf Beach Hwy, Pensacola

I realize this is late notice, and I apologize. If you are unable to attend a session but want to provide some feedback, there is a survey online. It doesn't seem interactive, and there isn't an email address to send it to, but you could contact Gina Watson with your comments. If you want to know a little more about the proposed priorities before the meeting, those are also available online. (Do note that these are long range priorities, and many of the items on the list have been there for several years--funding is dependent on the state allocations.)

I hope you will be able to provide some input. Local residents are the best resource in determining how state funding should be allocated, and all levels of government need to work together to meet the needs of our citizens. We can't address your concerns, though, if we don't know your priorities.

Second Bayfront Sunday postponed

2010-06-21T07:47:00.004-05:00

Like many of you, I woke up last Sunday excited to try out Bayfront Sunday, having discussed with the kids whether they’d like to bike, scooter, or walk along our waterfront. Unfortunately, when I went outside to get the newspaper very early, I was hit by a wall of humidity. We did go down and try it out, but the kids wilted pretty fast (and I was pretty hot, too). I’ve heard from several of you that you, too, had planned to go, but you just couldn’t get out of the air conditioning (or perhaps the pool).

The positive response that I have received from so many who are excited about this type of programming is at odds with the low turnout we had last Sunday. The original idea was for these trials to start in April, a much more humane month, and I believe that the heat of the summer was too much of a deterrence. Therefore, the city has decided to postpone the second trial, originally scheduled for this coming Sunday, June 27, until the fall, possibly October. Keep your eyes peeled for more information. And do remember there is still a sidewalk, so do come down and enjoy the waterfront whenever you have a chance.

Pensacola Beach produces...

2010-06-09T16:42:00.002-05:00

“They don't produce anything off Pensacola Beach.” – James Carville, on the impact of this oil spill on Pensacola Beach.

The BP oil spill has been called one of the greatest environmental disasters in American history will affect all of us--along the Gulf Coast, in the southeast, across the United States, and around the world. For some coastal communities it will be devastating. And while the effects will be felt greatly here, this disaster is bigger than any one person, community, or region.

I was particularly disappointed to hear that Pensacola Beach doesn’t “produce” anything. Sure, our beaches are known more for swimming and basking in the sun than for wildlife. Even if this were just a vacation place for people, though, there is a value in that. People need rest and relaxation. The sound of the waves breaking on the beach can wash away the stress of the work-a-day world, recharging us for the rest of the year of the daily grind. Vacation produces good workers and keeps our country and economy moving smoothly.

But there is another side to our beaches, one that most of us don’t see on our vacations. Sure, we see fish swimming near our legs or go ghost crabbing with the kids. We like to watch the shorebirds run near the surf and the pelicans swoop down for a meal. And who is not enchanted by the sight of dolphins jumping? There is also, of course, the wildlife we dread, like the jellyfish.

Our beaches, though, also teem with life that we rarely glimpse. One of the great things about having kids is that I have gotten to take them to many educational programs where I have learned so much. Programs like a sea turtle presentation at the public library, where we learned that the gender of sea turtles is affected by the temperature. Beaches on the northern Gulf coast tend to be cooler, producing more males. However, some females are born here, too, ensuring that eggs are laid here year after year (turtles return to their natal beach to lay eggs). Maintaining nesting sites across their range is essential for turtle survival, and with all species threatened or endangered, they need all the help they can get. (Don’t forget, too, that turtles enjoy eating our beach nemesis, the jellyfish, so we should all be rooting for the turtles.)

I have also learned about other wildlife at our beaches, thanks to snorkeling and seining programs at the Gulf Island National Seashore and Big Lagoon State Park. On these outings, kids and adults have scooped up amazing creatures like pipefish, juvenile shrimp, and baby blue crabs, along with many, many hermit crabs. I hope that the programs at both the national and state parks will continue this summer since now, more than ever, we need to be aware of the fragile ecosystem right outside our doors. If they can’t continue or you can’t make it out there, I do hope you’ll watch the Gulf Islands National Seashore program recently produced by WSRE which highlights some of the wildlife under our waters and on our shores.

The rangers I’ve talked with at these programs (some of whom are on the WSRE program) have been very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. They are eager to share the importance of our local environment with everyone, whether locals or tourists, with the understanding that we’re more likely to protect what we know.

Mr. Carville, please take back those cynical words. Our beaches matter. Our flora and fauna, even our jellyfish are important. And vacations at the beach recharge the workforce. Why don’t you come to Pensacola. It’s a vibrant community. We’ll show you we what we produce... But right now we’re busy, working together to clean up the beaches and water that we love.

The City and Education

2010-05-28T10:03:00.004-05:00

No more pencils, no more books, no more teacher's dirty looks....

Summer vacation is fast approaching, when schools close their doors and kids find other things to do. Today, though, nine months of instruction is not sufficient to prepare kids for the future, for good jobs.

During the last year, the council has had repeated discussions about the role of the city in education, whether we should have a role or not. While some argue that we should not get into the education business, the truth is we are already in it. Our community centers and our library system are the city's contribution to education, particularly with our summer programs.

Researchers conclude that two-thirds of the 9th grade reading achievement gap can be explained by unequal access to summer learning opportunities during the elementary school years, with nearly one-third of the gap present when children begin school. - Lasting Consequences of the Summer Learning Gap

Libraries are clearly educational, of course, since they encompass one of the 3 R's. However, their mission is much broader, bringing programming throughout the year to libraries, for both adults and kids. Adult programming includes using computers and book clubs. Kids programming include special presentations, ranging from wildlife to opera, and an American Girl book club. Many of these programs are supported by the Friends of the Library through their regular sales of donated books.

During the summer, the library hosts a summer reading challenge. Kids of all ages roll dice to choose a book genre, working their way toward a prize (a book to keep) while exploring the range of books in the library. In addition, there are weekly programs from magicians to puppetry, dancers to acrobats. All of this is to spur kids to keep reading during the summer, to keep their skills sharp for the next school year.

City recreation programs, too, are a great educational resource in the community. The athletes among you (and even some folks as uncoordinated as I) know the great skills kids acquire playing sports, skills beyond catching and throwing. Things like teamwork, self-confidence, quick thinking, and goal setting. Not to mention the general value of fitness and healthy lifestyles. And the range of sports available in our recreation programs is large--from basketball and baseball to tennis and golf, swimming, karate, even fishing and juggling.

In the era of the FCAT, many programs are cut from our schools to focus on the "essentials". That is one of the reasons our sports programs are so important as PE is more and more limited. The range of programming at our community centers is quite broad, though, filling in many of the gaps. For example, they offer dance, art, and even foreign language classes.

Our community centers also provide afterschool programming for many kids in our community. That programming includes homework help and access to computers. Many kids also attend preschool at the centers, helping prepare them to succeed in kindergarten.

Over the summer, our community centers are a buzz of activity. Each center hosts camps, providing a range of programming. While there is certainly plenty of time spent on the staples of summer camp, such as arts and crafts (lanyarns, anyone?) and talent shows, there is a lot of learning going on, too. Students get to go on field trips to various places (canoeing on the Blackwater, the PJC Planetarium, T.T. Wentworth) at a time when field trips are being cut from the school district budget. Special guest also come to present programs (from beach safety to cake decorating) for the kids.

Could we do more? Absolutely. However, we have to make hard decisions with our taxpayer's dollars. We are not the school district; we do not have education as our primary mandate. But through our existing resources, our libraries and community centers, we can work to improve educational achievement in our city, strengthening our workforce and attracting better jobs for our citizens.

You should be proud of the efforts by the city toward education outside of school. I hope you will spread the word about these great programs in our community so that we can keep learning going year round.

Maritime Park Update

2010-05-23T17:48:00.002-05:00

For the past year, I have had a ring side seat for one of Pensacola’s most unusual projects, the Community Maritime Park. We all know the history: the initial Trillium plan proposal and its defeat, the new proposal and its ratification by the voters through a referendum, etc.

Like many, I had thought that the passage of the referendum took care of all of the issues, and we would soon see a park. Boy, was I wrong. I also have realized that we all have a different recollection of what we voted for in the referendum, a different dream of what those 30 acres of waterfront property will hold and how they will transform our city. There have been many drawings—sketches of the buildings, site plans—each shaping our vision. Now it is time to make our collective vision a reality.

In the last year I have been honored to be the city council’s representative on the Community Maritime Park Board. We’ve reviewed many contracts, considered many different site plans, and puzzled over financing. We’ve held a groundbreaking, but we haven’t seen much action.

This spring has been a turning point. We recently approved the design-build agreement with the developer, resolving many questions and thorny issues. Now bids are going out for significant construction projects, and we will start seeing some action. [If you are interested in providing services on this project, the bid notifications are posted at http://maritimepark.us/mp/bid-notifications.html.]

Last summer we were approached with an opportunity to jump-start construction through New Market Tax Credits. People involved in all aspects of this project have been working frantically to get up to speed on the credits and all of the regulatory nuances they entail. There have been wording changes in contracts, restructuring of the CMPA board, and many other changes necessary to take advantage of this money. As a result of these credits, an extra $12 million will be applied to the project, bringing many desired enhancements so that within the mandatory two year window the project will have many elements we all were expecting.

So, what should we expect? The contract for the park is broken into two pieces, the city funded part and the tax credit enhancements. The city portion is limited to $40 million. That money is broken into three components—the site work, the stadium, and professional costs.

The site work will use approximately $16 million. That includes lots of exciting elements like sanitary sewer and potable water, bulkheads, stormwater pipes, and earthwork (fill dirt). It also includes the more visible elements like roads and sidewalks, street lights, trees, benches, and landscaping.

The stadium, which is really more than just a baseball stadium, will cost $11 million to construct. The Pelicans will be a primary tenant, and they are working closely with the designers. The stadium will have 3200 seats, plus an additional 500 seats on terraces. There will be space for an additional 3000 seats on the field for a concert or similar performance. Underneath the seating there will be locker rooms, administrative offices, and spaces for two retailers.

The professional costs round out the bill. These are the engineering, permitting, legal, and developer fees, as well as the owners’ representative fee (they provide the oversight of the developer for the CMPA board) and the contingencies.

The New Market Tax Credits are expected to net about $12 million (we’ll know the final numbers at closing in the next week or so). That money will pay for some enhancements that you might be surprised weren’t in the original budget. A breakwater and marina. DeVilliers promenade (along the western waterfront). A public restroom in the south park. The amphitheater in the south park. Some stadium enhancements.

When will we see some action? The developer is soliciting bids on some of the elements now. And the new design-build contract requires the developer to be substantially complete by the end of December, 2011. There have been many delays, but now we have stringent deadlines.

Taken all together, this construction will create a great foundation for building a fabulous amenity for our community. Alone, it is not sufficient. Notice I didn’t mention a museum, restaurants, offices, stores. Those are not part of the city’s contribution to the project. UWF is still working toward the maritime museum. The Studer Group is working with the developer on coordinating the construction of their office building. The developer is working on luring restaurants and other private development to enliven the park. All of these elements are moving forward, and the development of some of the private parcels should occur in tandem with the rest of the project.

It has been a long, bumpy road, but we now see some light. I look forward to all components of the project moving forward rapidly so that at the grand opening in the end of 2011, we will have a wonderful project that will make downtown Pensacola a magnet for families, school kids, workers, and tourists and a catalyst for new jobs and investment in our community.

Bayfront to be open to pedestrians and bicyclists two Sundays in June

2010-05-19T11:44:00.004-05:00

Update (5/26): The event will happen June 13 and June 27. Plan on coming down!

The Opportunity. Pensacola’s most unique asset is our waterfront, particularly the downtown waterfront. The more opportunities we have to enjoy it, the more we are reminded what a great place Pensacola is.

However, we rarely have real access to our waterfront. We can zoom past it on Bayfront or Scenic. We can go to a few parks. But most of our waterfront is cordoned off for the people who can afford to own water views. Opening Bayfront to pedestrians and cyclists will provide opportunities for us to enjoy our beautiful waterfront with the added benefit of bringing people from across our community together, encouraging them to exercise and meet their fellow Pensacolians.

The Action. The city council and staff have agreed to test the idea. We are now working out the details for two trial closures, to be held on Sundays in June. If these are successful, if people demonstrate that they want this type of recreational access to the downtown waterfront, the council will consider how to make these a regular occurrence.

The plan is to block off Bayfront Parkway from Tarragona/Barracks Street to Chase Street. People will have the opportunity to walk, bike, skateboard, or rollerblade on the road. This stretch also includes two large park areas, Veterans Park and Seville Square, which may encompass related activities. Once the dates are set, I plan to provide more information.

The Cost. Of course, everything has a cost. While staff has worked to develop a plan to minimize costs, money is necessary. Especially in tough financial times, we need to limit spending on anything that goes beyond the City’s core missions. That’s why I am seeking to underwrite this with private funding.

Success will be measured not only by the attendance but also by financial contributions. Our budgets are tight. If this is to become a regular activity, we will need to be able to count on the private sector support. While the city has the physical resources (the road, the barricades), we will need the private sector’s financial resources to implement and sustain this program.

I have spoken to many who are supportive of this idea. Some, who see the benefits of this program, whether drawing people downtown to their business, making Pensacola a more attractive community, or encouraging exercise, have offered sponsorships. If you know of businesses or individuals who would be willing to contribute financially, or if you yourself would, please let me know. The cost estimate is about $1000 per Sunday. Based on the responses I've heard so far, I am confident that there is lots of support for this program, and I hope that will translate into enough funds to cover the cost.

Whether or not you are able to contribute financially, I hope you will join us for this celebration of fitness, our waterfront, and our community.

Bicycle Pedestrian Master Plan

2010-04-15T09:42:00.003-05:00

Improving the bicycling and walking infrastructure is important to strengthening our urban fabric. Next week citizens will have an opportunity to voice their opinions on the priorities for walking and bicycling in our region. The West Florida Regional Planning Council is holding public workshops to discuss needs, priorities, and funding options for these amenities in the Long Range Transportation Plan. Workshops will be held:

Lillian, AL: Monday, April 19, 5:30 - 7:00 p.m. Lillian Community Club.

Pensacola, FL: Tuesday, April 20, 11:30 a.m.- 1:30 p.m. Pensacola City Hall, 222 W. Main St. Hagler Mason Conference Room (2nd Floor)
4:30 - 7:00 p.m. Baptist Medical Park, 9400 University Pkwy, Azalea Room

Santa Rosa County, FL: Thursday, April 22, 11:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. Santa Rosa County
Auditorium
5:30 - 7:00 p.m. South Santa Rosa Service Center Conference Room

As you can see, these workshops will be held in a variety of venues, as befits a "regional" plan. However, it is important for us to emphasize the importance of bicycling and walking to the City of Pensacola. Amenities which fall under this are bike lanes, sidewalks, multi-use trails, and medians/pedestrian crossings. More information is available online. I hope to see you at one of these meetings.

By the way, if you like biking, check out Hayne St, which runs parallel to I-110. Public Works has recently re-striped the roadway to include a bike lane. Try it out some time.

Employee benefits sequel

2010-03-16T09:00:00.000-05:00

Last year, the city council was very close to taking action on reforming city pensions and other benefits. We took some short term steps, like putting a hold on employee raises and longevity pay for the current fiscal year. However, we did not manage to take action on large scale reforms; instead opting to have a study of pay and benefits (the Mercer study).

Study results

The study came back. It showed that in most areas city employees receive similar ("competitive") benefits compared to the other survey respondents. [Note that the study included mostly other local governments and governmental agencies. According to the US Bureau of Labor and Statistics, in 2008 total compensation, salary and benefits, for state and local workers was $39.25 an hour — $11.90 more than in private business.]

There were a number of areas where we were more generous ("highly competitive"):

paying longevity (in essence a pay raise based on years worked)
leave accrual
spousal benefits for retirement
and calculation of salary for pension (two year vs five year averaging).

Our benefits were poor ("non-competitive") compared to other survey participants in

employee health insurance costs
and the types of health insurance we offer.

Additionally, our salary ranges for most jobs compared poorly to the other respondents.

We knew going into the study the areas where we were "highly competitive"--I had urged changes in these areas last May. (For a discussion on these changes, see my May blog post. I had not included changes to longevity in that proposal, since the then-proposed FY2010 froze longevity.)

The Proposal

Now that the study is back, it is time to take action. On Tuesday (today), we will have a special committee meeting at 4 pm to respond to the city manager's proposal for reforming employee pay and benefits. The proposal, roughly is:

no pay increases for FY 2011
eliminating longevity
capping leave accrual and paying out excess over two years
change spousal benefits for new employees
switch to five year averaging for calculating pensions
strive to increase city's contribution to health insurance premiums.

This proposal is responsive to the study results.

Retirement and leave accrual
The proposals regarding retirement benefits and leave accrual largely mirror the suggestions I made last May. The main difference from my suggestion last year is making the spousal benefit change only apply to new employees, leaving current employees with the spousal benefits they anticipate.

Longevity freeze and salary range adjustment
In addition to the retirement and leave changes, the proposal includes abolishing longevity going forward, rather than freezing it. With that change, also, there would be a change in the maximum of all salary ranges by 10%. Currently, an employee's longevity pay is over and above the salary range for their job. This change will bring most of our pay ranges into line with other survey participants (though it will not have an effect on our current budget since it won't change the pay of individual employees).

Health insurance
The other addition to the proposal for discussion Tuesday beyond what was proposed last year is a response to health insurance. The proposal is to gradually increase the city's contribution to family health insurance from the current 55% toward the 72% average of the survey participants. While health insurance gets into some big political philosophy questions (hence the national debate), it is desirable to have insured employees for a variety of reasons. This is simply setting a goal, and we will annually need to work toward that goal when we renew our health insurance program.

Time for Action

As I've said before, it is hard to look at our hardworking, dedicated employees and say, "We can't give you what we want to give you, what we think your effort is worth, because the taxpayers can't afford it." On the other hand, I don't want to look at our taxpayers and say, "Sorry. Couldn't do it. We can't handle the hard decisions."

We are in the midst of one of the worst economic downturns in history. Businesses throughout our community are laying off employees, forcing furloughs, or instituting pay cuts. Our citizens are facing double-digit unemployment. In better times, councils of the past have responded to the economic situation, sometimes raising salaries or benefits in order to attract qualified employees. This council, too, must be responsive to the economic situation, the challenges our local businesses and citizens are facing.

I am ready to act, and I hope that my fellow council members are ready, as well. We need your feedback on this issue so we know that we are making the right decision on this challenging issue. I know we will hear from the employees; I hope we will hear from other taxpayers as well.

Bryant Park Survey

2010-03-14T19:59:00.000-05:00

I have posted previously about the effort to turn Bryant Park (around the new Tryon library) into a natural playground. We are making some progress (I'll admit, slower than I had hoped) and have learned a lot about how to do it.

For a variety of reasons, at this point we are leaning toward a hybrid playground, combining natural elements and purchased equipment. I've sat in meetings with various staff members, and we have each responded to the elements ourselves. But it has been a long time since most of us have really played on a playground....

So we decided to bring the decision making to the users, the kids of our community. We are having a workshop for kids who live near the park to give them an opportunity to give their feedback. Since this park will attract more than neighborhood kids, particularly with the adjacent library, I want to expand the input. However, a room full of a hundred kids is daunting. So I've decided to use modern technology....

Below is a slideshow of elements that might be included in the park (some of the more natural ones might be modified from what you see, but just trying to convey the idea). I have also created an online survey. (An apology on the survey--they don't have a "rank" tool, where you could rank things by numbering them, so I created it as a grid. Then it wouldn't let me have everything in the grid, so I split it into two. Sorry for the challenges.) Survey questions correspond approximately to page numbers of the slide. Feel free to provide feedback via email as well--the survey just might make data collection easier.

Of course, we won't just buy the top five vote getters--we will need to consider the budget, space, and other issues. This survey is more to get a sense of what kids really respond to. I also welcome adult feedback. Kids are not always the best at self-reflection--my five year old looked through the images and wanted everything. I have tried to group items, so perhaps look at it as choosing among two directions--wooden stump seating or sculpted plastic, for instance.

I look forward to your feedback.

Playground

Click here to take survey

City boards

2010-03-10T19:12:00.000-06:00

From time to time, the city council is asked to fill vacancies on our boards. These boards run the gamut, from parks to pensions. Rather than ask every time, I was hoping to generate a list of folks who have an interest in serving. I would like to broaden the potential nominees so that we can ensure that our boards are staffed with thoughtful, informed people who will help move this city forward. [We are looking for nominees for the Parks and Recreation Board and the Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeal, due on Friday, if you are interested....]

Please look over the list of boards, and let me know if there are any that appeal to you. Also, please let me know a little bit about you (perhaps a resume) so that I will be able to share it with council when making a nomination. You do not necessarily need a particular expertise to be on some of the boards, but a word or two about your interest in that board would be welcome. Rest assured that I won't nominate you without double-checking with you when a vacancy arises--I understand how life changes and something that might seem like a good idea at the time might not work well later.

Affordable Housing Advisory Committee -joint appointment with county
Architectural Review Board- specific residency requirements
Area Housing Commission
Board of Trustees Firemen's Relief and Pension Fund - city residency requirement
Board of Trustees Police Officer's Retirement Fund - city residency requirement
Civil Service Board - city residency requirement
Code Enforcement Board - city residency requirement, employment preferences
Construction Board of Adjustments and Appeal - professional requirement
Downtown Improvement Board - appointed by Mayor, property owners downtown
Enterprise Zone Advisory Board - some professional requirements
Environmental Advisory Board - some professional requirements
Fire Education Incentive Board
Fire Prevention Board of Appeals - professional expertise requirements
Gateway Review Board - some professional and property holding requirements
General Pension Board - city resident
Human Relations Commission
Human Services Appropriations Committee
International Relations Advisory Board - mayoral appointment
Parks and Recreation Board
Planning Board - city residency requirement
West Florida Public Library - city residency requirement
Zoning Board of Adjustment - city residency requirement

Let me know if any of these boards appeal to you, or if you have any questions about them. Thanks for your willingness to serve.

Community Initiatives Program

2010-03-03T13:42:00.002-06:00

One of the programs the city has that has a direct impact on our neighborhoods is the community initiatives program. This program allows neighborhood associations to receive funding for projects that will improve their neighborhoods. To insure that the neighborhood has commitment to the project as well, the city only contributes 50% of the project cost. There are additional limitations on the type of project, but we still see a range of activities.

The council recently approved the grants for this year:

Bay Oak Villas - Entry lighting
Cordova Park - Sod for soccer field
Longwood - Enhance entry signage area
North Hill - Banner project, phase 2
Northeast - Replace entry sign
Sanders Beach - Entry signage
Summer Lakes - Gazebo and lighting

Once I learned about this grant program, I began to see the products of the program as I drove around town. Many neighborhoods have entry signs or enhanced landscaping so that you have a sense of arrival. Others have parks with additional amenities, such as gazebos, that were developed by the neighborhood association.

Partnerships like this between neighborhoods and the city are a great vehicle for the city to ensure that the needs of neighborhoods are met. Look around your neighborhood and see if there are some specific needs that we can help you meet. Let me know if you have questions about what kinds of projects are acceptable, and I'll find out. With your input, the city can address your needs most directly.

Port security grant

2010-03-02T08:15:00.000-06:00

The council was recently informed that the port was successful in a grant from the FEMA Port Security Grant Program. We have been awarded over $1.6M for a number of projects:

1. The city will create the infrastructure to improve communications via telephone and video conferencing during an emergency.
2. The grant will support the purchase of additional data storage capacity to duplicate city data.
3. Fiber optic cable will be routed to most community and recreation centers to provide meeting places for citizens and alternate work locations for city personnel.
4. The city will purchase Voice Over IP systems to replace the existing phone system for city departments.
5. The grant will support improved training for emergencies for all departments.
6. The port will develop a continuity of operations plan to ensure maritime commerce is maintained after an incident.
7. ESP will receive facility security surveillance.

If you notice, only one of the items is port-specific. It is interesting to note that this grant is going to provide a great boost to our emergency operations while also upgrading our infrastructure across most departments, but we would not have received it if we didn't have a port. While we often try to keep various pots of money separate, the city is a complicated organism--the accountant's spreadsheets only can tell a portion of the story.

I am pleased that the city was successful on this grant. These infrastructure improvements will increase our safety after storms. In addition, elements like the VoIP system will improve our day-to-day operations and reduce future costs. Currently, capital improvements in the city are primarily limited to funding from the local option sales tax and grants like this. Sometimes it is necessary to spend money to save money, and this grant will help us do that.

Hollice Williams Visioning, round 2

2010-02-16T13:01:00.002-06:00

Last October the city held a visioning workshop for citizens to share their ideas for the Hollice Williams park. This is the park that can be approximated as the space under I-110 from Jordan Street south. After that workshop, architects and designers worked to create a conceptual plan for the park space, and now you will have an opportunity to share your thoughts on the plan.

The meeting will be held Wednesday, February 24th, at 5:30 pm at City Hall. Please come and see the plan and let us know what you think. I have had a sneak preview of the framework, and it is exciting. There are many opportunities for citizens and citizen groups to get involved in shaping this project so that we can make this a signature park for our community.

I hope to see you there and hear your ideas for this unique property.

Parks calendar photo contest

2010-02-07T15:10:00.002-06:00

The Pensacola Parks and Recreation Department is again soliciting photos for the annual parks calendar. The calendar for 2010, the first one, included many wonderful images of our parks. For 2011 there is a bit more notice, so you will have a chance to photograph your favorite park during multiple seasons. With over 90 parks in the city, there are many opportunities for finding a great shot. Submissions will be accepted until September 30, 2010. More information is available on the parks website.

UWF Maritime Museum offer

2010-01-31T12:02:00.000-06:00

We are getting closer to getting a final site plan for the maritime park. (See my recent post for a discussion of the site plan process.) Once a final site plan is approved, the developer can begin putting in roads, drainage, and other improvements, making visible progress on the project. Last week UWF presented the CMPA and the city a proposal for the museum location, along with several other requests that they believe are essential for their participation in the project.

We have a new impetus to get this site plan approved—a deadline for the New Market Tax Credits. These credits were offered to us last summer and would provide millions of dollars in “free money” to the project. We have received word that if we want these tax credits, we must commit by February 8th. So there is some urgency to reach a final agreement regarding the museum and UWF's other expectations for the project.

At our recent CMPA meeting we (I'm the council's representative on the CMPA board) approved the new site plan and UWF’s requests in concept, though many details were left pending. Now it is time for the city council to weigh in on the plan approved by the CMPA as well as on the items that are under City purview. The council had a brief meeting to review the proposal last week. A number of questions were raised. Many concerned the requirements for the tax credits. Others related to specific details in UWF’s request. While it is clear that a variety of concerns still linger, we agreed in concept with the proposal presented by the university.

A special meeting is scheduled for next Tuesday, February 2, to clarify City Council's position on those details. And I would like your feedback. It is vital that the public weigh in on details of this project.

The proposed site plan is to the right. A slightly different higher resolution is available. In addition to this plan, a sequence of previous site concepts were presented by UWF along with their comments. These include the Gindroz sketch and the design criteria package plan.

The following is a brief summary of the requests with some extra context:

The commercial building to the north of the museum would be limited to 48 ft height and would be set back 75 ft from the waterfront.

The developer will incur costs for numerous changes, including a retaining wall and accelerated dredging. (The city has provided $40M in bond proceeds to the CMPA for the construction of the park. Any additional costs for the developer would have to be paid out of those funds, necessitating reductions in other portions of the project.)

A portion in the northwest corner of the site would be leased to UWF for a marine services center, including a boat lift and boat storage. (This would require a rezoning by the city to allow such uses.)

UWF "is willing to entertain" an off-site location for the majority of their boat storage. (It is unclear at this time if they expect the city to provide that site.)

The tax credits together with any other funds made available immediately to UWF by the CMPA must yield a minimum of $13.4M to UWF. (Current estimates predict a best case of $13.1M from the tax credits, about $7M worst case. The CMPA would need to take anywhere from $300,000 to $6M from another park element to meet this request.)

The university must own the museum. (Lawyers are trying to determine if this request can be met under the tax credit regulations.)

These points sparked a brief discussion by council in our short meeting. Some of the concerns raised included:

whether boat storage on site is consistent with the park aesthetics
which park amenities would be reduced to fund the extra costs, and the impact of those reductions on those aspects of the park
the encroachment of the museum and research center into the southern park which had been designated for public open space
the economic vitality of the proposed site.

Our time was constrained, hence the need for the additional meeting on Tuesday to explore those concerns and others more fully. Because these are not just trivial details but concern everything from economic impact to aesthetics to allocation public space, I am eager to hear your reaction to the current proposal.

We were assured by UWF that they are still a willing partner in this project. If they can not receive the tax credits, they will revert to the original plan to raise the funds for the project. The city has committed to moving forward with the credits and expect at least $7M in credits at minimum which will enhance this project.

I am hopeful that we will resolve all of these concerns to everyone’s satisfaction, and we can continue on our path to building a centerpiece attraction for our community.

Green lights

2010-01-26T12:47:00.000-06:00

Last summer I wrote about a new initiative by Gulf Power to install more environmentally friendly lighting. The lights recently were installed, and they are definitely worth a look.

The new lights are in the park-like space between the main Gulf Power building and 9th Av, between Salamanca and Romana. They utilize new LED street light technology and are part of a nationwide test program to assess the performance of LED lights as street lights. LEDs are more efficient than regular lighting, and we currently use them in our stop lights and pedestrian crossing lights. However, a few technical issues remain in determining if they are satisfactory for street lights; hence the test.

If this test is successful, switching our street lighting to LED would provide significant energy and, therefore, cost savings. The city spends $730,000 on electricity for street lights annually. These LED lights are 60W and replaced 100W fixtures. Switching all of the lights in this manner would lead to a 40% decrease in cost, a savings of nearly $300,000 each year. (Of course, there could be differences from this, depending on the wattage differences, and there would be costs of buying new equipment.) In addition to the energy savings, LED lights are expected to be replaced at much lower frequency, saving labor costs.

Check out the lights, day and night. Interestingly, they are opposite a few different kinds of lights for your comparison. One thing you might notice is that they are in a clear globe, but at night, the vast majority of the light shines down. This is an additional energy-saving feature--why would we need to light the sky? These lights are "semi-cutoff", allowing some light to go upwards, but directing most of it to where it is needed. (While you are down there, check out the lighting on Bayfront Parkway. On the southeast side, the lights that were replaced after Ivan are full-cutoff, meaning their light is only directed toward the ground, while those on the northwest side are more traditional street lights.)

The technology for energy efficient lighting is improving every year, and I am hopeful that this pilot program will prove a success, and we can move toward more efficient, environmentally-friendly lighting for our community.

Street Sweeping

2010-01-11T09:40:00.001-06:00

I recently had a citizen ask me what the purpose of street sweeping is. From his house, the street doesn't look any cleaner, but it certainly is clear that it is a cost to the city--owning fancy equipment, maintaining and operating that equipment, and paying someone to drive it. Why do we spend that money?

My most distinctive thoughts about street sweeping, personally, come from my days living in Cambridge, MA, where twice a month I awoke to the sound of a loudspeaker on a car driving down the street announcing, "Street sweeping! All cars parked on the odd/even side of the road will be ticketed and towed." (Remember to read that with the requisite Boston accent....) In Cambridge, street sweeping seemed to make sense--there was just more litter from folks living densely.

Pensacola, though, is a relatively clean little city, so why should we have to sweep out streets? That is a very good question that deserves a good answer. The answer is that street sweeping is one of the best tools we have for maintaining the health of our waterways.

The City's street sweepers collect over 3000 tons of sediment a year. This is sediment, mostly sand, that does not end up in our bays and bayous. And the less stuff that goes into the water, the cleaner it is. This collection accounts for almost 70% of the total sediment we collect--the remainder is collected primarily by retention ponds and baffle boxes.

In addition to the sediment, the sweepers annually remove nearly 400 tons of organic debris. Organic debris is stuff like leaves that have fallen off a tree. Ordinarily, those leaves would wash into the bays and bayous. Decaying grass and leaves can decrease the oxygen in the water, leading to algae blooms and fish kills.

Since we don't have someone driving by with a loud speaker at some early hour, most of us don't even notice the sweepers coming through. We miss the weekly sweepings downtown and the monthly sweepings in residential areas. In the fall and spring, we also miss the bi-weekly sweepings near Bayou Texar.

Of course, the sweepers can't catch everything on that schedule. But each of us can do our part to help keep our waterways clean. For example, during the fall and spring, make an extra effort to rake up fallen leaves. Then bag them up (in a paper bag) for the sanitation trucks to take for composting at the landfill. There are some other tips on the city's website. [One other tip from that site I'd like to highlight: cleaning up after your dog. We typically think of this as a polite thing so others don't get a mess on their shoes, but the larger-scale reason is that animal waste can end up in our waterways, also contributing to the algae blooms and fish kills.]

I hope that this has helped clear up the mystery of why we sweep our streets. If there are other questions you have about city activities that you would like answered, please let me know. During the last year during council meetings, conversations with staff, or in an effort to find the answers to citizens questions, I have had many mysteries cleared up. I'd like the opportunity to help share this information with you or work to find the answers to your questions.

Zoning Board of Adjustment nominations

2010-01-08T11:50:00.002-06:00

At the city council meeting on January 25, we will be considering candidates to fill a vacant seat on the Zoning Board of Adjustments. Nominations are due by noon, Friday, January 15. If you have an interest in serving on the board, please let me know. Nominees must be residents or property owners of the city. The appointee will fill an unexpired term which ends July 14, 2010, but could be renewed.

The Zoning Board of Adjustments reviews and grants or denies applications for variances, waivers, and special exceptions to the Land Development Code. In addition, it hears and decides appeals when it is alleged that there is error in any order, requirement, decision, or determination made by an administrative officer in the enforcement of the Land Development Code. More information on the board can be found on the city's website.

New port tenant

2010-01-05T10:46:00.000-06:00

The Port of Pensacola might not be changing course, but at least it may be on a new tack. . .

At a recent council meeting, we had a presentation on the future vision of the port which included many long term goals as well as some steps currently leading in new directions. One new business opportunity for the port is a partnership with Offshore Inland. This company is berthing its first vessel in the port now.

Who is Offshore Inland? It is a company based in Mobile which provides mobilization and demobilization services for the offshore drilling companies. For example, when an oil company needs services on a rig, they contract with Offshore Inland. Offshore Inland then procures the equipment, loads the vessels and take them to the rigs. Offshore Inland then unloads the equipment and makes repairs to equipment on the rigs. This is just one of an array of services which they might perform.

How will they affect the economy in Pensacola? The port derives income from dockage fees and warehouse fees. While Offshore Inland has a boat at the port, they will pay dockage fees. They will also store equipment in the warehouses. These charges will help underwrite the costs of the port, especially because these boats will stay in port for extended stays (30 days in some cases) plus they expect to have 12-20 boats come in the upcoming year.

Economic Impact Multipliers. But the economic impact goes well beyond that. Offshore Inland is replacing the kitchen in the vessel which is currently at the port. So in addition to outfitting the new kitchen, they are employing a caterer to prepare the meals for the crew. Another ship scheduled to arrive in January will require that 50-60 skilled workers relocate here for 30 days to perform technical maintenance. In addition, they are hiring 30 welders/pipefitters from the local area to work on this project. Each project will be unique, requiring skilled workers from welders to computer engineers. As our relationship with Offshore Inland continues, they could tap local resources, like using local machine shops for custom machining. They might also lure their suppliers to relocate here.

Marketing the Port of Pensacola. During the presentation on the future of the port we saw materials used by Offshore Inland used in marketing their new partnership to their customers. It was very interesting to see the Port of Pensacola through the eyes of a maritime customer. It is clear that our Port has many qualities that port users are seeking. These include our proximity to the Gulf and rail and highway connections.

The Port as a Good Neighbor. Offshore Inland is a customer that we want. They are not noisy; they do not clutter our waterfront with unattractive outdoor storage; they will not require many trucks passing through our downtown; they employ skilled labor for long periods. Their presence will help underwrite the costs of the port while providing a needed boost to the local economy.

I am pleased that our port staff have worked to create this agreement with Offshore Inland. I look forward to a long-term, cooperative relationship with this company to demonstrate the value of the port to our local economy.

P.S. The issue of drilling off the coasts of Florida is currently being hotly debated. Offshore Inland is not a new venture spun off of this initiative. They have a long history in the maritime business and service rigs in the western Gulf of Mexico.

Maritime Park planning

2010-01-04T09:20:00.001-06:00

The Community Maritime Park promises to be the single greatest legacy not just of this City Council but also of the civic-minded people living and working in Pensacola today. By developing this waterfront site, we have the unique opportunity to determine the shape of downtown Pensacola and the image of our community for many years to come. I am proud to serve as the council representative on the CMPA board.

The project recently passed a big milestone. The vast majority of our citizens indicated their support on moving forward by not participating in the petition drive. Bonds to underwrite the project were sold. We are now in a position to really push this project forward. And progress does continue to be made, with site work and planning.

When the concept of the Maritime Park was presented to the community, it was based on broad sketches that outlined a concept of the park. Ray Gindroz and Caldwell Associates developed the design criteria. The voters ratified the concept in a referendum. And many of us are eager to see this dream happen.

Having lived two blocks from Fenway Park in Boston, I can’t wait to take my kids to a ball game in the new stadium. And I look forward to Saturday afternoons with the kids at the maritime museum. I imagine the waterfront park could be a great place to fly kites. But I want it to happen while my kids are still kids….

But a good project will take time. Some of the most celebrated redevelopment projects in the country took many years. Fanueil Hall in Boston took 8 years to develop. Horton Plaza in San Diego opened 13 years after the City Council approved the original plan. Redevelopment of Baltimore’s Inner Harbor began in 1959, with Camden Yards stadium opening in 1998. And the plans for each of these projects changed on a regular basis, as the economy and participants shifted over time. We must remember that we are shaping one of this community’s most unique and valuable resources—the downtown waterfront—and we must do all that we can to ensure the long-term success of the design as well as economic viability of the project.

The overall price tag, the scale of the project, and the number of diverse groups with different interests working together as a team (the City, the CMPA board, UWF, the Studer Group, the Pelicans, the developer) make this project complex.

Recent CMPA meetings have focused on determining details of the site plan. At each stage of this project we have refined the plans, and we will continue to refine smaller and smaller details as we move forward. Now is the time in the project where we must finalize details such as where the roads and the building pads go, the site plan, etc. While the roads likely won’t move, we should still expect adjustments throughout this project, so this is not the last discussion on the site plan.

The discussions at this point are not a delay, and they are not covering things that have been decided before. Rather, they are the necessary refinements that must be made to make this a buildable, successful project.

At this point the various stakeholders are developing and refining their visions for site plans of their individual elements. And that is important. However, this project is more than the sum of its parts. We have come together as a team because we want to be part of and contribute to an exciting destination planned for the downtown waterfront as an asset to improve Pensacola. The success of each will be dependent on the success of the project as a whole.

I am eager to finalize the site plan so that this entire project can move forward and each member of the team can focus more on what they do best. The question we must ask ourselves as we look at the site plan is not what have we given up, but whether each element in the park will be successful in that plan. Can the individual and collective goals be met?

Recently many of the people involved in this project have been coming together to try and answer that question. I believe that the answer to that question can be yes, but only if we all remember that we are part of a team with a common, overarching goal. My hope is that in the next few weeks we will have a final site plan that embodies both the individual and collective goals of all participants in this project, particularly the goals of the citizens of Pensacola.

Many years from now the buildings we are currently dreaming of will still stand as a monument of our vision and perseverance. That is why it is critical that we work together and invest the extra time right now in fully vetting the site plan, so that this is a proud legacy for this generation of Pensacolians.

Paving the way for the new government

2009-12-16T13:05:00.000-06:00

The approval of the new charter was a big step in shaping Pensacola's future. The community expressed a collective hope that the future will be bright as well as progressive.

The charter that was ratified provides the general outlines of the government. It is the current council's job to take the next step and create a structure that establishes a government which reflects the wishes expressed through the vote on November 24th.

One of the most progressive elements in this new structure is the separation of powers and the creation of checks and balances, like those that exist in our federal government. This balance is not created to provide conflict but rather to ensure that decisions are given due consideration. The mayor, or the executive branch, provides leadership. The council, or legislative branch, is the deliberative body. In order to achieve the best potential of this structure, both branches must have sufficient strength to provide the necessary checks and balances.

The vision of the voters who eagerly embraced this new charter would be undermined if the new government results in a rubber-stamp council. Indeed, previous councils have been accused of being rubber stamps, and that is part of the impetus that led to this charter change. The citizens have been clear that they do not want that. Nor would a good strong mayor want a council of yea sayers who existed only to ratify his wishes. He would expect his ideas to be strong enough to weather debate and would welcome suggestions and changes that improve on his ideas.

If the City Council is to function effectively, however, the council needs access to reliable information. And this information needs to be independent of the mayor. With a separation of powers, the council should function autonomously.

This autonomy will require the council to employ an independent staff to provide information and efficient running of the legislative branch of the city government.

What would be the role of the council staff?

Setting council agendas
Researching issues
Staffing boards and commissions

We need to be careful to avoid unnecessary bureaucracy. The council staff would assume some duties currently performed by the city administration. Therefore, the staff should be created by reallocation of resources in the existing organization rather than building bureaucracy.

A council staff will provide the organizational structure to support appropriate checks and balances envisioned in this new charter. Under this structure, issues will get a full vetting by those whom the citizens have chosen to represent them.

I have submitted this proposal to the City Council with the intent to engender a spirit of cooperation and respect for both branches of government. As we take the next steps in establishing the organizational structure that will support the new charter, I believe it is important to embrace the goals of a separation of powers and checks and balance.

By working together the council and mayor can ensure that our city continues to function effectively while pushing forward initiatives that improve our community and build a better Pensacola.

New Downtown Library - Public Meeting and Grant

2009-11-19T10:35:00.000-06:00

Library architecture is one of the most common examples of "palaces for the people". Many of us have a vision of what a library looks like. When I was a kid, we mostly used an old strip-mall library that used to be next to a Delchamps at the intersection of 9th and Creighton. As I got into high school and had to do research, I started using the downtown library, the PJC library, and the UWF library. When I moved away, I began using many other libraries. The two most impressive library buildings I have used were the Boston Public Library, with its works by John Singleton Copley, and the Library of Congress (regular folks can't check out books, but you can access the resources in some fabulous reading rooms). On trips to my in-laws in northern Wisconsin I have seen the central role of Carnegie libraries in many small towns. The design of a community's library conveys much about their character.

With the construction of the new downtown library coming up, we now have a chance to shape the creation of a new palace in Pensacola. Please make plans to go to the public meeting where they will welcome comments and suggestions on the design of the new library. It will be Tuesday, Dec 1, at 6:30 pm at the downtown library, 200 W. Gregory St. Your comments will help create the building that will be a legacy of this era of Pensacola history.

This building is also going to be even better than anticipated, thanks to an energy efficiency and conservation block grant the city was just awarded. This grant will provide funding to make the new building a LEED silver certified building. These improvements will likely result in lower operating costs for the building (not to mention other environmental benefits), thereby providing an ongoing savings.

I hope you will be able to come share your ideas about the new library. As you know, I think libraries are an essential component of a successful city, and this library will provide an opportunity for us to create a signature building that reflects our values and aspirations--a true palace for our community.

CRA Plan Update

2009-11-10T10:57:00.002-06:00

The CRA last year commissioned a team to update the CRA master plan, incorporating many of the already existing plans (Gindroz plan, Belmont Devilliers plan). On this Thursday, Nov 12, at 5:30 at City Hall, they will be presenting the new plan. I hope you will be able to attend and see what the new plan is.

I have received an advanced copy of the plan, and I think it looks pretty great. It aims our downtown toward the future while maintaining our historic character. In some ways it is a summary of a philosophy for the direction of the downtown to help guide public and private improvements. While the CRA is going to be short on funds for the next several years with the maritime park, there are many ways the CRA and the private sector can work together to build our downtown.

I will work hard to make sure this is not another plan on the shelf. I appreciate that it has particular targeted improvements with approximate costs so we can work to include them in the budget. And it can be a spark for how we can all think about developing the many vacant sites in the CRA, both the public properties and the private. While there is a need to wait until the market is stronger for some of the development, we can still push forward many of the elements of the plan.

I hope you can attend the event on Thursday. I am sure that the plan will be posted online as the process progresses, and I will share a link. I welcome your thoughts on the plan--we need to all contribute to steering the direction of the focal point of our city, making it the city we all know it can be.

Neighborhoods

2009-11-05T11:11:00.000-06:00

Every day we all encounter things that we would like to see improved in our community--the poorly up kept property across the street, the safety of their kids on their way to school.

The decisions the council makes are aimed at improving our citizen's daily lives. But, ultimately, we rely on the citizens to help us direct our resources. The best tools the city has for addressing needs are our neighborhood associations.

I have visited many of our neighborhood associations. I've shared information about planned neighborhood improvements, learning about specific neighborhood issues. In Scenic Heights I even got to be present for the birth of a new association. Every meeting is a reminder for me of the central role of neighborhoods in our city.

Neighborhood associations help us get the right city services to each neighborhood. The city has a number of programs available to help associations build their neighborhoods. These include the Pensacola Community Initiatives Program (PCIP) grants, neighborhood planning, and an urban infill program. Many associations have city staff give presentations at their regular meetings, like safety presentations by the police or fire departments, or have councilmembers speak on city issues and hear concerns.

The PCIP grants, in particular, are a great resource for neighborhoods and the city. They are a matching grant for neighborhood improvements, with the city providing dollars and neighborhoods matching with cash, in-kind contributions, or volunteer time. Recent project from these grants include new gazebos in East Hill and Eastgate, entryway signs, right of way landscaping, and park improvements. Applications for the next cycle of PCIP grants are being accepted until Dec 11--more information is available.

Associations also push for additional improvements or targeted services. For example, Cordova Park lobbied hard for sidewalks, which they recently got. Others might request increased code enforcement activity or traffic calming. By coming together the residents can speak with a louder voice.

And ultimately, building community comes down to knowing your neighbors. Associations organize movies in the park and Christmas celebrations, things that help neighbors know neighbors. These relationships are the backbone of our community.

City government, government of all kinds, is a partnership with the citizens. However we structure our government, those in the leadership positions need advisers, need citizens to speak up and share their ideas, thoughts, and concerns.

If you want to get involved in your neighborhood association but need more information, let me know. Or if you don't have an association and would like to start one, I can help get you the right resources so that together we can create the Pensacola we all know it can be.

Tryon Library event at Barnes and Nobles

2009-10-29T07:51:00.002-05:00

Get an early start on the holidays or just bring the kids for some Halloween fun this Saturday starting at 11 am at Barnes and Nobles on Airport Blvd. It is all for a good cause: raising money for the new Tryon library.

There will be:

storytime by city councilmembers (I'm at noon)
Wii sports
refreshments

How does it raise money for the library? If you are wearing a special sticker, 10% of the price of your purchase will be donated to the library. An important caveat, though, is that the stickers won't be available at the store--you will need to pick them up at a library before the event. You will also have an opportunity to buy books directly for the library from their wish list.

So stop by the library (any branch) this week to get a sticker (and a good book), then come to Barnes and Nobles on Saturday for some fun and fundraising to support our libraries.

Hollice Williams Park Visioning Workshop

2009-10-26T10:27:00.001-05:00

The community is invited to a visioning workshop for Hollice Williams Park. That's the park under the Interstate, from Cervantes to Yonge. The workshop will be a chance for the community to weigh in on their hopes for the site. A professional landscape architect and planner will be on hand to hear your thoughts and ideas as plans are developed to fully utilize this park as a community asset for multiple purposes.

This linear park encompasses over 5 acres and currently includes Hunter pool, basketball courts, football uprights, and extensive open space. But with your input, we can make this park even better. This park has lots of potential, but we won't know what you would like to see unless you tell us.

What would you like to see? Bike trails? Exercise trail? Skate Boarding? Jogging? Strollers? Come share your thoughts with your neighbors, landscape architects, and city staff.

The workshop will be held Thursday, October 29, 2009 from 5:30-7:30 p.m. at Loaves & Fishes, 257 E Lee St.

Hope to see you there.

West Florida Public Library

2009-10-22T07:52:00.002-05:00

With the opening of the new Tryon library, it is a good time to consider the value of the investment in the public library system. Public libraries are invaluable for a community. They are a statement about the importance of an educated population, one that continues learning throughout their lives. Libraries today are also more than just a book repository. They provide resources of all kinds, from travel videos to books on cds, from language tapes to internet access. (When we visit my in-laws, we spend time at the local library for high speed internet access so my husband and I can continue to work on our vacations.) Children's programs expand learning opportunities and create life-long library users.

From last October to this July, for example, our library:

circulated 646,000 items
responded to 65,500 information requests
had 510,000 people using one of the branches
had 140,000 people using computers
had 9,300 children attend programs

Think about this. If, instead of checking things out from the library, people bought 646,000 paperback novels, it would have consumed about 300 trees. Those books would fill 10 miles of shelves. And they would have cost several million dollars.

Sometimes I hear about the future demise of libraries. As more people gain internet access, they will have greater access to online information and there will be no need for reference desks. Kindles and other electronic books will replace print. So far I haven't seen it. Recently I was picking my son up, and another mom was standing reading from a Kindle. I asked her about it. She loves it, particularly having a selection of books for her recent flight, moving here from Okinawa. But, she said, she also loves libraries, browsing the stacks, thinking about all of the people who have read the book before.

As Rebecca Ryan, who recently spoke to the Pensacola Chamber of Commerce, has noted, young workers pride themselves on lifelong learning; one of her metrics for an area's success at recruiting and retaining young professionals is the Learning Index. Strong libraries can improve the lifelong learning opportunities in our city, improving our local economy.

The new Tryon branch is open on Langley. Soon the geneology department will move to the old Tryon location. The city is working on the plans for a new downtown library. I look forward to the strengthening of our library system to improve education opportunities, from teaching kids to read to supporting life-long learning, in our city.

Hope to see you at the Tryon library grand opening Friday (Oct 23) at 2 pm!

Charter vote

2009-10-16T16:32:00.001-05:00

On Thursday, October 9th the City Council voted to send the new proposed charter to the voters. This charter, which is the product of the Charter Review Commission, proposes substantial changes to the government of the City of Pensacola. The Supervisor of Elections will send out mail ballots in early November, and they will be due Nov 24. There will be only one question on the ballot, and it will read as follows:

CITY OF PENSACOLA CHARTER REPLACEMENT QUESTION

Shall the City of Pensacola replace its current Charter with a completely revised Charter providing for:

A Mayor-Council form of government, replacing a Council-Manager form of government;
A nine-member Council with two at-large seats and seven district seats;
Four-year staggered terms of office instead of two-year terms of office;
Term limits of three consecutive terms;
Recall, initiative and referendum

as described in Ordinance #35-09.

There are, appropriately, many questions that people have about this vote, and I hope everyone will take every opportunity to educate themselves on this. The following are some frequently asked questions:

Where can I see the two charters to read them for myself?

Both the current charter and the proposed charter are posted online. In addition, the videos and minutes of the Charter Review Commission are available.

What's the difference between the charter and consolidation?

The charter is for the City of Pensacola only. City voters will vote on the charter this November. Consolidation is an effort to combine the governments of the city, the county, and the Town of Century. It is anticipated that consolidation will come before the voters throughout Escambia County in the fall of 2010.

What are the differences between the two charters?

The ballot language (above) highlights the key differences between the two charters, including the form of government, term lengths and limits, and changes to the referendum process. Other differences include some stylistic updates, like including a preamble, as well as putting into the charter some things which are currently governed by ordinance.

What if I like certain provisions of the new charter but not others?

The charter review commission put many, many hours of work into drafting this new charter. There are a variety of provisions that they changed, including the form of government, council terms, term limits, and referendum provisions. Each of these could have been a separate ballot item. The council decide to simplify the current vote by having only one question. In the future, however, it is likely that individual items could be brought forward, if the new charter does not pass in its entirety.

What is Mayor-Council and Council-Manager?

Council-manager describes our current form of government. The council (and the mayor) can be likened to a board of directors. One of their tasks is to hire a city manager, who oversees the day-to-day operation of the city. In a way, the city manager is like the CEO.

Mayor-council describes a system more like the federal or state government systems. The mayor acts as the head of the executive branch, in this case hiring city department heads and overseeing operations. The council is like the legislative branch, controlling the budget and passing ordinances.

Will the Mayor be governed by the Sunshine Laws?

The Sunshine Law is a law which governs the communication between members who serve on the same elected body. Under it, two members of the same body can not speak to each other outside of a public meeting about any matter upon which they might vote. The communications between council and mayor are governed by this law, but it does not apply to individual council/mayor communication with members of another elected body (e.g., individual members of the county commission or the Gulf Breeze city council).

Under the new proposed charter, though, the mayor no longer serves on the same body as the council. The mayor then may have private meetings with individual council members to discuss issues, including issues that may come up for a vote before the council. Under both the current charter and the proposed, though, all written/email communication is still subject to public records, though face-to-face and phone conversations are not.

Do we have a charter currently?

Yes. Our current charter was adopted in1931. Like other constitutions it allows for amendments, which must be ratified by the voters. One amendment, for example, allowed for the direct election of the mayor in 2000 (previously the mayor was chosen by the council). On the other hand, Escambia County does not have a charter. Several years ago, a group worked on "charter government" for Escambia County, but that referendum failed. Without a charter, the county relies on the state legislature to control certain aspects of our county government. However, the existing city charter and the proposed one both confer the benefits of home rule, so we do not have to get legislative approval for changes.

If the charter passes, what happens next?

The outcome of this referendum will be known in the end of November. If it passes, the city government will begin the transition process. In either case, the next election for council members and mayor will be in August 2010.

How many people will I vote for?

Under the current charter, each city voter votes for four people: a district council member, two at-large (city-wide) council members, and the mayor. That will remain the same under the new charter. Currently every vote of the council is deliberated by 10 people, requiring 6 people for a majority. Under the proposed charter, the council will consist of 9 people, requiring 5 people for a majority, and the mayor will have veto power. The council, however, will be able to override the mayor's veto.

Will the elections be partisan?

Current city council elections are non-partisan, meaning that the candidates are not listed based on their party affiliation (e.g., Democrat, Republican) on the ballot. The new charter preserves this form. Some individuals, because of their employment, are prohibited from participating in partisan politics, so under either charter they are still able to serve on the city council.

Why not wait until the next election cycle to save on the cost of the ballot and give voters more time to study the issue?

The charter commission has spent over a year and a half working on drafting this new charter. They revised many provisions. However, after all of their study, they created a short document that can be reviewed in a short time. If we postpone until the next election cycle, citizens will be voting on state referendums and a large number of elected officials. Our charter, the underlying structure of our government, deserves to be considered separately from all of the other clutter. If we postpone until this spring, there would be insufficient time for candidates to file and run for the new positions, if the new charter passes. If we postpone and vote either in the spring or next fall, we would have to consider holding a special election for the new officials in the new government (again, a cost to the city) or electing a caretaker government to wait until the 2012 election. For quite some time now the potential of the new charter has caused some uncertainty in city government, and it is in our best interest to resolve this as soon as possible so that we can all again come together to creating the best city we can, under whatever form of government the voters choose.

So, which form is better?

That is the question that the voters must decide. In the multiple meetings we have had on this issue, we have heard examples of great cities with both forms of government. The underlying issue is ensuring that we have people in the government that are leaders and best represent the citizens.

Southwest Airlines

2009-10-08T12:06:00.006-05:00

Steve and Sarah are a bright young couple. Their jobs are based in Chicago, but they spend most of their time traveling. They awakened one day and realized that they could work from anywhere as long as they had computers and access to air travel. They approached their employers with their plans. Their employers agreed. Steve and Sarah traded their down jackets for flipflops.

I am sure you have heard the buzz about efforts to attract Southwest Airlines to Pensacola. What's it all about? What are the benefits? Well, the primary benefit is to air travelers. When Southwest enters a market, they typically offer two things: lower prices and more service.

When I was in college in the early 90s, it cost about $350 to fly roundtrip between PNS and Boston. As soon as AirTran came to Pensacola, the prices dropped considerably. And they have stayed lower than those of our nearest competitors. Lower prices are nice for each of us as individual travelers, but they also attract more travelers from across our region to our airport, lowering the per passenger cost of the overhead. In addition, tourists who want to come to a beach are also more likely to come here instead of Destin or Panama City Beach if the price is right.

The economic impact of Southwest goes beyond filling hotels and restaurants, though. The more people who visit, the more who will realize how attractive our community is and the more likely they will move their companies here. (A recent editoral in Florida Trend suggests that perhaps local chambers of commerce should just check resort guest lists to generate potential contacts--sometimes vacationers are some of the best recruits.) Beyond beautiful beaches, diverse recreation, rich history, vibrant arts and all of the quality of life our community offers, when we add a great airport with low fares and direct service to many cities Pensacola becomes increasingly attractive to business leaders and their employees. Southwest, then, is more than an airline--it is an economic engine.

Southwest will not displace other carriers--it will enhance the menu of services. Having Southwest in addition to AirTran will increase competition, helping to cement the low prices that we enjoy. They will also fly different routes, making it easier for us to reach our destinations (and easier for people around the country to reach us).

And, ultimately, Southwest is--in popular jargon--just cool. They have adopted a corporate culture that values the flying experience. They are hip, innovative, and fun. And if they choose us, maybe it suggests that we are, too.

What needs to happen to land (no pun intended) Southwest? Money is important. Panama City has put a big incentive package on the table, courtesy of St. Joe. We can't afford the same amount, but as a community we can pull together to attract them:

Escambia and Santa Rosa counties have pledged bed tax money.
The City has approved incentives for new routes at the airport and authorized the purchase of ground equipment for a new carrier.
And you can help too.

We need to show community commitment--they need to know that we want them and that we will fly Southwest if they come. Pledge to purchase a Southwest giftcard if they come to PNS. Support the cause on Facebook. Tell Southwest that you want their next destination to be Pensacola.

Even with all of this hoopla about Southwest, we need to remember that all of the incentives are great, but if folks don't buy tickets, they won't want to stay. When PNS recruited AirTran, they offered incentives. But AirTran has stayed because we are loyal. Please continue to support our local carriers and fly Pensacola.

Sarah and Steve bought and restored an older house on the west side of downtown Pensacola (where their taxes are a lot lower than they were in Chicago). They now are engaged in the life of our community. They pay taxes. They donate their time to charities. They add vibrancy to downtown. And as they travel, they are ambassadors for our city.

Southwest is more than low fares--it may help us recruit more Sarahs and Steves....

Walk to School Day

2009-10-02T17:10:00.006-05:00

October 7 is international walk to school day, part of walk to school month. We all know why kids should walk to school: it's good exercise, it helps them know their neighborhood, it gives them a sense of freedom and responsibility, and it keeps cars off the roads (and their emissions out of the air).

This year Unite Escambia Health Solutions Team, along with the mayor, fire chief, and other city representatives, will be at Spencer Bibbs school at 1:45 to to join the kids as they leave for home. On foot. You are welcome to join us. Or you might be interested in organizing a similar event at your own school. There are resources available to help you.

I am excited about this event and hope it will start some discussions on how the city can become more pedestrian-friendly. We are making some strides (pardon the pun). We have a sidewalk program. Last year, for example, Christy Ball took the lead in getting new sidewalks in Cordova Park to make it safer for kids to walk to school. But sidewalks aren't always enough. Lara McKnight, a resident in Scenic Heights, became so concerned about the safety of her kids on their way to school that she is organizing a new neighborhood association to push for improvements. (Want to start a neighborhood association or get involved in one in your neighborhood? Check out the Neighborhood Association How-To Guide or the Neighborhood Resource Guide. Email me, too--I would love to help.)

How can walking be improved in your neighborhood, near your school, or near your church? Try the walkability test. Email me about spots that aren't safe, and we can talk about how the city can help. Together we can build a more pedestrian-friendly city.

Play Pensacola

2009-08-15T09:05:00.002-05:00

If you are in the habit of reading blogs, I will venture to guess that you like getting information online. If so, you will probably like the new Play Pensacola website. This is a new, revamped site with information on the City's parks and recreation amenities. It is a nice resource for finding out new activities that you could participate in or finding a new playground to visit, reserving a tee time at the golf course or registering for a course. There is a site plan for the new Scott pool, which should be open next summer, as well as a calendar with many activities listed. While I feel that I am pretty familiar with our parks and rec offerings, perusing this site has been a good reminder of this wonderful asset in our city.

I hope this site serves as a resource for you as you explore the huge array of recreational opportunities in the city. Please let me know your thoughts on this site or our parks and recreation programs.

Goals, Strategies, and Action Items

2009-07-19T15:03:00.003-05:00

As the next step in our goal setting process, the council has been asked to submit action items for each strategy/goal that we agreed on. [The exact terms have changed through the process, but I am calling my submissions "action items" since I aimed to make them items that we can begin to take action on in the near term and on which we can make measurable progress. ] After all council members submit their items, we will receive a listing of all the items and discuss them further in committee meetings.

Below are my action items as submitted. Each could be expanded at length, and I intend to provide more detail on them as we move forward.

Strategy #1: Maintain a fiscally sound and sustainable city government that earns the trust and respect of its citizens and encourages citizen input and active participation in all city affairs.

Ensure that our employee compensation packages are in line with local employers and provide incentives for employee innovation which reduces costs.
Improve communication with citizens and businesses by ensuring that our website has all of the information people need and is readily accessible and user-friendly.
Track progress toward annual and long term goals by establishing defined metrics for department programs and publishing annual report and regular updates on website.
Form a youth council.
Enhance SBE program as recommended by MGT study to encourage participation of local businesses in city work.

Strategy #2: Provide proficient public safety and other city services through collaboration among agencies, sustainable environmental policies, utilization of technology, and proven innovations.

Streamline financial and other operations by increasing online usage (online bill pay, electronic paystubs, online RFP submittals).
Increase xeriscaping and native planting in parks to reduce maintenance, fertilizer, pesticide use.
Create one stop permitting and work with other regulatory agencies to reduce regulatory burdens.
Create a Citizens on Patrol Program.

Strategy #3: Prepare a responsible annexation policy and plan that provides for a pro-active approach to annexation with a focus on elimination of enclaves and improved service delivery.

Compile list of individual properties and blocks with split jurisdictions, non-city properties on streets only serviced by city (Walton St; Nobles St).
Create plan for council approval for waiving property taxes on selected property targeted for annexation.

Strategy #4: Focus on improving city esthetics by maintaining public property, updating the land development code, partnering with property owners, and enforcing property maintenance codes throughout the city.

Update land development code to encourage the construction of a strong, sustainable urban fabric (e.g., adjusting parking requirements).
Establish an overlay district for entrances and key thoroughfares that includes landscape/tree plan, updated codes, pedestrian orientation, etc.
Work with realtors, title companies, attorneys to create a team to assist in proactively clearing titles to facilitate property improvements.
Develop plan for undergrounding utilities with priority given to downtown and main thoroughfares.

Strategy #5: Encourage and facilitate educational opportunities that exceed traditional educational practices through city initiatives and collaboration with the school board, chamber of commerce, and other stakeholders.

Increase usage of library system, particularly by at-risk population by constructing new downtown library, increasing outreach and community awareness (open houses, library card forms at pediatricians), increasing programmatic offerings with related participation increases.
Enhance educational and recreation opportunities in community centers for all ages, from birth to seniors, including increasing partnerships with local organizations (e.g., Pensacola Little Theater) to enrich education programs and measuring educational impact on school aged participants.
In conjunction with school district, PJC, UWF, and chamber of commerce, inventory education programs to determine areas where city can augment education and workforce training.
Facilitate and encourage city employee volunteering in education (e.g., paid leave for volunteer activities).
Work with stakeholder groups (ECSD, employers) to explore creation of city charter/magnet school.

Strategy #6: Promote economic development through affordable housing opportunities, clear direction for the airport, the port and other waterfront property, and utilization of “best practices,” including green initiatives, proficient permitting, and public/private sector partnerships to encourage business development while preserving and strengthening the value and character of the city’s residential neighborhoods.

Facilitate the creation of mixed affordable, infill housing by targeting housing dollars, identifying city property which might be suitable for development, and establishing incentives (permit fees, tax incentives) for construction.
Work toward goals set for port by Maygarden port study.
Implement recommendations of forthcoming CRA master plan which includes the Gindroz plan.
Initiate green programs including becoming a Florida Green City, creating a dark sky ordinance, piloting integrated pest management, and encouraging recycling, reduction, and reuse of waste for both residential and businesses (including recycling goals for commercial franchises and recycling cans in parks).
Create a vibrant downtown and waterfront by facilitating events (e.g., closing Bayfront Parkway on weekends) and supporting private efforts (e.g., Evenings in Olde Seville).

Strategy #7: Establish a “quality of place” for all citizens through continual improvement and enhancement of the city’s infrastructure, assets, and properties to facilitate city, private sector, non-profit, and other stakeholders’ initiatives that will enhance the “quality of life” throughout the city.

Create a walkable/bikeable community by creating an inventory of existing sidewalks and plan for upcoming construction, design city wide bike map, and ensuring that areas that should attract high amounts of pedestrians (near schools, links between neighborhoods, etc) are safe and inviting to pedestrians.
Enhance parks and recreation facilities by replacing outdated park equipment with new, ADA-compliant facilities and broadening types of parks and contents (community garden, orchard park, natural vegetation, natural playground).
Support public transportation and other alternatives and create policies which encourage their use.
Support arts and culture by, for example, facilitating the construction and maintenance of cultural buildings.

I welcome your comments on these items or others that you think are important. I am hopeful that by going through this process the council and the staff will have clear direction on where we want this city to move in the coming year and well into the future.

On Gardens and Lights

2009-07-11T09:05:00.006-05:00

Is Pensacola getting greener? Two tentative steps seem to be leading in that direction...

LED lights

THe first is a private sector initiative. Gulf Power is participating in a trial program to test new LED lights for street and area lighting. LED lights use 50% less electricity than conventional lights in delivering the same brightness plus they are longer lasting. For the next two years, Gulf Power will be testing this new technology near their Bayfront Parkway headquarters to assess the effectiveness of these lights. Previously LED lights have been demonstrated far superior to traditional lighting in stop lights (which explains why the city now has LED stop lights), and I am hopeful that the new street lights will be as successful. I also was pleased to learn that the fixtures they will install are partial cut-off--they are designed to light the road and walkways rather than the sky. I hope that the city can move toward full cut off fixtures for our lighting--we don't need to waste electricity and money lighting the sky.

Fricker Center garden

A second green initiative is a public-private partnership. The summer camp program at the Fricker Community Center has partnered with Home Depot to plant a vegetable and flower garden. This program gives kids and other participants a chance to learn about gardening and healthy food. For more detailed information on this project see the article in the Pensacola News Journal.

Programs such as this that make our parks more than green spaces and more than playgrounds, but an integral part of the communities they serve. Many urban lots do not allow the luxury of a garden. When asked where vegetables come from, many kids simply answer, "The store." But I believe the benefit goes beyond the flowers and vegetables that may grow there and any lessons about gardening. During our years in Boston, my husband and I had a small plot in the community garden (originally a World War II Victory garden). There, we met neighbors we might not have met, traded gardening tips and produce. It was a way of becoming part of a community. I hope that our city will continue to pursue more initiatives like this.

Pension and benefits changes

2009-05-25T11:27:00.003-05:00

In November the voters called for sweeping change—including an unprecedented turnover in the Pensacola City Council. Resonating through local races was a call to reform the serious pension problem that was threatening to gobble up the city budget. I continued to hear “No more studies, please take some action.”

Since being sworn in we have discussed, debated, and dissected the pension issue. We have expanded the deliberations to include the entire benefits package. Meanwhile uncertainty looms over the heads of City employees in an already tough economic time.

Rumors have been swirling that the general City employees are contemplating union—which, among other things, would further complicate any future reforms by adding another layer between policy and practice. At the same time a proposal is being submitted by the Charter Review Commission to fundamentally change the structure of city government—further adding to the climate of uncertainty in City Hall.

I believe it is time to take decisive action to 1) save the taxpayers’ money, and 2) restore some stability to the city workplace.

I suggest that we

approve two reforms to the pension plan that should save $2.5M per year,
adjust leave accrual and payouts so that these benefits will be more consistent with the benefits in the private sector, and then
make a commitment to City employees to take these issues off of the table for the duration of this term.

PENSIONS

We have a clear mandate from the voters to tackle the pension problem and to do so swiftly. I propose that we act now to make the two changes to the pension I outlined in my previous post:

adjusting spousal benefits and
implementing 5 year averaging

The combined impact would save $2.5M annually in pension costs, an overall savings of 20%. These changes must be applied equitably to all of our pension plans: general, police, and fire. (While making this change to fire requires legislative action, we should adopt the policies now and enact the changes as soon as we can in each case.)

Adopting these changes now will send an unambiguous signal that we are committed to making the changes necessary to ensure the fiscal stability of our city and that we intend to deal fairly and equitably with all city employees. And we will begin accruing savings immediately.

BENEFITS

The press has documented some of the most excessive pensions. Often the most bloated retirement packages have been coupled with huge payouts for accumulated vacation/sick leave. So it makes sense to examine this part of the benefit package while we are doing pension reform.

How do we compare?

In comparison to the private sector, the City allows the accumulation of a large amount of vacation/sick time (combined as paid time off—PTO), and it is paid out at the end of employment. This structure, which defers to the future costs incurred today, doesn’t make for sound fiscal policy. That’s why most other employers—both public and private sector—have limited accumulated leave.

Certainly, there is some value to accruing leave time, allowing employees to have a cushion in case of catastrophic illness for themselves or family members, but a reasonable benefit should not balloon into a golden parachute. We can't afford it.

My Proposal

I propose bringing our leave accrual and payouts closer to the private sector. The Family and Medical Leave Act allows employees 3 months leave for illness or caring for a sick relative, so it is a valid benchmark. I suggest that employees should be able to accrue up to 12 weeks of leave, which pegs this benefit to a national norm.

(The payout cap is just one component of leave. Other issues include separate sick and vacation time, leave accrual rates, and mandatory vacations. These are primarily policy issues, with little long-term budget impact. We should leave the tweaking of these minor issues to future councils. Simply changing the payouts for accruals will make a significant change to our system and prevent the “sticker shock” that has occurred recently regarding payouts.)

What about employees whose cumulative hours exceed the new cap?

We need to honor previous obligations. Therefore, I propose that we pay out employees’ accumulated time in excess of the new cap over the next two years. This payout will cost approximately $1.5M per year for only two years. The ongoing $2.5M per year savings from the pension could offset these short term costs. What’s more, this change—which will benefit the taxpayers in the long term—will put cash in the hands of nearly 600 of our 850 employees (employees who have not seen a raise in two years, who have had the opportunities for overtime pay reduced, and whose longevity benefits have been put on hold).

So why not embark on a study?

Sure, it would be nice to know precisely and exhaustively how the rest of our benefits and salaries compare, but much of that information is available without paying a consultant. City staff has already provided data on other cities, and this information is available as public record. Many local employers have shared their pension and benefits packages with me during the past week. I have reviewed the plans from Gulf Power, Baskerville-Donovan (who also furnished data on benefits for engineering firms nationwide), O’Sullivan Creel, Escambia County, and others, and my proposal regarding leave is based on that research.

Benefits are not an exact science; they reflect the current situation of the particular employer. No matter what a consultant reports, in the end we will likely be in the same position we are today—faced with enacting cuts that are fair to both employees and taxpayers. However, it is clear the issues I propose changing are ones that are most out of line with other employers and promise to take a big bite out of current and future costs.

We could tinker. But while we tinker we lose time. We lose money. And we allow the climate of uncertainty to persist.

Moreover, the benefits in taking decisive action far outweigh any minor additional savings that a study might uncover.

IF WE ADOPT THESE REFORMS, EVERYONE WINS.

In summary, I propose several changes:

enact the Life Annuity Normal Form (choose whether spouse is part of pension calculation)
adopt 5-year averaging for pensions (as opposed to current 3 year averaging)
cap leave accrual/payout to 12 weeks
make no further changes to pensions and benefits during this council’s term.

The benefits?

For employees:

a pension system that values an employee’s work and dedication,
stability and protection from other changes,
for most, a pay out of accrued leave now during a time with tightened budgets.

For the City:

reduced annual pension payments
reduced future payouts for leave accrual
short- and long-term financial savings.

And, for the taxpayers:

stabilized, reduced future costs on pensions and benefits
improved ability of the City to provide superior service at the lowest cost.

This council has already shown it has many creative ideas, but we have been bogged down by this huge problem which we have inherited. If this Council proves equal to this task, we can set our eyes on the future and the exciting challenge of making Pensacola the great, vibrant city that we can become.

City Pensions—a couple of quick fixes

2009-04-30T21:15:00.011-05:00

City pensions consume $13 million a year. That is a huge piece of our $212 M City budget and almost as much as the city collects in ad valorem (property) taxes. (This doesn’t count the money going for the new employees who are going into FRS.) There are no easy answers, no silver bullet, but there are meaningful measures we can take to curb this growing liability. And we don’t need a consultant to point the way...

Why does the city offer pensions at all?

Pensions offer one tool to attract and retain the best employees we can. And we must be fair. If we are perceived as an organization that doesn’t honor commitments to employees, we will be unable to attract and retain the best talent to serve this city.

But we also have an obligation to the taxpayers—to deliver high quality services at the lowest price.

When our benefits threaten to decrease the quality of city services, we must take action.

What can we do?

I believe we have two options that could improve the pension picture immediately, changes that will both save money for the taxpayers and improve the fairness to city employees.

Five year averaging

The headline-grabbers are the handful of folks on the high end of the salary range who will receive large pensions. But there is a second group of retirees who receive disproportionately high pensions: The end-game over-timers. . .

Currently, the city pension plans calculate an employee's salary based on the best two out of the last five years. Some employees have used this provision as an opportunity to pad their pension-basis through stepped-up overtime during their last two years. Instead of rewarding steadfast service, this provision rewards those creative employees (something we usually encourage) who can game this system in the final innings. And it unfairly penalizes those employees whose jobs do not provide opportunities for overtime.

By switching to a calculation based on the average salary over the last five years, we can get a better picture of an employee’s work history and reward each employee based on his or her work.

The savings? According to our finance director, making this change in all city pension plans could save us $1 million a year.

Spousal benefit

Today most people subscribe to the concept of “equal pay for equal work.” Yet the seemingly antiquated city pension system violates that goal. . .

Today the city pension is paid to an employee until he (or she) or his spouse dies. This system presupposes that 1) people marry within their own age group and 2) that they stay married. And it is based on a by-gone era when the social norm was one bread-winner/pension-earner per family.

But look what happens when a retiree violates the Leave-It-To-Beaver social more:

A Tale of Two Officers
(Not to pick on police—just easier with a pension that is 100% of salary to make this illustration)

For the sake of simplicity, let's make the following assumptions:
Both join the force at 20 years old.
Both officers serve the city admirably, receive the same base pay for their equal work for 35 years.
Both retire at 55 and receive a pension paying 100% of salary.
Both officers earned the same, constant amount of $40,000 every year on the force.
Everyone (pensioners and their spouses) lives until they are 80 years old.
Let's look at their compensation while on the force:

Officer A Officer B Difference

Years on Force 35 35 --

Total Salary Payments While on Force $1.4M $1.4M --

So far so fair.

Now let’s say that Officer A is a devoted husband who is married to a woman of his age. Officer B has a midlife crisis at 50 and marries a woman half his age. Let's see happens to their pension compensation:

Officer A Officer B Difference

Years of Pension Payments 25 50 25

Total Pension Payments $1.0M $2.0M $1.0M

As you see, there is a difference of a million dollars between these two employees. Equal pay for equal work? Not.

This inequity not only costs the taxpayers, it violates the fairness principle. A simple change could repair this inequity. The technical name for this change is “life annuity normal form.” In practice it means that upon retirement, the employees must choose whether to receive benefits only until they die or until their spouse dies. If they choose to include their spouse, then the benefit level is adjusted based on the age of the spouse, dividing out the pension expectation of the employee over the life expectancy of the youngest partner.

This is a standard practice with other pension plans and provides equitable payments with respect to different life choices. According to the city finance director, making this change for all city pensions would result in a $1.7 million a year savings.

Action now

By making these two changes for all of our employees, the 5 year average and the spousal consideration, we can create a pension system that treats our employees fairly and equitably. These changes also bring our system more in line with other local governments and the FRS system, our main competitors for top talent.

These changes will should save the city an estimated $2.7 million a year. The city should move forward with these changes now.

Natural Playground Update

2009-04-15T22:26:00.009-05:00

Several weeks ago I presented the idea of creating a natural playground at Bryant Park, surrounding the new Tryon library, and the City Council wholeheartedly supported a new way of thinking about and designing parks.

Bryant Park in many ways provides a great proving ground in Pensacola for a natural playground. Primarily an empty field prior to the construction of the library, the original design for the park included a walking trail and a standard plastic playground structure. Armed with a new direction, City Parks and Recreations staff began working with the architects and others involved in the park to modify the plan to become a natural playground.

In Pensacola we have no expertise in natural playground (there are none in Florida, as far as I am aware), so staff and the architects enlisted the help of Natural Playgrounds Company to explore this idea. I recently had the pleasure of attending a meeting with the architects overseeing the project, Parks and Rec director David Flaherty, John Ewing (Parks department Project Manager), and Doug Durden, the supervisor of park maintenance. They had asked Ron King and his son, both of Natural Playgrounds Company, to come to town for a site visit. (The visit was held during some of the rainy weather we have been having, which Mr. King thought was a great time, since they could see some of the real conditions the park will experience.)

We all came out of the meeting energized and excited about this new park. Mr. King described some of his ideas about elements to incorporate in the site. He was very sensitive to the experience of the site, such as views of the park as well as the relationship with the adjoining neighbors. The original plans had a walking trail around the park, and the current plan is for that to stay, with major play elements in the center as well as some scattered around the park. Mr. King was particularly conscious of the fact that this is a park around a library, noting the potential for outdoor activities and the appeal of quiet places for reflection and reading. Among the ideas were:

a 10 ft tall hill with built in slides and climbing walls,
an amphitheater,
a frog bog,
a bridge across the shallow retention pond planned for the site.

And there is good news regarding costs. The rough estimates are that the park will come in within budget even considering that this is going to be a change order with the architects. One of the benefits of this natural playground over the traditional structure originally planned is that most of the money that will be spent will be spent on local landscapers and local materials, rather than being paid to a manufacture in another community.

The architects and park staff will work with Mr. King on the design which should be forthcoming in late May or early June. Citizen input is certainly welcome, so send me your ideas. Look for this natural playground to be completed some time this fall. Bring your kids and grandkids. Then let me know what you think.

The Maritime Museum

2009-04-15T20:53:00.005-05:00

The Admiral John H. Fetterman Maritime Museum will be the crown jewel of the entire maritime park project. As a mother and a scientist with a passion for education, it is the part of the project that excites me the most. I want an economical viable park that acts as a magnet for drawing people of all types to one of our greatest assets, our downtown waterfront. Some will come for work, others for ballgames, others for a nice walk, but I believe the largest group will be coming to visit the maritime museum. However, I believe that we must consider the museum as part of the whole and think that creating the best park might entail shifting the museum site.

The negotiations regarding the project as a whole. I began considering the museum in the context of the overall site as our negotiations with the Master Developer evolved. (And steady progress is being made in making this project a reality.) Incredible effort has been going into crafting a Master Developer agreement that will provide incentives for retail uses of the private development (as opposed to offices on the ground floors) and other elements that will make this a economically viable, exciting park for all of us to visit.

The park is a three-leg stool: maritime museum, multiuse stadium, and public park. The master developer agreement governs the construction of the multiuse stadium, the public park, and development of the private buildings (along with the environmental cleanup of the site). A separate agreement, between the CMPA and UWF, governs the construction of the maritime museum.

Maritime Museum site. The maritime museum has always been envisioned along Devilliers Wharf. It seems fitting that a maritime museum have some element of water frontage. However, I believe that the activity we all have come to expect, the pretty pictures we were sold on, will not occur if the museum consumes the entire frontage of Devilliers Wharf.

Certainly, the entrance should relate to the waterfront. The entrance of all great museums sets the tone for the experience you will have inside, looking at the museum collections. Still, museums are by nature inward-looking—the curators expect visitors to enjoy the exhibits rather than the views (though occasional nice views can be integrated into the experience). Once a visitor enters the museum, they have left the public realm and do not add vibrancy to the street. And that’s a critical issue.

Activity on Devilliers Wharf limited by single use frontage. Currently, under the CMPA contract with UWF, the museum is proposed to consume the entire stretch of Devilliers Wharf that has buildings (the southern half of Devilliers Wharf will front the park). So the only reason to walk along Devilliers Wharf in this design is to enter the museum (assuming the museum puts the entrance on the wharf—their preliminary sketches have the entrance on the north side, by Devilliers Square). As I understand it, the museum will house the Trader Jon’s collection to add character to the museum restaurant. It would certainly be appropriate to have an exterior entrance to the restaurant, and perhaps they will have the restaurant stay open after museum hours. However, a museum entrance and one (potential) restaurant along Devilliers Wharf will not create the activity that will make this park successful. That is why I suggest some flexibility in siting the museum.

Additional uses on Devilliers Wharf. There are, I believe, changes that could be made that will improve the overall park design and success. Key to the park will be an active waterfront with a variety of attractions: restaurants, shopping, the museum. Perhaps we could create a narrower entrance for the museum on Devilliers Wharf with private development (restaurants/retail) on the first floor on either side and museum on the second floor. Perhaps shift the museum complex to the north to allow private restaurants/retail on the south side. I am not a planner nor a developer, so I don’t know what changes exactly would be most viable—I just feel that the plan as it is does not contribute to the level of activity needed for this project to meet the expectations of the community.

Collaborative Effort. This park has a number of participants, all necessary for its success. In all of the other agreements that the CMPA is entering (the Studer MOU, the Pelicans lease, the master developer agreement) there is wording that acknowledges that this is a multi-faceted agreement and that all parties will work together to create the best possible park. These agreements include wording like “a site selected by the mutual agreement of Studer Ownership Group and CMPA” and “in the general location at the Park.” The CMPA will have final oversight of all building placements on the park. Unfortunately, as I read the CMPA/UWF agreement, there is not the flexibility that would allow UWF and CMPA to work together and make adjustments to create the park we want.

What I would like to see. The UWF/CMPA agreement does not include any provisions for adjusting the site of the museum to create the best park for the community. In my conversations with many involved in the project and museum, there is a general understanding that the museum placement might be adjusted to conform to the overall plans. However, from what I know about contracts, if it is not written in the contract, it is not part of the agreement. I propose amending the museum contract to include language that allows flexibility in siting the structure. This would be consistent with the contracts governing the other pieces of the project. In addition, any considerations necessary for a move should be included—-the museum should have waterfront access/views, reimbursement for architectural charges paid by the museum in developing plans for a prior site, proximity to park, etc—-so that all of the parties know what the expectations are.

Am I undermining the project? I don’t believe so. By adding some flexibility, I believe the proposal helps strengthen the project as a whole. It can enhance the economic viability of the project by opening additional waterfront to commercial, revenue-producing, tax-generating activity. And it could increase the number of people enjoying the waterfront, bringing essential vibrancy to this wonderful community asset.

Opening our Bayfront to Pedestrians, Cyclists, and family Activities on Weekends

2009-04-07T20:25:00.004-05:00

The Case for Waterfront Access. Pensacola’s greatest natural asset is our beautiful waterfront, particularly our downtown waterfront. We need to capitalize on this asset to improve our quality of life for those who live here and to help recruit new jobs to our city.

Unfortunately, many of us have limited opportunities to be close to our waterfront. Indeed Bayfront Parkway, which affords passing motorists vistas of our bay, also acts as an effective barrier to access. Therefore, I propose that we create a program that will close Bayfront Parkway to cars on the weekends to open our waterfront for the enjoyment of all.

Other models. Many cities around the country have similar programs. In Cambridge, MA, they have closed Memorial Drive, one of the most major thoroughfares right along Boston’s Charles River, on Sundays from April to November since 1975. This is an extremely popular event, bringing almost 6000 people on a good day to a 1.5 mile stretch.

In Cambridge, they use simple metal gates like those used for parades to block access to the roads and in some places just orange cones. Typically one will see ice cream vendors, roller blade rentals, and other related businesses set up. Many people come out for a jog or bike ride with the family (little kids do great on their bikes on a wide roadway). Additionally, fitness centers like the YMCA have programs in adjacent parks, people picnic, and even belly dancers have been seen practicing.

An event like this could prove to attract a range of people to downtown on the weekend and would help make Pensacola recreation-friendly.

How to move toward a family friendly bayfront. When Bayfront Parkway was closed in the aftermath of Ivan, there was a constant parade of people using this scenic route for recreation. I would like for the City Council to request that staff do further research on my proposal to close Bayfront Parkway on weekends for bicycling, rollerblading, jogging and walking.

We could close either all of Bayfront—say from Chase to Palafox—or close the south lanes of Bayfront from Chase to Alcaniz. I believe the latter proposal would get less resistance, especially from downtown businesses and restaurants. Indeed, if done right, this would help bring customers to their businesses.

The role of the City. The CRA has been advocating “enlivening public spaces” downtown, and I think that is an important part of revitalizing our downtown. However, we need to be clear on the role of the government versus the private sector. The city has control over certain tools, like road closure. The city should work closely with private groups to see how the city can use its tools to facilitate events. However, the city should not be in the role of providing entertainment.

The costs. I understand that there will be costs. The FDOT has regulations for closing roads, and I am optimistic that we can work with them to create a program that is safe and affordable. Roads are closed all the time for construction without huge barriers or being manned, even for extended periods. And Bayfront Parkway is frequently closed for special events in the historic Seville area.

Funding. While closing off a portion of Bayfront Parkway would entail some costs, it should be relatively small. Still we should scrutinize any new programs and costs and look for funding sources other than tax dollars. To fund this road closure, I propose that we shift money from some of the existing CRA programs which, if they are deemed beneficial by the private sector, could be taken over by private sector groups (*see below). These funds would cover the costs of the proposed road closure on Bayfront Parkway.

In addition we should seek private sector support (perhaps banners of sponsors on the light posts) for this program. These banners could be used to enliven the Bayfront just as we use those on Palafox to promote community events.

What's next. I presented a version of this information to council at our committee meeting this week. I let them know that I would like to bring it up at our next meeting, and Sam Hall has asked for it to be on the agenda for the Neighborhood Services committee. I would appreciate hearing your comments about this between now and then (and after) so we can work together to make this the vibrant city we all want it to be.

*The city should play either a supporting role (road closures, etc) or a catalytic role in enlivening our downtown. Last New Year's Eve the city successfully created the Pelican Drop. The success of that program should lead the private sector to sponsor the activity again next New Year's Eve, though the city will continue in a support role (closing Palafox, etc).
We need to review all of our programs to determine the city's role. For instance, the private Evenings in Olde Seville program has been going on for many years. While it is wildly popular, each year they struggle to raise sufficient funding for this summer music program. When the city sponsors a similar music program on the same night, it undermines the efforts of the private group. Why would a donor use their limited funds to pay for something the city is already doing? The city should carefully review the music program to see if it was successful, and, if so, we should step back to a supporting role, allowing the private sector to vote with their dollars if the program improves the quality of life downtown.

Marketization: A new approach to government services

2009-03-24T15:31:00.002-05:00

In our agenda this week, we approved a contract to have the YMCA staff the Hunter pool for the summer. That got me thinking about other creative ways we can provide city services….

The City of Pensacola performs a large range of services: fighting fires to servicing cars, running a library to sweeping streets. Some, like police and fire, are unique to the city. In other cases, by opening the service up to competition, we can improve the efficiency of the overall services of the city and improve our bottom line.

Marketization
I would like to see us open up more city functions to competition, but with a particular twist—city departments get to bid, too. This is not “privatization” but “marketization.”

What might happen?

City workers will demonstrate that they can provide services more efficiently and at a lower cost than the private sector.
In other cases, we may discover that the private sector is more efficient, and in those cases we will save money.

Indianapolis experience
Steven Goldsmith, the former mayor of Indianapolis, is a major proponent of the idea of opening up certain city services to competition. In Indianapolis, city workers compete with the private sector. During the course of marketizing of city services, the city discovered that it is not the city workers who make for inefficiencies in government. Rather, the bureaucracy of the government itself often limits the creativity and initiative of the employees. If the systems are changed and the workers are liberated from bureaucratic constraints and have a vested interest in the success of their small corner of the city, they can compete against private-sector service providers, and often win.

Yellow Pages test
A concern with privatizing services is sometimes that we would get a private company to do a task and then would no longer have in-house skills. Subsequently we could be at the whim of the private company who could raise our rates. The key for avoiding this is to marketize only areas where there is sufficient competition in the community to ensure that we continue to get a competitive rate. A very simple test for this is the Yellow Pages test. If there are three or more companies listed in the yellow pages who perform a service the city currently performs, then that service can be opened up for competition. It is the kind of free market capitalism that built our country

Competition empowers employees
Since I’ve been on council, I’ve met many city employees, and I’ve discovered this: our employees have better ideas on how to run this city (or at least their slice of it) than I do. Unfortunately, we often trap them in “a system that punishes initiative, ignores efficiency, and rewards big spenders.” [Much of my information on the Indianapolis experience and this quote come from The Twenty-First Century City by Stephen Goldsmith. Indianapolis has been a leader in marketization and reviewing their experiences can help guide us. I am not advocating adopting all of Goldsmith’s inititiatives. Instead, we can pick the best of his ideas and adapt this process to suit our unique needs.]

By letting the employees function more like those in the private sector, we can unleash their creativity, likely finding many cost savings. Additionally, in Indianapolis the city employees who started bidding in competition with the private sector soon started demanding a reduction in overhead to increase their competitiveness. Morale increased which also resulted in increased productivity. In Indianapolis, city workers win about 25 percent of the bids. In addition, they have become so effiencent that they actually win bids for contracts with other local governments.

Government workers have advantages
In some ways, we should expect that government would provide services for a lower price than the private sector. The city doesn’t pay property taxes, we don’t have to make a profit, and we get financial deals like lower utility and borrowing costs. Therefore, it is logical that city employees, when empowered to think creatively about their jobs, could compete successfully with the private sector.

Support for local small businesses
One of the biggest issues that keeps cropping up on council is supporting local, small businesses. Many of the types of things that the city could open to competition are the things that local, small businesses do. If the private sector wins a contract, then the money we spend will, in many cases, stay in our community and strengthen our businesses.

Sometimes the winners won't even be businesses at all. For instance, in Indianapolis some of the park maintenance is performed by churches in the neighborhood. Who would care more about maintaining a neighborhood park than the neighbors?

How to get started
At our committee meeting yesterday, I raised this issue. Council supported me in asking staff to identify a targeted group of services where they think that our employees could clearly compete with the private sector and provide a plan for moving forward on marketization of those services. Again, keep in mind that the services targeted will be ones not unique to the government; more likely they will be the support services that underlie many business functions.

By the way, I want to stress that this is not a criticism of our employees. I know there is anxiety among employees about their job security in this economic climate, but this kind of shift would allow them to have a degree of control that they don’t currently enjoy.

We sometimes hear about the Creative Class. The Creative Class, importantly, is not just scientists and artists, it is anyone who uses creativity in their work. I think that we can use this structure to help all our employees, whatever their role, become creative problem solvers. Workers who are creative, who know that they have say in their job, tend to have higher morale. And, in the end, they do a better job for our citizens.

This is truly a paradigm shift on the way we do government business.

For more information, I recommend this website which has a number of resources about the tenure of Goldsmith or the book by Mayor Goldsmith, The Twenty-First Century City. Of course, there is lots of information out there, and a simple search will turn up lots of links.

City Pensions

2009-03-22T13:25:00.003-05:00

The city pension systems continue to be a hot topic in council meetings and the press, as well they should. While I believe that the city must continue offering retirement benefits in order to attract the best workers, we must ensure that the benefits meet our goals without bankrupting the city. The issue is complex—a puzzle with many pieces, not a problem with one key to solving it.

While the unfunded liability and, hence, the city's annual payments to the funds are very large, we are currently limited to acting only on a small sliver of the pension pie. We cannot touch the benefits promised to retirees; we are obligated to keep the prior commitments made to existing employees (as we should be); and any changes in a large chunk of our benefit packages are subject to union negotiations.

Our options are limited in other ways as well, sometimes by state law. In particular, state law makes converting new police and fire hires to the Florida Retirement System fiscally unattractive. However, in digging into this problem, I have learned of an opportunity for opening this option for us. But if we are to have this option, we need to act quickly.

First, some background

The city has three separate pensions: general, police, and fire. A few years ago, the city’s general pension was closed to new hires. Existing employees could elect to continue with the general pension or be transferred to FRS (Florida Retirement System). All new general hires are now enrolled in FRS.

This change was desirable for the City and employees for many reasons, most notably the differences in benefits between FRS and the city general pension, the ability to spread risks state-wide, and the options available to participants (defined benefit and defined contribution).

Police and Firefighter Pensions

It seems logical that the City might have moved police and firefighters to the FRS when the change was made for general employees. Both the City and these employees would have accrued the same benefits from this plan that general employees reaped. However, action was postponed on the city police and fire pensions because state law makes this a risky move for the city. Here’s why.

Problem#1: A $1.4 M unfunded liability passed on to the City.

The State of Florida charges an excise tax on casualty insurance. This money is distributed to municipalities for their fire and police pension plans. Currently the state provides the city with about $800,000 for fire and $600,000 for police for their unfunded liability (roughly the difference between employee contributions and what we will need to pay out to retirees).

What this money is and how it is distributed is complex (and this whole thing is complex enough), so suffice it to say that we get the money, which means we have to follow state law that regulates whether we get it, how we spend it, and what happens if we don’t get it any more.

If the city chooses to close the police or fire pensions and require new hires to enter FRS, this will trigger a change with respect to the casualty insurance—the most obvious being that the city will no longer receive $1.4 million from the state. If we do not receive this money, we will need to make up the difference out of city coffers.

However, there is another problem that also crops up with possible major (much more than $1.4M) financial implications

Problem #2: A mandated reorganization by the pension board.

If the city begins letting new hires go into FRS, it would trigger (per state law) a reorganization of the pension by the pension board. The board could do one of three things.

It could continue to operate the existing pension investments and the subsequent contributions from the grandfathered employees as it had before the change, with some adjustments based on the actuarial rules.
It could terminate the pension and pay cash to the participants, sufficient to fund their retirements, again based on actuarial calculations.
It could invest the money in annuities at a level sufficient to pay retirement benefits.

The last two options are scary for the city. Both require the pension board to demand a large lump sum from the city, money we don’t have. It is unclear which option the board would choose, and they do not have to make their decision before we vote to close the funds! By closing the fire and police pensions to new hires, we could be on the hook immediately for large sums (tens of millions of dollars at minimum). This conundrum is dictated by state law.

What can we do? (I’m finally getting to that.)

There is currently a bill before the House Governmental Affairs Policy Committee, HB 673, that would give cities the option to enter new police and fire employees in FRS while letting existing employees continue in the current plan without triggering the loss of the state money or the restructuring.

I urge the city to support this bill which will give us the flexibility we need to address this weighty problem. A companion bill, SB 1572, has been filed in the Senate and is currently in the Governmental Oversight and Accountability Committee.

Bills in the legislature routinely die before the end of session. I do not want to see the legislature end their session without giving us one of the tools we will need to address one of the biggest financial challenges before this city, not to mention other Florida cities in our same circumstances.

Do note that one of our local representatives, Dave Murzin, is in the council over the committee where the House bill currently is. Along with other legislators, he needs to be made aware of how important this bill is to our community and asked to help expedite its passage before the end of session. Please contact him and any other legislators you know and let them know your concerns.

Maritime Park moving forward

2009-03-15T09:17:00.004-05:00

Moving the Maritime Park from referendum to reality has been quite a saga for this community. However, the end—or perhaps the real beginning—is finally in sight.

On Friday, March 13th, the Maritime Park Board met. We had quite an agenda. First up was the master developer agreement. Negotiations between the city, maritime park board, and the master developers on that agreement were completed during the first week of March. The developers took a stab at putting the points that were negotiated into the contract and handed us a copy at the meeting on Friday, still warm from the copier.

In addition to the master developer agreement, we discussed the many other contracts the board will be signing. These include the lease agreements with the Pelicans, Studer Group, UWF (for the conference center, maritime museum, and other UWF components), and the Contractors' Academy. As you can imagine, these are all complex agreements, and our discussions at the meeting went on over 4 hours.

The rough timetable on the agreements presented on Friday is:

Of course, none of this is a done deal, and this schedule is subject to change. However, this is the expected course of events. Scott Davidson, the point man of the developers, suggested during the meeting that once the agreement is signed, we can expect action at the site within 60-90 days. (If you haven't been that way recently, there is already some action--dirt from digging the new sewage line is being put on site to provide some of the necessary fill.)

If you want to see the current version of the master developer agreement or the other documents, visit the Maritime Park page on the city website. None of these agreements are final, so please let me know if you have any comments on them.

CRA Plan update

2009-02-28T10:52:00.002-06:00

The Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) is undertaking a comprehensive master plan update. The CRA is a special district from 17th Av to A St, Cervantes to the waterfront. On Thursday the consultants working on the plan had a kick off, highlighting the process they will undertake and some initial observations. For two days they met with various groups including neighborhood associations, business owners in the CRA, and various governmental entities to begin understanding where we are and where we can go.

Scope of Work
This study will focus on the CRA area. In recent years we have had multiple studies for portions of this area. These include the Historic District Master Plan (Gindroz study), the Belmont DeVilliers plan, a residential market plan, and a retail market analysis. The consultants will include elements of these studies as well as their own observations to plan for the entire CRA. They will focus primarily on the waterfront west of Palafox Street and a few other urban infill demonstration areas. This plan will also address the site of the existing sewage treatment plant, which will be moved by the end of 2010.

The Process
This set of meetings was the lead trip, part of the first phase of the process. Over the next month, the team will review existing plans, analyze the real estate market, and gather as much information as possible to set the stage. The next phase will be a design workshop where they will work on overarching ideas. During this phase they will hold a series of public design workshops, and they will present a preliminary concept plan. After that, they will spend several weeks refining the plan to create specific recommendations, and, finally, they will present a final report in the fall.

The team
The plan is being created by a strong team, headed by Looney Ricks Kiss. They are supported by RKG Associates, Kubilins Transportation Group, Engineering and Planning Resources [local woman owned business], Wolf Riddle and Associates [local minority owned business], and EDSA (Waterfront Design).

Initial observations
Like many other urban planners, this team was very impressed with the assets we have in Pensacola, notably our wonderful waterfront and our strong sense of history. They were particularly surprised by the presence of the 5 main types of art organizations (ballet, theater, opera, symphony, and museum) and the support they receive. Too bad they had to leave Friday morning--they missed a great show at the Little Theater, Death of a Salesman. My husband and I were again amazed by the great talent we have in Pensacola. They still have tickets for this weekend and next....

They also sensed some weaknesses that they will address in their plans. Those weaknesses probably led to the homework they issued us as a community:

Go to work a different way.
Walk along the waterfront.
Ride a bike downtown.
Visit downtown for the day with no set agenda (no event to attend).

Perhaps if we all try those items, we will be able to come up with some great suggestions and ideas for the team when they return in a few weeks for the public design workshops. I will post the information about these as soon as I can so you can plan on participating. Also, feel free to contact me with any particular ideas you'd like to share with the design team.

Perdido Landfill

2009-02-23T12:35:00.005-06:00

Last week I had the opportunity to tour the Perdido Landfill, run by the Escambia County Division of Solid Waste Management. The staff, headed by Mr. Pat Johnson, is so enthusiastic about their jobs that sometimes you forgot it was trash that they are talking about....

An interesting mix of people took the tour, from UWF students to curious citizens to elected officials, and I highly recommend joining a future tour.

The landfill, visually. The first thing you notice as you approach the landfill is the plastic bags. They are everywhere, particularly covering the fences around the landfill. We were told that most of the bags don't even hit the ground when they are dumped from the truck, but rather just fly off. A nice visual reminder of why we should use reusable bags when we shop and to recycle the bags that we do get (they can go in the recycling dumpsters around the county).

Where does it come from. Operations at the landfill are financed by the landfill fees charged to all of the users of the landfill. These users include the city, the ECUA, and commercial haulers (the companies that provide dumpsters at businesses or apartment complexes). Fees are charged only on waste that goes into the landfill, not on the materials for recycling.

Recycling—paper, plastic, and cans. Recycling is where the landfill gets interesting, encouraging a lot of creative on the part of the staff, led by Jim Howes. Of course, there is recycling that is familiar to most of us--paper, plastic, and cans. These materials are sold to various companies, most notably Armstrong World Industries here, which takes paper. In many cases, the cost of transporting the materials, etc, eats up the return on the materials, but it still keeps them from entering the landfill and reduces the use of virgin material in manufacturing.

Glass. They also recycle glass at the landfill. However, there are no glass recyclers nearby, so the folks at the landfill grind the glass to use in their road building materials. [I have been asked why glass is not taken in the ECUA program or the city pilot program. The reasoning is that the glass will break in the compactor, getting embedded in the other materials. With our recycling manually sorted, it becomes risky. In addition, the embedded glass reduces the quality of the other materials, making them less marketable.]

Beyond expectations. Recycling at the landfill goes beyond these materials. They collect household hazardous waste, including paint. The paint gets remixed and goes back to code enforcement and others. If there are structures that aren't up to code due to lack of painting, they will be repainted with paint from this program. A new building at the landfill will include the capabilities to mix multiple colors of paint, and this paint could be used by groups like Habitat for Humanity.

Reuse. This new building will also house a swap shop, an idea promoted by DeeDee Green, where people can bring items that typically they would have thrown in the landfill but might be usable by others. Things like household chemicals (bug spray, for instance), used furniture, old computers. Visitors to the landfill could then take these items free of charge.

Yard waste. Yard waste is another material that can be reused. Material that is not in plastic bags is mulched and used for stabilizing the landfill. In addition, it is made into mulch that is available for free to county residents. Yard waste that is packed in plastic bags, however, can not be used for these efforts. Therefore, landfill staff request that residents use a separate container, paper bags, or simply set yard trash curbside.

Methane. Another interesting reuse is the methane produced by the landfill. In the past, this methane was sold to International Paper to heat their boilers. Now the landfill folks are working with Gulf Power to install generators. The burning methane would then generate electricity that will be sold back onto the electric grid.

Landfill fees. As I mentioned, the landfill charges fees for all of the waste that comes in. These fees cover all of the operations of the landfill. This includes the actual operation of the current landfill as well as the maintenance of the old landfills. In addition, it covers the cost of the recycling programs. While some of the recycling is revenue-generating, many of the recycling efforts are a cost (such as waste tires or the paint remixing). The county also funds neighborhood clean ups using money from the landfill fees. [These are similar to the programs that the city funds through our sanitation department.]

Education. The staff takes a very active role in educating area students about recycling. [They also have been dedicated volunteers with the I LOVE Science program that I coordinate through IHMC. I appreciate their work on that.] Many people have also been seeing the tote bags they have given out at various events, like Earth Day. It seems the landfill staff would rather put the landfill part of their business out of business with their efforts. They push reducing with their tote bags, reuse with the swap shop, and all kinds of recycling.

City recycling. Of course, this all prompts the question, what about recycling in the city? We are moving forward, with staff developing a curbside recycling plan to bring before us in March. The East Hill pilot program is a partnership with the Escambia County Department of Solid Waste, and they hope to participate in a larger program. The pilot program was quite a success, and I appreciate the effort of those residents to show how successful recycling can be in this community. The ECUA program is growing fast, too. So all indications show that we will have a great program in place by this summer.

Trommel screen. Though curbside recycling is what most people think about when they talk about recycling, I do want to point out a new "recycling" effort the city has started. The council just authorized public works to buy a trommel screen. What, you might ask, is a trommel screen? It is a large piece of equipment (approximately $100,000) that will sort sand out of the city's street sweepings. About 90% of the weight of the street sweepings the city collects is sand. By using the trommel screen, we can keep that sand from going in the landfill. Instead, it will go into making new roads. This screen will divert about 5000 tons of sand from the landfill each year. That is comparable to the about 8000 tons of recycling we would expect to collect from a successful (25% diversion rate) recycling program. This highlights how many ways we can work together and think creatively to improve the environment and the economy of out community.

Natural Playgrounds

2009-02-10T05:58:00.012-06:00

How often have I heard from other parents that they got their kids a great toy and all the kid wanted to play with was the box it came in????

While the council has not yet had a goal setting session, our discussions so far have indicated similar goals:

a green community
attracting good jobs and building a community that would attract young professionals.
strengthening neighborhoods
innovative ideas not costly solutions
and fresh ideas.

I believe that natural playgrounds offers us an opportunity to combine all of these goals.

Natural playgrounds use natural elements to create safe, accessible, age-appropriate play, social, and learning opportunities. Examples of elements, some in the pictures here, include

hills which integrate climbing aspects and slides,
shrubs for play forts or labyrinths,
sand areas,
ampitheaters,
butterfly or rain gardens, and
fairy villages made from willow branches.

Natural playgrounds provide unique advantages.

Educational: Research shows that the natural environment fosters more creative play.
More ages: More of the park is considered play space, but it appeals to all ages. (Many of the standard pieces of equipment are skill based and therefore limited to narrow age groups.)
Environmental: The materials are natural, often from local sources or native plants, while plastic playstructures are environmentally costly to manufacture, ship, and dispose of.
Jobs: Construction of natural playgrounds utilizes primarily local landscapers rather than remote manufactures.
Budget: More unique play elements can be constructed per dollar
and so forth

Common concerns voiced are accessibility, safety, and maintenance. However,

They can be built to ADA standards, and some elements may exceed standards. For example, a slide embedded in a hill would be easier for kids to access than one that was reached by a ladder.
Most of the safety problems with playgrounds are from the high elements, which a natural playground lacks. Kids may scrape their knees while climbing boulders, but they could do the same on a sidewalk.
Information that I have found has indicated that they are less costly to maintain, but comparisons are hard, since they include general park maintenance rather than just checking bolts.

They are different from what we are used to. In this high-tech era, we expect “clean” playgrounds. Nature is unknown and sometimes scary. Kids would get dirty. But I think that is a good thing.

Bryant Park and the new Tryon library will be a great asset for our community. Therefore, I believe that making this park unique by capitalizing on current research in playgrounds provides an exceptional opportunity for our community.

In our committee meeting yesterday, I asked that we wait until our next committee meeting, in two weeks, to vote on purchasing a new, plastic playground structure. I believe that there is no shortage of similar structures in our city (though this one was commendable for going beyond ADA requirements), and a two week delay in purchasing equipment would not seriously impact playing in this community.

For the next two weeks, I will be working with staff to find ways to overcome obstacles and bring this idea forward. We may still be faced with a delay in terms of the opening of the park if we go the natural playground route, but I believe that the result would be well worth it.

Imagine

Checking nature kits out from the library, with field guides and magnifying glasses to explore the nature in the park.
Rolling down a hill.
Making daisy chains.
Hide and seek possibilities.
Reading a book under a muscadine grape arbor.

These types of parks could become destinations and unique assets, putting an environmental face on our community.

In short,

these playgrounds are green—both in terms of the environment and based on my research, in budgetary terms.
They are more aesthetically appealing than rigid plastic equipment. They appeal to a broader age range.
And they help us make Pensacola a progressive, innovative, family-friendly community.

I welcome your input on this kind of park. There is much work ahead to make it happen, and I would like to know if you think it is worth the effort.

There is an over-used cliche about thinking outside the box. Here, let's not think inside the box or outside; let's think about kids and creative play and rather than a new plastic toy, let's give the kids what they really want, what will stimulate their creativity: the cardboard box.

City council retirement plans

2009-02-02T14:10:00.006-06:00

Like any new job, the first few days of city council required lots of paperwork. One of the forms that I was given to fill out was the application for the city council retirement system. I demured, wanting to get more information since it is an issue that is of concern to me. I have more information now and have chosen to enroll.

Here's why.

Defined contribution plans are no more risky to the city (or in this case, the state) than a paycheck.

There are two key types of plans, both of which we can participate in:

Defined benefit: a guarantee by employer of a certain percentage of your salary once you retire. This is what is typically called a pension.
Defined contribution: a contribution by the employer to an investment plan, the amount of which is some percentage of the employee's salary. This is comparable to 401(k) or IRA retirement plans.

The city's contribution to each is the same percentage of salary, at least nominally.

The problem that we run into with pensions (defined benefit) is that the value is based on some actuarial table that assumes certain market conditions, etc. Unfortunately, the assumptions are frequently wrong, and the employer or pension administration gets put on the hook many years down the road. We typically underestimate the cost of such a plan.

I have chosen to participate in the defined contribution plan (though I have to elect that after I sign up). Such a plan can be viewed as simply part of my salary. When I am no longer in office, the state (this is a state plan, so it is not related to the city's pension) no longer has any financial obligations to me.

The city's contribution to the defined contribution plan is 16.53% percent of our salaries. Our salaries are $13,998 per year. That works out to $2312 per year toward retirement. Therefore, the salary plus this benefit (the city also pays into Social Security and Medicare) is $16,310.

I believe that city council should be a paid position and that pay can take the form of paychecks or similar compensation.

By providing financial compensation, whether as a paycheck or contributions to a retirement plan, we can attract more of a range of people to serve on the council.

There is a cost to my family for me to be on the council. I am a fiscally responsible person. But I have to be fiscally responsible for my family, not just for the city. There is a cost to my family (not just my husband and kids, but also my parents and grandmother, who are participating in childcare) for me to be on the council: the opportunity costs of the money I could make if I looked for a job that needed someone of my training; the costs in time that my mom, my dad, my husband, and my grandmother are putting in to helping with the kids; the costs to my kids of the loss of time that I can spend with them; the actual money I will have to pay for a babysitter when my family can't fill in. Without the salary, I would have a hard time justifying being on the council.

I am not alone. There are other people I know who considered running but decided against it because they have an obligation to support their family financially.

I would like to put the salary and retirement contributions in context. Other similar jobs in our community, like school board and ECUA (both paying about $35,ooo) and county commission (about $75,000) pay more. I have not researched what benefits they receive in addition to their salaries. All have fewer regularly scheduled monthly meetings than the city council.

Pensions

In closing, I am concerned like many others about our city pension system. First, we must stay true to our current and past employees who served expecting a defined benefit. I believe, however, that defined benefit plans have contributed to the financial instability of many companies and understand why the private sector has moved away from them. I think that defined contribution plans have a role in recruitment and retention of quality people to jobs in this city, and, like most of the citizens of Pensacola, I want to see the highest quality people attracted to serving on the council and staff.

Maritime Park, part 2

2009-01-30T08:25:00.002-06:00

A continuation of the discussion of the maritime park....

Not that many people will go to baseball games. Why build the field?

I have heard many variations to this question. It is the sticking point of the project for most people.

The more variety of things, the greater the variety of people who are drawn to the maritime park, the more successful it will be.

I've heard "multi-use" batted around, and many have suggested that the park will only in the end be used for baseball. What is interesting, though, is that parks that are owned or operated by the team tend to be less used than those owned by the city. The city has many reasons to keep the park occupied, while baseball teams are more reluctant to let folks mess up their field. Other cities, like Round Rock, TX; Reading, PA; Frisco, TX; and Lansing, MI, have a great range of activities at their fields. Baseball clinics for the YMCA, exhibition games, charity events, birthday parties, boy scout camp outs, movies, and concerts.

Each of these events draws a different group of people, on nights that the baseball team isn't playing, to provide activity in the area, patrons for the restaurants, customers for the store. When you combine these activities with the maritime museum and other events that might be hosted in the park, you end up with a vibrant location.

I remember that during the planning stages of the park there was talk about a retractable outfield wall. I had known that something had changed and thought it was gone. However, the idea is alive and well, with a plan that the outfield wall will be a series of openable gates. When there isn't an event, the field will be open to the public. Some multiuse parks have playgrounds (even a swimming pool and rockwall) along the edges, and, while I don't yet know what similar amenities this park might have, these would be accessible when the field is open.

By locating the park downtown, there is a sacrifice of convenience--no easy highway access. However, you get the return on the proximity of other venues and decreased need for additional parking. I am most familiar with Fenway Park in Boston, which is right in the heart of town. The parking garages that handle the crowds double as parking for the nearby office buildings, which otherwise are empty at game times. When you go to the game, though there is something nice about stadium food, you had the option of a whole host of restaurants. When people come to a game in downtown Pensacola, the experience will be beyond the game--they might stroll afterward along the waterfront, perhaps stop at the museum beforehand, go out of dinner, or otherwise enjoy downtown Pensacola.

But what if none of these events interest you? You will still benefit. By providing a steady stream of people, the stadium will encourage restaurants and retail to locate there. We are blessed in Pensacola with many beautiful venues where we can look out over the water. The maritime park is no exception. By having the events, we will generate foot traffic, which will increase the safety of the park, making it one of the best places to enjoy the beautiful environment here.

Even those who don't expect to go to many games may just indulge every once in a while. Tickets to Pelicans' games are currently $9. There is just something wholesome about a ballgame. Perhaps you'll take family when they come to town for a visit to the museum, dinner, a game, and a walk along our incomparable waterfront.

I look forward to sharing with you further details about the new agreement that is being hashed out for bringing this great park to fruition. Please share with me any other questions you have about the park.

Maritime Park

2009-01-29T05:57:00.004-06:00

Our council workshop on the maritime park was long, but there were many good comments and concerns raised. During the meeting we focused on a rough draft agreement which had obvious holes, holes that everyone knew needed to be filled. I am confident that we will have an agreement that meets most concerns soon.

A number of good questions have been raised, and over the next few days I plan to address some of them here.

1. Why would we want a master developer who handles both public and private improvements, acts as general contractor, and manages the property?

This type of an arrangement does sound daunting, to be sure. We are handing over a lot of control. However, this park is not the first place where something like this has happened.

There are a number of projects that are similar to this. Some, which are more retail oriented include Faneuil Hall, Boston; Horton Plaza, San Diego; Plaza Pasadena, Pasadena; Town Square, St. Paul; Pike's Market, Seattle. All of these projects were built as public private partnerships with a master developer similar to what is being considered here, and we can look at their experiences to guide our project.

This arrangement gives the developer the potential to bargain to bring a vibrant mix of retail, office, restaurant, and other tenants.

The developer has relationships with possible tenants. In working with tenants, new ideas about the arrangement of the public and private portions may be explored. Perhaps a tenant wants to ensure a certain amount of parking near one structure, so the developer might nudge another building and a road to make room. If the developer has control of both parts, then these ideas could be brought to fruition. [In our case, "control" is limited. All changes will come before the CMPA board.]

In addition to the actual layout and construction, the developer might want to recruit a national chain to "anchor" the development. Malls traditionally offer low rent to anchor stores, making up that loss through increases on the smaller stores. By having control of all the private development, the developer is better able to cushion a loss in one area by making it up in other areas. By bringing in a national chain, the developer can attract other businesses that will appreciate the foot traffic that chain will bring to the park.

Having the developer act as general contractor, we can expect some efficiencies and cost savings.

If the developer is the general contractor, there should be faster action on getting construction moving forward. Additionally, the developer can subcontract different portions of the project project-wide (or at least wider than a single portion) and potentially realize some savings.

The developer has the greatest motivation to have the project managed to high standards.

The developer wants people to be coming to the park so that they will shop at the stores and eat at the restaurants, which will bring more shops and restaurants, which will bring more offices. The city, of course, wants that too. However, it is easier for the private developer to sell the private improvements when he can say how the park will be managed. In the case of Faneuil Hall in Boston, Rouse Company went to Disney to learn how to maintain a public space to high standards. At the time Faneuil Hall was in a gritty, run-down part of Boston. Rouse needed people to feel that this development was pristine, that the city was not all grime. He, at the time, had no experience maintaining such a property (suburban malls do not attract the range of clientele that an open city thoroughfare does), but he knew that he couldn't get stores if he couldn't say that it would be maintained at higher levels than Boston was maintaining the rest of their city streets.

Enough discourse. If you are interested in the park, I highly recommend a book I recently read called Downtown, Inc. which gives good background on projects like what we are undertaking. I am really excited about the park and am glad that I am on the council in time to bring it to fruition.

Outcome of our first full meeting

2009-01-23T08:49:00.004-06:00

In my previous post, I noted a few issues that were to come up this week that I thought worthy of some discussion. I would like to recap the issues and my thoughts.

Bingo
Our first vote was to rezone a property at the intersection of 9th, Langley, and Tippin to C-2 zoning. The rezoning was requested by the property owner. He had built a new building two years ago, and now, in this economy, has been unable to rent it. A group approached him about putting in a bingo parlor. There was some dispute about the zoning rules, but the general consensus of staff and the planning board was that it would be allowed in C-2.

I was very hesitant to vote for this change. This intersection is a pretty main thoroughfare in our community. While this bingo hall will be tucked back, in a pretty decent building, C-2 zoning opens that property up for a lot of other uses, like used car lots. Part of the argument for it was that this parcel is bordered by county parcels which are zoned equivalent to our C-2. Hence the pretty unappealing strip in that area.

However, in the end, I voted for the change. Here's why:

The actual impact of bingo in terms of traffic is not much different from even a restaurant. So the change to a bingo hall will not have a dramatic change on the use of the area.
In my mind, I typically imagine ugly sheds housing bingo. In this case, though, it is a nice building (at least for a strip mall) that was originally designed for retail. So the appearance should not degrade the location.
The owners have been trying to lease the building for a couple of years. A vacant building is not attractive. I hope that as the economy improves that area will have more demand for retail tenants.
State law mandates that bingo benefit charities, and a portion of the profits from this hall will go to charities. Currently bingo can be played in churches and other venues in our community, and there has not been a large outcry about bingo in those locations.
Finally, there were no compelling arguments against the change. There have been comments, even by the council at the meeting, that bingo is not what we'd really like. However, no neighbors or others complained that it could become an eyesore.

I do not believe that this change will lead Pensacola to becoming the bingo capital of the world. I anticipate that soon we will have a demand for retail at this location. In the meantime the business will bring activity to a vacant parcel.

Recycling
When dropping my kids off at school on Friday, a couple of the other moms asked how my new job is going. I mentioned the bingo issue. They said, "What we want to know is, when will we get recycling?" I had good news for them.

Thursday night we instructed staff to draft a plan for instituting city-wide, mandatory recycling. One of the hurdles is finding the money, but staff seems confident that it can be found. Expect to hear more about the plan in the next month or two.

Pensacola Community Improvement Programe (PCIP)
Another issue that was discussed at length at the committee meetings was the PCIP grant program. These are grants to neighborhoods for neighborhood improvements. With the tight budget situation we are facing, the staff chose to hold back some funding. Requirements for different pots of money were unclear to the neighborhoods, and some were recommended to receive no funds. I initially was not supportive of the motion to just give those neighborhoods the money they requested because we need to decide where the money will come from. However, I chose to support it in the end because we need to ensure we deal fairly with neighborhoods, it is a great program for getting a good bang for the buck since neighborhood have to match the funds, the neighborhoods know best what they need for their neighborhood, and it is a small amount of money compared to our total budget.

In all, it was a good meeting, I think, with the four newbies getting a better sense of the process. Even some of the returning council members were in new roles as committee chairs and had a few stumbles. I do hope our future committee meetings won't all last 5 hours.

Coming up... Next on our schedule is a workshop on Wednesday at 4 pm to discuss the maritime park. I added on the blog a Google calendar, which I have also made a public calendar on Google calendars. You can download such calendars, I believe, into Outlook or other programs. Thought it might reduce effort--fewer people have to reenter the data.

As always, feel free to email me with your thoughts on these or other issues.

Council Agendas, week of Jan 18

2009-01-18T13:41:00.004-06:00

I have been reviewing the agendas for the upcoming council meetings. There are a few things that could be noteworthy conversations at the meeting, and I'd like to call your attention to them. Of course, these aren't the only things on the agenda, and others might result in discussions as well. Let me know your thoughts.

The full agendas are posted on the city website if you'd like more information.

Do note that the committee meetings will start Tuesday at 3:15 instead of Monday because of the holiday.

Committee of the Whole:
Alcaniz Renaming
An information issue is the renaming of the remainer of Alcaniz St. to Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. The road from Barcia Dr. to Cervantes is named for Dr. King, with the segment south of Cervantes retaining its historical name of Alcaniz. Originally we were to discuss renaming all of Alcaniz. However, that is no longer being considered.

The issue that remains, though, is one of consistency. There is a small portion of road, from Barcia north to the joint with Davis, that retains the name "Alcaniz". So, if you are travelling south on Davis Hwy, then cross Fairfield, after the road forks, you are first on Alcaniz then on Martin Luther King Jr. At Cervantes, you get back on Alcaniz. This is an artifact of the jagged city-county lines and the original renaming. There are no street signs in this area indicating it is Alcaniz St; Google Maps has it as King; the property appraisers website has several inconsistencies on what is named what. For consistency, there is a logic to renaming the northern section.

Such a change would affect a few property owners. A renaming would result in a cost to the owners, due to reprinting letterhead and business cards and changing the name on other materials. Turns out, though, that the post office delivered letters addressed Alcaniz to places on Martin Luther King Jr for seven years, so the urgency is not huge.

An additional part of this is the plan to put a sign on the off-ramp indicating the direction of Martin Luther King Jr. Dr.

Economic And Community Development Committee
Pensacola Community Initiatives Program (PCIP)
PCIP is a program that provides matching grants to neighborhoods for neighborhood improvement projects. This year, due to the tight budgets, the city staff planned on cutting the funds coming from general revenue for this program. The bulk of the funding will come from the local option sales tax (LOST), which has more stringent rules on usage. The only project which is receiving GR funds is a request from Neighbors of Seville, while all of the requests that were LOST eligible were funded. Two other projects were recommended to receive funds through alternate sources.

Request for License to Use Right of Way-De Luna Alley
Ragtime Grill is requesting the use of the right of way adjacent to the restaurant for providing additional seating and storage of a dumpster. There is concern from neighboring property owners that such a license will reduce access to the remainer of the shared alley due to deliveries and other activities.

Revised School Planning Interlocal Agreement
This agreement appears to be a formality, required by the state. The intent appears to be that local governments communicate with school districts when initiating new developments so the school district can adequately plan for enrollment. The agreement has language that encourages schools to be colocalized with other resources like parks, libraries, and community centers. The school district is getting ready to build a new school on the westside, and there is a potential that a joint effort to locate a community center and public library in that vicinity, currently underserved by those types of resources, would provide great synergy.

The agreement makes a bit of a note of school closures but is largely silent. School closures are going to be more prevalent in our city in the near future, and I hope this agreement can also help inform thinking on the closures and subsequent reuse of the closed buildings.

Future Land Use Map/Zoning Map Amendment-6305 North 9th Avenue
The property owner at 6305 N. 9th Avenue (the Waffle House at the intersection of 9th, Langley, and Tippin, I believe) is requesting a zoning change. He has been approached about putting in a bingo parlor at this location. This zoning change would change it from C-1 to C-2. Such a change would allow a number of new activities, such as new and used car sales and mini-warehouses, at this location (C-2 allows bars but they won't be allowed here because of the proximity to residential areas). I don't know what the radius for notifying people about these changes is, but this is an intersection that is used by many folks who might have an opinion. A public hearing will be held Jan 22 at the council meeting.

Additional items

I am also aware that the Arts Council is planning on bringing up an issue at the committee meetings. During the last year, there have been numerous issues brought up about alcoholic beverages during Gallery Night. I don't believe there have been any concerns about actual behaviors, but they are trying to determine the best way to ensure that downtown activities are covered appropriately. The Arts Council has worked with the state to come up with a proposal which they would like the council to consider.

Please email me your thoughts on these or other issues.

Swearing in and first activities

2009-01-14T18:48:00.005-06:00

It's official. The 2009-2011 council is now installed. Our first order of business was voting for our deputy mayor. As others have noted, the choices were all minorities--Jewel Cannada-Wynn, John Jerralds, and P.C. Wu. Cannada-Wynn won, making her, I believe, our first female deputy mayor. With 4 women total on the council, there definitely is a different mix of faces to this council.

We have also received our committee assignments. I was interested to notice that each committee vice-chair is a newcomer to the council, except for the finance committee, which is made up of the chairs of the other committees. I am on the neighborhood services committee and vice-chair of the economic and community development committee. I am particularly excited about the economic and community development committee since getting good jobs to this city is my priority.

The council is now going high tech. We have all been issued laptops, so we can receive materials electronically rather than have the staff print materials and deliver them. Our first committee meeting this Tuesday (Monday is a holiday) will have a new look, with all of us sporting new computers. The big change you will see is that the council agendas are now more user-friendly, with bookmarks to agenda items and the text is searchable. Another step forward in open government.

Speaking of open government, I am getting a better sense of public records and all the other laws that now affect me. It seems that blogs are not how our forefathers imagined us communicating. Keeping a record all posts could get complicated. Therefore, I have set this blog up now to have all comments previewed by me, and I anticipate keeping most from being posted. However, I would like to start a dialogue with you and eagerly await your feedback. I will attempt to post some of your comments, or at least the nature of our communications, when I think others are interested. You can either use the comment feature here or email me at mpratt@ci.pensacola.fl.us.

Recycling

2009-01-02T17:49:00.006-06:00

One thing I heard over and over going door to door is that people are ready for curbside recycling. ECUA is leading the way, which is a bit of a reversal for our city, which prides itself on great services. It is even interesting to hear city residents talk about how excited they are to get curbside recycling next week, only to hear how disappointed they are when they realize they aren't lucky enough to be in the county....

Rest assured, city staff is working on how to make recycling a reality. I contend, however, that we need to consider offering a sanitation franchise to ECUA. As always, there are pros and cons, but I believe the pros outweigh the cons. Of course, the below numbers (like the cost per household) could be changed during negotiations for service, and it is likely that we could get some concessions. Additionally, I do believe my numbers are accurate but will willingly correct them if they aren't. [A disclaimer: My mom, Lois Benson, is on the ECUA board, and we have had extensive discussions of this topic. I am basing my views on the facts as I see them and do not believe I have been unduly influenced.]

First, a comparison of the two plans.

	City	ECUA
Monthly Residential Charge	$22.20	$18.00
Monthly Fuel Surcharge	$2.85	$0.86
Yard Waste	Unlimited	Free weekly one pile of cuttings and up to 6 (six) bags
Excess Yard Waste	N/A	$28-$312, depending on volume
Bulk Waste (sofas, dryers)	$15+, depending on time	Free monthly, up to 6' x6'x6'
Recycling	County drop-off centers	Weekly curbside
General trash	Twice weekly	Weekly

As you can see, there are differences in services. As far as I can tell, the current plan the city is working toward is once-a-week trash, once-a-week recycling, similar to the ECUA plan, which would eliminate the difference in the general trash pick up. Other notable differences are the yard waste and bulk waste amounts. While I encourage people to clean up their yards, I imagine that most people, doing routine maintenance on their yards will not exceed the ECUA free yard waste limits. As for bulk waste, I am always bothered by customers being charged for the time it takes a person to do their job, which can lead to unexpected costs. The ECUA bulk waste pick up will cover a sofa, a dryer, or other similar things that customers might want to dispose of. Based on my review of the two offerings, excluding the fact that ECUA is already beginning their curbside program, the city and ECUA customer sanitation services are fairly comparable, with ECUA nudging ahead based on the lower monthly cost.

That said, not all of the city's sanitation services are curbside pick-up. The city also has STEP programs, which are coordinated neighborhood clean-ups, with free bulk waste pick-ups. There is also the debris removal after hurricanes or other weather events. I believe that it is imperative that we continue to maintain high standards for the appearance of our city.

As far as I can deduce from the budget, the STEP programs and other debris removal efforts are lumped in with general yard waste/bulk waste pick up. That item, in the big budget book I have, is about $1.4 million proposed for 2009. That results in approximately $74 per household (19,000 customers) per year. That is about the difference in cost between the city and ECUA monthly charges ($74/year, if you include the fuel charges). Mind you, the $1.4 million includes the free yard waste pick up as well as the bulk waste (for which we charge approximate $200,000 per year).

Now, for recycling. For the city to begin recycling, we need to get cans, which is not a negilible cost. The cans for the pilot program in East Hill were provided by Escambia County, but they are unwilling to provide cans for the whole city. Finding the funds for the cans (approximately $1 million) seems to be the biggest obstacle to beginning a city-wide program.

So, where to go from here? I would like to see the city renew discussions to ECUA. (There was a discussion over the summer, but the council ended it because of concerns over unlimited yard waste pick up and disaster clean up.) Would it be possible for ECUA to offer us the cans in exchange for being the residential sanitation franchise for the city, providing the same service for the same costs as they offer the county residents? Might they be willing, even, to cover the cost of some equivalent of the STEP program as their franchise fee? One would assume that by consolidating this service there would be cost savings--consider how many streets in this community have city as well as ECUA trucks rumbling down them--so perhaps they could pay us some of that difference to cover these programs. Of course, the city will lose some control with consolidation, particularly during disaster clean up. Such concerns could, I believe, be addressed during negotiations. ECUA is an elected board, and they, too, need to ensure that they provide great service to their constituents.

As always, the views I have outlined here are based on the information I currently have. It is possible that missed something, that I might have incomplete or incorrect information. Please let me know if you see any errors. I will try to be as transparent as possible in my reasoning, but by the time an issue comes to a vote, I may be voting based, in part, on new information which I may or may not have posted here.

Megan's new blog

2008-12-28T10:50:00.001-06:00

Better late than never. I've been mulling the best way for me to communicate about city issues. I'm not yet convinced that a blog is it, but I wanted to get something started. I hope that this blog will be a site where I can share my thought and those of others on issues and ideas as they come up before council or as they occur to me or are suggested by you. I don't aim to be terribly newsy, but I hope to share the facts that are available to the council that may not be easily accessible to others (like the text of the recently proposed port lease). In addition, I will try to share the research that I do on different issues. In the past I have thought that perhaps councilmembers or other elected officials vote they way they do because they have information in their materials that I don't have, and I want to help you know the information that I have on which I will base my decisions.

I also hope to use this as a forum to suggest new ideas that I would like to explore in making Pensacola a better place. I hope you will take these ideas as jumping off points, a way for me to share unvetted ideas which may or may not continue forward as city policies. I believe that no question is a stupid question and that by bringing up ideas I might elicit some discussion that could result in new policies based on the original idea or lead to an alternative idea that might be great for this community.

I also welcome your questions and suggestions. I will monitor comments, but often the comment section of a blog is not the easiest, most direct place to start a discussion. I have created a new email address (MeganPrattd9@gmail.com) and looking forward to hearing from you at that address.

	Officer A	Officer B	Difference
Years on Force	35	35	--
Total Salary Payments While on Force	$1.4M	$1.4M	--