Call Center milestone

This press release arrived this morning. Great job!

CITY DELIVERS ON PROMISE TO PROVIDE BETTER CUSTOMER SERVICE

Contact Center Answers 100,000th Call

GREENSBORO, NC (October 31, 2005) – Quality customer service took on a new meaning earlier this month as the City of Greensboro’s Contact Center answered its 100,000th call. By calling 373-CITY (2489), residents are instantly connected to a City Services Representative who provides quick, correct information about all City services - hours of the White Street Landfill, how to have an old appliance picked up, how to properly recycle an outdated computer, how to obtain a business license, where to pay a parking ticket and even how to contact a City Council representative. Center representatives are available to take calls from 7 am to 6 pm Monday through Friday and in most cases can provide an immediate answer. Residents that call the number after hours can leave a message and get a prompt reply the following day or the next business day if left during the weekend.

Since its beginning in April 2005, the Contact Center has upheld its promise to be a “City Hall On Call” by responding to more than 107,000 resident requests and by submitting more than 26,500 work orders for City services. Work orders include requests for trash pickup, pothole repair and restoration of sidewalks. During the month of November, new callers are encouraged to place calls and ask questions in order to see how easily and quickly service is provided. In addition, residents that want a tour of the Contact Center can call to schedule a walk-through. And soon, our Spanish speaking residents will have the opportunity to ask questions in their native tongue as the Contact Center adds Spanish speaking representatives to the team. By simply calling 373-CITY, residents are connected to the multitude of services and programs the City offers.

For more information regarding the Contact Center, please call 373-CITY (2489) or email at cogcontactctr@greensboro-nc.gov.

Nice endorsement!

I sincerely appreciate the strong endorsement from the editorial staff of the News & Record. Thank you!

Weekly schedule

This week is going to be one of those with a lot of those "extra" assignments that make this position so interesting.

There's nothing official on my schedule for Monday/Halloween, but I have plenty of reading to do and some personal errands as well. My 13,000+ campaign postcards are going into the mail this day.

I begin Tuesday, November 1 on a pleasant note by welcoming to Greensboro a group of international visitors in the US Trade Policy Group. The seven people represent the countries of Bahrain, Bangladesh, Botswana, Indonesia, Laos, St. Kitts and Nevis, and Tanzania. They are being hosted by the Piedmont Triad Council of International Visitors. Most Greensboro citizens would be amazed by the number of international visitors who frequently visit our city.

At midday, I will be attending the membership luncheon of the Greensboro Regional Realtors Association. Their PAC endorsed me for the District 5 city council seat, and I will be introduced to the membership at that meeting along with other endorsed candidates.

The regular city council meeting begins at 5:30PM with a fairly routine agenda. There are a couple of rezoning cases and adoption of a resolution identifying the areas for future annexation into the city.

On Wednesday, November 2 I will be visiting the fourth graders at Archer Elementary School to talk about city government and services. Let's hope I can keep it interesting for the 60 young students. I always enjoy meeting and talking with our future leaders.

Unfortunately I will have to miss the candidate forum at A&T University that evening. I only received notice of the forum on Saturday and have a prior commitment I cannot change at this late date.

The meeting of the Strategic Planning Committee of the Greensboro Partnership begins bright and early at 7:30AM on Thursday, November 3. We are in the final stages of identifying the recommendations to be included in the report that will be presented to the full board in early December for their consideration.

The War Memorial Commission (coliseum) meets at noon later that day. Then there is the Young Professionals and Greensboro: City Council Candidate Forum that begins at 6:30PM. I will only be able to stay for the first half hour or so before rushing off to a community crime watch meeting in one of my District 5 neighborhoods that has been experiencing some problems lately.

I will be standing in for the mayor and speaking to the NC League of Transportation and Logistics at lunch on Friday, November 4. This professional group has a membership of 225 persons representing transportation professionals in manufacturing as well as all modes of transportation.

On Saturday, November 5 I am off to Raleigh to celebrate NC PTA's 86th birthday. I'm looking forward to seeing many of the past and present state PTA board members from across the state with whom I happily served for many years.

Losing faith

Although I am fully aware of some shortcomings in our judicial system, I have still believed for the most part that it is effective in handing out justice and protecting citizens and their rights. That belief has been severely tested during the last 15 months, and my faith in it is slowly but surely ebbing away.

I'm not going to air all the dirty laundry, but my son has been in an ongoing, nasty battle for custody of his three children. His now ex-wife has pulled every dirty trick in the book, and so far, that tactic seems to be working in her favor.

We had high hopes that progress would be made in court yesterday and that we would at least get his visitation rights enforced - she has not allowed any of us to see or speak to the children since Easter. No such luck - the custody case is now calendared for mid-January. To force visitation, we have to file a separate action that our attorney advises would drag out at least that long as well. Her attorney says he'll try to get some contact arranged for the holiday season, but that it was all up to HER.

We're all heartbroken, of course. Where is the justice???

Did I miss something?

The article in today's News & Record about High Point trying to raise an $20 million for support of the International Home Furnishings Market from surrounding businesses and communities was truly real news to me. Mayor Smothers said the request was submitted to Greensboro officials several months ago, but she has not yet received a response. Unless my memory has totally failed me, this is the first I've heard of this request. If other council members are unaware of it either, that might explain why Greensboro has not responded.

Sounds like communications have broken down somewhere along the line!

Triad Stage request

I wondered why Triad Stage was on tomorrow's council briefing agenda. Now I know, having just received this email from managing director Rich Whittington. Okay, what's your reaction?

Triad Stage requested time at the end of tomorrow's briefing to update you on our need for City assistance.

Over the summer, Hayes Clement and Tom Sloan -- both board members of Triad Stage-- appeared before the council during a public hearing on the FY05-06 City budget. At the time we were seeking up to $180,000 from the City to pay off capital debt remaining from the renovations.

The Council expressed interest in helping Triad Stage secure its place as an economic generator for downtown revitalization, but was not in a position to provide funding at the time. In addition to a tight budget year, some members of the Council also expressed reluctance to provide funds to pay off debt and suggested that we look to the private sector.

The private sector has embraced our project. 94% of our $5 million capital campaign was raised from the private sector as well as 95% of the contributed funds that have been secured to support our first 4 years of operations. In September, a group of Triad Stage supporters secured $1.1 million in new pledges and debt relief to not only eliminate the $180,000 of capital debt, but also all of the operational debt that had accumulated over our first four seasons.

But with the debt now eliminated, Triad Stage's challenge is to accelerate our efforts to break even on an annual basis and to secure funding for long-delayed capital improvements. It is through the private sector that Triad Stage intends to reach a break even budget. We have seen significant increases in ticket sales and contributions. This year we have almost 2,900 season passholders -- an increase of 250 passes from the 04-05 season.

Triad Stage is seeking help from the City to address one of the theatre's capital needs. Our most pressing need -- and the one that we believe will most benefit the City as well -- is our facade improvements. The brick needs to be re-pointed to protect against water damage and the woodwork around our three large windows needs to refinished and weather proofed. To minimize costs Triad Stage had to eliminate plans from our original renovation for a marquee that would complete the facade and provide additional sidewalk coverage and lighting for Elm Street. We are
respectfully asking the City to consider a $35,000 downtown capital grant to assist us in completing our facade improvements. As an important anchor for downtown revitalization, an improved facade will benefit the look of our City Center and help finish a world class space for creating live theatre.

I look forward to answering your questions/concerns at the briefing tomorrow. If I an provide any additional information in advance of tomorrow's meeting, please let me know.

Thank you for the City's tremendous support of our project and for your consideration of this request.

Rich Whittington
Managing Director

p.s. - I also wanted to get back to you on the issue of State/County funding that you raised over the summer. The State didn't provide any capital dollars to Triad Stage, but has been providing operational support. To date, we have received $285,00 from the State and expect to receive as much as $40,000 each year from the State Arts Council. We are trying to get the County to step up to the plate, but have been unsuccessful in doing so. We do not seek operational support from the City. Please let me know if there is additional information that I can provide. Thanks for your consideration!

[Update: At today's briefing session, city councilmembers informally agreed to provide the requested funding out of the city funds allocated to Downtown Greensboro Inc. and/or the downtown Business Improvement District revenues. We instructed the city manager to review the current budgets of those two sources and determine whether the funding would be available in this fiscal year or if it should be included when the 2006-07 budget is prepared.

This sounds like a win-win to me: Triad Stage receives their funding out of money already set aside for downtown improvements with no additional costs to taxpayers.]

City Connections

The latest edition of City Connections is available.

A kinder schedule

After last week's brutal marathon of meetings, this week is going to be much easier.

I'll begin the week on a pleasant note having lunch with City Manager Mitchell Johnson on Monday, October 24 to discuss my vision for the city and share thoughts on how he should function in his new position. In the evening I will join fellow councilmembers at the NCCJ annual Brotherhood/Sisterhood Citation Dinner at Koury Center.

Tuesday, October 25 brings the monthly council briefing session at 9AM. The agenda includes the following items:

1. Davie Deck Mural Presentation

2. Greensboro Economic Development Partnership (GEDP) Budget Update

3. Review of Benefits for Public Safety Personnel and other City Employees

4. Presentation on the Cedar Street Neighborhood Study

5. Update from Triad Stage

There are two candidate forums scheduled for that evening - one sponsored by the League of Women Voters at Greensboro College and the other sponsored by the NAACP at New Light Baptist Church. District candidates will start out at the LWV forum while at-large candidates attend the NAACP forum. Then we'll do a switch with district candidates traveling to the NAACP forum and the at-large candidates going to the LWV forum. Busy evening!

That's all the OFFICIAL items on my schedule for the week, but I won't be idle by any means. Participation in a discussion group on Wednesday, visiting the dentist on Thursday, and supporting a son through a stressful event on Friday will keep me on the go in addition to responding to everyday constituent service needs.

Looks like I'll have a bit of breathing room for a change, thankfully!

Points from Christine Todd Whitman

The keynote speaker at the Monday morning session of the NC League of Municipalities annual conference in Hickory was Christine Todd Whitman, former governor of New Jersey and former EPA administrator. She explored the main points of her book, It's My Party Too, and made a number of interesting points and statements.

• The states are evenly divided between Republicans and Democrats in their state legislatures and governorships.
• "Competence trumps partisanship."
• 40% of US citizens identify themselves as "moderates" - the largest single block of voters - yet "moderate" is considered a bad label in this day and age. Ms. Whitman considers herself a "Rhino" - a moderate Republican. [Lex corrected me - this should be RINO: "Republican In Name Only."]
• "The Republican party has traded its traditional core commitments (small government, low taxes, etc.) for votes from those who want to impose their morality on the people...a governing philosophy has been traded for rigid idealogy...for fundamentalists, there is only one right way to do things - their way." She cited as an example the highlighting of Harriet Miers' religious beliefs as a reason to confirm her to the Supreme Court versus expertise and competency.
• Political polarization is holding up numerous bills/actions in the Congress, including ones vital to the nation's security (chemical plant security, for example) and prosperity.
• "We've got to stop saying "no" so much". She cited as an example the opposition by one group or another to most modes of power generation - nuclear, windmills, coal-burning, etc. - that is hampering efforts to supply the ever-increasing demand for power.
• While many citizens would like for the country to move back to the center, it is difficult to move back from the fringe. Ms. Whitman views the 2008 presidential election as a prime opportunity to do so since no incumbent will be running for president at that time.
• Ms. Whitman called for campaign finance reform with ALL groups being required to disclose where their money is coming from so citizens can know who is behind all the adds and their motives for them.

Many folks will likely dispute some or all of her points, but she made one statement that most of the blogging community will likely applaud: "Personal blogs are an excellent way to counteract media bias."

Killer schedule

This is one of those "If I can make it through this week, I can survive anything" weeks for me.

In a few minutes, I'm off to Hickory, NC for the NC League of Municipalities annual conference. This conference provides non-stop workshops, business sessions, and networking opportunities with other city officials from around the state with the schedule beginning with EARLY breakfasts. No rest and relaxation there!

With that conference wrapping up around 2:30PM on Tuesday, October 18, I'll make a mad dash back to Greensboro for the 5:30PM city council meeting. There's a packed agenda starting off with a resolution to officially hire Mitchell Johnson as the new city manager (it's not too late to back out, Mitch!) and followed by a whole bunch of GFLUM (Comprehensive Plan) amendments and rezonings. This is going to be a LONG one.

Wednesday, October 19 is also busy with an 8:30AM committee meeting out at the Piedmont Triad Partnership followed by a 10AM meeting of the Piedmont Triad Rural Planning Organization (transportation) followed by a noon meeting of the Piedmont Triad Council of Governments. I finally get a break and am playing bridge with my "Wacky Wednesday" bridge club in the evening.

I begin Thursday, October 20 with a 7:30AM meeting of the Greensboro Partnership's Strategic Planning Committee, rush to a charter schools meeting in Raleigh that begins at 11AM, and scoot back to Greensboro for the Greensboro Chambers "Meet the Candidates Business After Hours" at Embassy Suites at 5PM. If I am still on my feet by that time, I finally get to see my husband and attend "The Turn of the Screw" at Triad Stage at 7:30PM.

Friday, October 21 will find me at the grand rededication of the Depot for passenger rail service followed by a press conference at the Coliseum about the three March 2006 basketball tournaments. Then it's an afternoon of bridge with my partner in the Charity League bridge marathon that raises scholarship money for a female Greensboro student.

Mercifully, Saturday is a collapse and regroup day, and I hope to enjoy the great chili cook-off in Westerwood on Sunday afternoon.

Another key to being a good city council member is an understanding, flexible spouse. Many thanks to my husband Bob for putting up with my frequent absences and the countless TV dinners he has to consume!

Burma Shave signs

My husband forwarded these "oldies but goodies" to me so I'll share them with you for a laugh wearing my "transportation hat." Enjoy in the spirit of driver safety!

For those who never saw any of the Burma Shave signs, here is a quick lesson in our history of the 1930's and '40's. Before there were interstates, when everyone drove the old 2 lane roads, Burma Shave signs would be posted all over the countryside in farmers' fields. They were small red signs with white letters. Five signs, about 100 feet apart, each containing 1 line of a 4 line couplet......and the obligatory 5th sign advertising Burma Shave, a popular shaving cream.

Here are some of the actual signs:

• HARDLY A DRIVER -- IS NOW ALIVE -- WHO PASSED -- ON HILLS -- AT 75
• TRAINS DON'T WANDER -- ALL OVER THE MAP -- 'CAUSE NOBODY SITS -- IN THE ENGINEER'S LAP
• SHE KISSED THE HAIRBRUSH -- BY MISTAKE -- SHE THOUGHT IT WAS -- HER HUSBAND JAKE
• DON'T LOSE YOUR HEAD -- TO GAIN A MINUTE -- YOU NEED YOUR HEAD -- YOUR BRAINS ARE IN IT
• DROVE TOO LONG -- DRIVER SNOOZING --WHAT HAPPENED NEXT -- IS NOT AMUSING
• BROTHER SPEEDER -- LET'S REHEARSE -- ALL TOGETHER -- GOOD MORNING, NURSE
• CAUTIOUS RIDER -- TO HER RECKLESS DEAR -- LET'S HAVE LESS BULL -- AND MORE STEER
• SPEED WAS HIGH -- WEATHER WAS NOT -- TIRES WERE THIN -- X MARKS THE SPOT
• THE MIDNIGHT RIDE -- OF PAUL FOR BEER -- LED TO A WARMER -- HEMISPHERE
• AROUND THE CURVE -- LICKETY-SPLIT -- BEAUTIFUL CAR-- WASN'T IT?
• NO MATTER THE PRICE -- NO MATTER HOW NEW -- THE BEST SAFETY DEVICE -- IN THE CAR IS YOU
• A GUY WHO DRIVES -- A CAR WIDE OPEN -- IS NOT THINKIN' --HE'S JUST HOPIN'
• AT INTERSECTIONS -- LOOK EACH WAY -- A HARP SOUNDS NICE -- BUT IT'S HARD TO PLAY
• BOTH HANDS ON THE WHEEL -- EYES ON THE ROAD -- THAT'S THE SKILLFUL --DRIVER'S CODE
• THE ONE WHO DRIVES -- WHEN HE'S BEEN DRINKING -- DEPENDS ON YOU -- TO DO HIS THINKING
• CAR IN DITCH -- DRIVER IN TREE -- THE MOON WAS FULL --AND SO WAS HE.
• And the all time favorite: PASSING SCHOOL ZONE -- TAKE IT SLOW -- LET OUR LITTLE -- SHAVERS GROW Burma Shave

Do these bring back any old memories? If not, you're merely a child. If they do - then you're old as dirt... LIKE ME!

Yesterday's PART meeting

Here are the reports about yesterday's PART meeting in the News & Record and the Winston-Salem Journal .

Moving ahead to November

ALL RIGHT!!!! The primary results are in, and District 5 voters have blessed me with 75% of the vote and have eliminated one opponent. Thank you to all those who fulfilled their civic duty by going to the polls today, and double thanks to those who cast their ballot for me. I appreciate your support and confidence in me.

On to November 8!

Sedalia campaign requests

All three candidates from Sedalia at last night's candidate forum sponsored by WOMAN spoke about their desire to tap into Greensboro's water and sewer system so that they could have better development opportunities. As much as I support regionalism, I have serious reservations about this that has little to do with politics.

Greensboro seems to have solved its water woes with our connections to Burlington, High Point, Reidsville, Winston-Salem, and and the Haw River along with our share of the soon-to-become-reality Randleman Lake. However, do we really want to take on customers who will never become Greensboro citizens and pay Greensboro taxes (as long as Sedalia remains incorporated) and who may put additional strain on the water supply when we encounter future droughts that seem to be coming more and more frequently in the last decade?

While the water supply has been taken care of far into the future, our wastewater treatment capacity remains problematic. Greensboro is now "maxed out" in our ability to expand our sewer capacity - we cannot get state and federal permission to discharge additional amounts into the streams or to increase the size of the North Buffalo or Osborne plants beyond our current permitted capacity. We are already exploring options of "where do we go from here" once we use up this additional capacity that was created with the last expansion at Osborne. Knowing the limits on future sewer capacity, do we reserve it for the use of Greensboro citizens and businesses or do we give it away?

My perception is that Sedalia (and other towns ringing Greensboro) became towns to keep big bad Greensboro out and limit development within their jurisdictions. Now they are asking Greensboro to enable that very development in THEIR communities that could well be occurring inside the Greensboro city limits and enhancing OUR tax base. Is this a cost effective and sensible use of Greensboro's resources?

My obligation as a city council member is to Greensboro's residents and provide for their needs - present and future. I - and other council members - will have to consider if this coming request is in the best interests of the citizens we represent.

Regionalism does have its limits.

Belated weekly schedule

I'm a bit late in posting this week's schedule - blame it on ConvergeSouth, campaign work, and a spotty DSL connection. Better late than never!

I spent most of Monday, October 10 working on an Excel file of 21,000+ registered voters in District 5. We're trying to whittle it down to a more manageable number by combining family addresses so only one campaign postcard is mailed to each household for the general election. It's a slow, tedious process.

Most of the Greensboro City Council candidates - including unopposed Mayor Keith Holliday - attended the candidates forum sponsored by WOMAN (Women over 40 Meeting and Networking) at Mahi's (delicious dinner served). Some candidates from Sedalia (more on that later) and one from Summerfield attended as well.

Tuesday, October 11 is, of course, Primary Day. Due to the rainy weather and anticipated poor turnout, I've decided to devote my time to working on that voter list and catching up on my blogging. I do plan to go down to the Guilford County Courthouse this evening to watch election returns after I attend the East Hunter Hills Community Watch meeting. I know I can get the returns online just as easily, but nothing beats being there in person to watch the action.

Tomorrow, Wednesday, October 12, will be the busy day for me this week. The PART board meeting begins at 8:30AM, then there's a lunch meeting with a local executive at noon, and a quick conference with City Manger Mitchell Johnson in the afternoon. I hope to have the time and energy to attend the first public workshop on the Bicycle/Pedestrian master plan at Trotter Center in the evening.

Key items on the PART agenda include:

• Approval of a 20-year lease agreement with the City of High Point for ten spaces at their Parking Plaza at 120 W. Commerce Street for use by PART Express patrons
• Approval of a grant agreement with the NCDOT for two additional years of funding for the PART Connections service. An independent evaluation of this service showed $137,000 in annual savings for the four participating counties (Alamance, Guilford, Davidson, and Forsyth) in transporting patients to out-of-county regional medical centers at Duke and Chapel Hill
• Approval of an agreement with NCDOT for PART to serve as the "pass through" agency for state funding for Furniture Market expenses (as we have in the past)
• Amendment and extension of our contract with American Charters to operate the PART Express service for another year that will increase by 10.14% due to significantly higher fuel costs and insurance premiums
• Receive an update of progress on the Heart of the Triad project - A contract has been negotiated with a consulting firm to perform the much-needed study, but the $200,000 in required local matching funds to the NCDOT money has not been secured as of this post. I do not anticipate the board approving that contract until the money is in place to pay for it.
• Receive an update on ridership - Total ridership for the month of September was 25,319 boardings compared to August's 17,974. Shuttle service began to the Dell plant on Thursday, October 6. We are now using full-sized buses instead of the smaller vehicles during the rush hours to handle this increase ridership - what a nice problem to have!

I will spend Thursday morning, October 13, in a meeting with NCDOT officials exploring new revenue options for state highway and transit funding. Then it's off to a meeting in city hall with an interested citizen and city staff to explore options in preserving an older neighborhood in District 5.

In case I forget to mention it later, I will be in Hickory Sunday through Tuesday attending the North Carolina League of Municipalities Annual Conference. I plan to return in time for the city council meeting on Tuesday evening.

City Connections

The latest issue of City Connections is available for your reading pleasure.

ConvergeSouth = fantastic

I can't say enough good things about the fantastic ConvergeSouth conference last Friday and Saturday. Sue and Shaka, the whole HARDWORKING team, A&T, and the News & Record did a great job in pulling it all together to provide a wonderful learning and networking experience. It was great to see so many students involved, and I was impressed by the wonderful facility in which the conference took place.

I did not take advantage of any of the evening musical opportunities (sorry, Jay), but my husband and I thoroughly enjoyed feasting on Hoggard's barbecue and the great conversations on his front porch as we tried to escape the much-needed downpour of rain. Good food, good friends.

Conference sessions were varied and informative:

* John Robinson and Jay Vaden helped us examine the effect of blogs on journalism, the similarities and differences.

* Exploring which "ethics" apply to each medium was an enlightening and thought-provoking session-- Jay Rosen and Lex Alexander were great discussion leaders.

* Atrios highlighted the changes that are occurring in our expectations from the media and how "balance" seems to have deteriorated into one quote from the "fors," one for the "againsts." We had a good discussion on "context" vs. "spin."

* Tiffany Brown pointed out how blogging appears to be dominated by white, upper class males despite the supposed wide-open accessibility. Although she presented this as a nonjudgmental fact, her information struck a nerve with Dave Winer, resulting in some heated remarks.

* Roch Smith asked various audience members why they blog, and I think I saw Allen Johnson wince a bit when I voiced my frustration with poor media reporting as one of my main reasons.

* I enjoyed leading the session on political blogging and thank everyone who participated in it. Several folks had suggestions for improving citizens' access to public information on the city's website that I have passed along for study and possible implementation if feasible.

Specific pearls of wisdom I picked up:

• The blogosphere is self-correcting - mistakes will be pointed out quickly and often by your readers.
  
• Blogging gives you the right to speak, but it doesn't bring a right to be listened to with it. You have to earn that.
  
• Bloggers have become "pundits" and are not held to the same standards as journalists.
  
• The more voices, the richer the discussion.

But the part that I absolutely enjoyed the most was meeting a lot of "online friends" face-to-face - Hardy, Patrick Eakes, Michael Christopher, Billy Jones, Joe Guarino, The Shu, Don Moore and many others. While our viewpoints are not always the same, it was great talking with each of you and getting to know the person behind the keyboard. I know this opportunity has always been available at the monthly Wednesday meet-ups, but my schedule has not allowed me to attend in the past. I think I will make a greater effort to get there in the future.

Thanks to all who worked so hard to provide this cutting-edge conference right here in Greensboro - you did good!

Back again, maybe?

I apologize for my unanticipated absence from the blogging world lately. For some reason, my DSL has been acting up for the last week or so, and my service has been quite spotty, kicking me offline every couple minutes or so. I don't know if it's the dampness or line work that BellSouth is performing in the Patterson/Lee street area, but it sure has been frustrating. Whatever the reason, it appears to be working better this morning, so let's see if I can catch up on things while I can.

Congratulations to our new city manager

In our closed session after last night's city council meeting, the decision was reached to officially offer the city manager position to Interim City Manager Mitchell Johnson. This appointment was reached after months of painstaking (and sometimes painFUL) search and deliberation to find the best person for the job, and I am confident we made the right decision.

It wasn't easy -- we began with 50+ applications from people all around the US who were well-qualified for the position. (We discovered during this process that Greensboro has an excellent reputation for good government and our manager position is considered to be a "plum".) One exhausting weekend was spent interviewing a number of candidates in groups of three council members. There was a lot of debate about choosing an "internal" candidate who is already familiar with Greensboro and its strengths and weaknesses versus an "external" candidate who could bring different experiences and ideas into the city. We were exposed to a lot of good ideas and different programs that could enhance our current governance practices, and I believe we will trying to put some of them to good use as we move forward with the new manager. Mitchell has certainly expressed a willingness - and indeed, even offered some of his own suggestions during the interview process - to do things differently. As tiring (and sometimes frustrating) as the process was, I firmly believe we council members benefitted and learned a lot about ourselves and each other as we worked through it.

One amusing tale from last night: No one - including us council members - really anticipated reaching a final decision at this session, so City Attorney Linda Miles had told Mitch there was no need for him to hang around. (Mitch has been attending a professional development seminar in Chapel Hill this week, had returned for the council meeting, and needed to get back to Chapel Hill for the rest of his obligations there.) Once agreement was reached on our choice, there was a mad scramble to find Mitch and get him back to city hall so we could break the good news to him in person. After numerous calls to his pager, cell phone, and home, we finally caught up with him and requested that he return. To much laughter from the rest of us, Don Vaughan pantomimed Mitch slamming on brakes in his car and doing a 180-degree turn in the middle of the road.

The official vote to hire Mitchell Johnson as the city manager will take place at the October 18 council meeting. I'm ready "to hit the ground running" now that we have named our new CEO and start taking a really hard look at city departments and programs to try to get earlier input into the budget preparation process.

Congratulations, Mitch! You earned it, and I'm looking forward to working with you in your new role.

Great blogging video

Applause for Tom Lassiter's great video on Greensboro's blogging community, Ahead of the Curve! Of course, I have a very biased view since I do appear in it as well as receiving some very nice compliments (thanks, Sue and Ben).

Recycling contest

Here's a press release announcing a fun event.

CONTEST BRINGS NEW MEANING TO THE WORD ‘RECYCLE’
City of Greensboro Holds Contest to Show the Importance of Recycling

GREENSBORO, NC (October 4, 2005) – In celebration of America Recycles Day, the City of Greensboro, Radio Disney AM1320, and the Greensboro Children’s Museum will host a Recycling Design Contest for all Greensboro elementary and middle school students starting today. The contest requires participants to make any type of art, craft or sculpture using materials found in Greensboro’s recycling program. These items include: office paper, small magazines/catalogs, newspaper, aluminum and tin cans, empty aerosol cans, cardboard, chipboard and plastic bottles/jugs which display the number #1 or #2 inside the recycling symbol. Glass and pizza boxes are excluded from the contest.

A preliminary round will be held in each school to select one representative who will move on to the final round where they will compete for individual and school prizes. Local personalities will judge the winning designs on creativity and imagination. Contest finals will be held from 4 to 6 pm on Tuesday, November 15 at the Greensboro Children’s Museum, 220 North Church Street.

“Recycling is an easy way in which everyone can do a part to preserve our natural resources,” says Yvonne Foust, Environmental Education Specialist for the City of Greensboro. “One component of the recycling effort is to reduce the amount of trash that ends up in the landfill. It is our hope that this contest will inspire new uses for old things and demonstrate the importance of recycling to school aged children,” she adds.

For more information and contest rules, contact Yvonne Foust at 373-2053 or fousty@greensboro-nc.gov.

Bikeway, Pedestrian and Greenways Master Plan

For all those folks who are interested in better bike and pedestrian facilities in and around Greensboro, here's your opportunity to voice your needs and ideas. I hope you will attend one or more of these sessions.

The Greensboro Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and the City of Greensboro Parks and Recreation Department are pleased to announce the launch of the "Greensboro Area Bicycle, Pedestrian, & Greenways Master Plan."

A series of public workshops will be held throughout the area to introduce this planning effort to the public and to receive initial public input. These meetings are your opportunity to share your knowledge of current deficiencies; your ideas and priorities for near-term improvements and policies; and your vision for the future of the area's bicycle, pedestrian, and trail system. Please attend and help us plan for improving the safety and convenience of bicycling and walking, as forms of transportation, recreation, and fitness, throughout the Greensboro Metropolitan Area!

The following public workshops will be held from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm:
Wednesday, October 12
Southwest Area
Trotter Recreation Center at 3906 Betula Street, Greensboro, NC 27407
MapLink: http://tinyurl.com/8oxrj

Thursday, October 13
Southeast Area
Barber Park - Indoor Pavilion at 1500 Dan's Road, Greensboro, NC 27401
MapLink: http://tinyurl.com/dgxvz

Wednesday, October 19
Northwest Area
Summerfield Elementary School, Multi-purpose Room at 7515 Trainer Drive , Summerfield, NC 27358
MapLink: http://tinyurl.com/dqwy6

Thursday, October 20
North Central Area
Lawndale Baptist Church Fellowship Hall at 3505 Lawndale Drive, Greensboro, NC 27408 MapLink: http://tinyurl.com/9kcbq

The general format of these workshops will be:
1. Brief informal open house period
2. Formal presentation on the Bicycle, Pedestrian, & Greenways Plan project
3. Brief question and answer session
4. Small group discussion session
5. Summary of small group discussions
6. Concluding remarks

For more information, or to complete our brief opinion survey, please visit the following webpage: www.greensboro-nc.gov/gdot/biped

Voluntary water restrictions

With the severe lack of rainfall, we all knew it was coming! Here's the press release with all the details.

VOLUNTARY WATER USE REDUCTIONS REQUESTED
Stage 1 Water Conservation Alert Enacted

GREENSBORO, NC (October 4, 2005) – With recorded rainfall at nearly a foot below normal, the City of Greensboro is encouraging citizens to voluntarily reduce their water consumption. All residents and businesses are encouraged to participate to help avoid mandatory restrictions should current dry weather patterns continue. Residents are especially encouraged not to water established lawns and plants so that enough water is available for newly seeded lawns and landscapes.

Rainfall recorded for Greensboro is almost 11 inches below normal for this date. Abnormally low rainfall has reduced flows into the reservoirs that the City uses to supply water. Allan Williams, director of the City’s Water Resources Department, notes that, due to proactive measures taken after the 2001-02 drought, the City now has many more tools to withstand a possible drought.

“We are using our pipelines to neighboring cities to reduce the amount of water taken from the lakes,” he said. “In the event that the lakes are not recovering when we approach the end of the year, we now have the pipeline to the Haw River to help refill Lake Townsend. Long-term weather forecasts do predict normal rainfall; however, forecasts for the next few weeks do not show substantial likelihood of rain. Given these conditions, we feel it is prudent to request these voluntary reductions, as have several other water suppliers in the region."

The City has already begun taking steps to ensure an adequate supply of water. In September, the City increased the amount of water purchased from Reidsville to more than 4 million gallons per day (MGD) to supplement the Greensboro lake supply. Valves were also opened to flow an additional 1 to 2 million gallons per day from Winston-Salem’s system. In addition, Greensboro has been buying an average of 2 MGD from Burlington, which will increase to at least 3 MGD this week.

These supplemental purchases, coupled with voluntary restrictions, are expected to help maintain Greensboro’s supply until the start of winter precipitation.

Greensboro’s Water Shortage Response Plan provides for mandatory restrictions when the water supply drops to 150 days. Currently, the City’s reservoirs have an estimated 170 days of water supply.

In the past few years, water usage for the City has remained steady while its population has increased, suggesting that citizens have adopted conservation as a way of life.

For more information about water conservation, call 373-2489.

Weekly schedule

This week doesn't look too busy at this point due to a couple of cancellations although I have plenty of campaign work and other activities to fill any time not being spent on official business.

I have a meeting at the United Arts Council on the morning of Monday, October 3 followed by the 11AM Women in Law Enforcement Recognition Reception at the Greensboro Historical Museum. The recognition event is a special project spearheaded by Councilmember T. Dianne Bellamy-Small.

The Greensboro Housing Coalition is sponsoring another Healthy Homes bus tour of housing needs in Greensboro on Tuesday, October 4. We will return from that event just in time for the regular meeting of the City Council. The agenda seems to be fairly routine but does contain two items of particular interest to some of you - approving the contract to begin the streetwork around the Center City Park and setting up the funding mechanism to acquire the old Canada Dry property on High Point Road behind the Coliseum.

Thursday, October 6 will be my busiest day beginning with a 7:30AM meeting of the Greensboro Partnership's Strategic Planning Committee. That will be followed by a noon meeting of the War Memorial Commission (coliseum), TREBIC's annual "Pigs, Poultry, and Politics" reception at 4:30PM, and the United Arts Council Vanguard Society celebration.

I hope to be able to sit in on most of the Friday, October 7 activities of ConvergeSouth and learn from everyone there. Then I'll be busy leading the session on political blogging at that event on Saturday. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone there!

Thank you, News & Record!

Many thanks to the editorial board at the News & Record for this great endorsement!