Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutSupplemental Attachments - 7/17/2023 o 0 N (0 ti 0 F- co � O 00 N w ti O) er ON N 00 co- nj CD N 03 M M co- t 0 a dEt g a cz ,v U W -611 W W0.4 o .° tiEa — OD c o � •No ai CT) a i i 0 0 4- •E ekt ° ° � � O 7 wo wo a 'Z 'CZ U 0 x x cy O Q 0 o a O r M U Z N N 'd co Q o LEC U ° a et g ; pmi •w� 7 N 2 / '4 L- 7 $ 0 0 2 N- % % 2 N o o 0 (N Cic (N W t 0 CL C = m Ce w � � _ f f E .§ e \ Q -0 § 0 W z & m k o ° , ° t t oi > / « VI ■ ■ — vs cis 0 c,1 J E k co o co 0 / ; a r- A ƒ k 4,+a e « ( o § $ c 01 t Pg d � 04 s $ $ o � l g g >4 § . •. a . -5 /0 : 0 :b.. L. 0,) ® E L2 k E 0 3 N « § N H © b / / / ^ H 2 '§ b F § Z - U g At 4.1 — P Co -- Rev. Michael D. Blackwell, Ph.D. P. O. Box 804 Cedar Falls, IA 50613 July 17, 2023 Waterloo City Council: The long-standing environmental crisis endemic to Chamberlain Manufacturing, and the comparatively short-term hazards of the dilapidated St. Mary's School complex, only scratch the surface of the historical and current systemic racism that have plagued the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area since the displacement of indigenous tribes by European settlers in the 18th and 19th centuries and the sequestration of newly arrived southern Blacks in the early 20th century. This heritage and its ramifications in the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area are central to the racial disparities that still exist, which led the 24/7 Wall Street digital research corporation to demarcate our area as one of the top ten worst places for Blacks to live in the United States. Among the 383 metro areas in the country, Iowa has two other areas, in addition to Waterloo/Cedar Falls, listed within the top fifteen worst places: namely, Davenport at 13 and Des Moines at 11! These consistent rankings let us know that something is rotten in these metro areas, and by extension, this cancerous growth infects the core of our state. The inveterate entrenchment of racial bias in our body politic—in its structures, policies, processes and services—cannot be rooted out overnight. However, strong, proactive and intentional steps must be taken on an ongoing and concerted basis to impede and extinguish the racist inertia so as to improve the quality of life of Blacks throughout our metro area and our state! Let us assiduously endeavor to act accordingly. Thank you.�/� pudic_ cooktievfr - Advance Waterloo 10-1-2022 You are the Key to Winning Imagine your favorite football team had a winning percentage for years, but the winning rate has fallen to .214 over the last decade, and last year the team slipped to ninth in a ten-team conference. Would you prefer adopting a system that will provide a winning record? Do you want your team to be a winner? Of course, you do. So let me introduce you to some winners and how they do it. John Deere, Cedar Rapids, GM, Caterpillar, Des Moines, 3M, Davenport, Hy-Vee, Ames, Verizon, Ankeny, Ford, and VGM. This group of businesses and cities have one thing in common, contributing to their success. The businesses have COOs, the Chief Operating Officer whose primary responsibility is to oversee and coordinate business operations, including marketing and sales, human resources, research and development, production, etc. The cities have a council/manager form of government, and their COOs are titled City Managers. The responsibilities of the latter mirror their business counterparts in coordinating the many city departments to ensure smooth, efficient delivery of tax-paid services. The benefits of having a college/university-educated trained and the experienced person managing the service-delivering departments far exceed what we receive from our current mayor/council government form. This fact is not a condemnation of any current or past elected officeholder. Instead, the fault lies with the mayor/council structure, which fails to require the education, training, and experience necessary for optimum service delivery. The professional city manager is the critical difference between the two governing forms. This difference elevates citizens' experience by improving services through efficiency, resulting in tax money savings. Studies have shown these efficiencies more than offset the manager's salary. The council benefits from the quality and scope of information the manager provides to improve their decision-making, plus an additional benefit is a more harmonious council atmosphere. As with business COOs, city managers are trained in the city's business and deliver positive, coordinated results. The council/manager government form will anchor our city from decline and allow the mayor and council to reinvigorate population growth, eliminate stagnation, improve the city's image, and stimulate business activity. The city's mayor's enhanced role benefits from being freed to engage in what they do best-- provide vision, promote the city, and solve problems. What must be crystal clear and wholly understood when exploring the council/manager form is that the professional manager is hired by the council and serves at the council's pleasure. Elected officials have the final word. Managers are the tool that provides experienced coordination of staff and departments, quality information, and knowledgeable advice to the council. The challenges Waterloo faces are serious. Witness our fall from 5th to 9th in city population rank in Iowa. And worse, population loss. However, these problems have solutions, starting with having a professional manage the city, and will free the mayor to focus on creating solutions to city problems. There are two ways to install this superior governing form. The first and simplest is the city council can request a public vote to adopt a council/ manager governing form. The more complex is citizen-driven and requires signatures equal to ten percent of the voters in the last election to petition the Waterloo council to authorize a vote to adopt the council/manager governing form. A small group of us has formed "Advance Waterloo" to provide information to enable Waterloo's citizens to convince themselves that adopting the council/manager city governing system is a win-win for everyone. So you see, you are crucial to any positive change. Advance Waterloo is interested in your views. Therefore, don't hesitate to contact us with civil comments, requests for information, questions, ideas, level of interest, and • opinions on this topic at tcydb92@yahoo.com. Everyone will benefit if we adopt the winner's way. Don Miller ADVANCED WATERLOO The Council- anager Ian The council-manager form of government is the fastest growing form of government in the United States today, it's also the most prevalent -- it's used by more cities, villages, townships, and counties than any other form, li's a system of local government that combines the strong political leadership of elected officials (the governing body) with the strong managerial experience of an appointed local government manager. The governing body is commonly known as the council -- it may also be referred to as the commission or board. The council-manager form establishes a representative system where ail power is concentrated in the elected council, and where the council hires a professionally trained manager to oversee the delivery of public services. The council-manager form, sometimes referred to as the "city manager" form, was born in the early 20th century in response to corruption and patronage that plagued many cities, The form was designed to "professionalize" local government and resembles the structure of a corporation or a non-profit. In a city, for instance, the city council acts much like a board of directors: similar to how a board would hire an experienced CEO to run a private sector organization, the council hires a professionally- trained manager to run the clay-fo-day operations of the city. (The position of mayor can he compared to the chair of the board.) The council, which includes the mayor, oversees the actions of the professional nienoger and ensures that policies are implemented to the community's satisfaciion. The council may decide to replace the manager at any time with a majority vote. The second most prevalent form of government in the US is the "strong mayor" form, also known as the mayor-council form. in this form, it is the mayor who serves as the CEO of the community. Since the mayor is an elected office, this form of government may or may not result in a professionally-trained manager serving in that position. The council-manager form of government is used throughout the world, in communities both large and small, because it is highly effective and adaptable to local conditions and preferences. It's Responsive In council-manager government, the mayor or chairperson of the governing body and council members are the leaders and policy makers elected to represent the community. They focus on policy issues that are responsive to citizens' needs and wishes. The manager is appointed by the governing body to carry out policy and ensure that the entire community is being served, If the manager is not responsive to the governing body's wishes, the governing body has the authority to terminate the manager at any time. In that sense, a manager's responsiveness is tested daily. It's Adaptable Not all council-manager governments are structured the same way. One of the most attractive features is that the council-manager form is adaptable to local conditions and preferences. For example, some communities have councils that are elected at large while other councils are elected by district or by a combination of an at-large and by-district structure. In some local governments, the mayor or chairperson is elected at large by the voters; others are elected by their colleagues on the governing body. It's Less Expensive Local governments have found that overall costs actually have been reduced with competent management. Savings come in the form of duced operating costs increased efficiency and productivity, improved revenue collection, or effective use of technology. Council-Manager vs. the Strong Mayor Neal iy 90% of all communities use either the council-manager or the strong mayor form of government. When viewed together, the overwhelming advantages of the council-manager form become apparent. It encourages neighborhood input into the political process, diffuses the power of special nteiests, and eliminates, partisan politics from municipal hiring, firing, and contracting decisions. Neighborhoods Strengthen Their Voice The council-manager form encourages open communication between citizens and theft government. Under this form, each member of the governing bocy has an equal voice in policy development and administrative oversight. This gives neighborhoods and diverse groups a greater opportunity to influence policy. Under the strong mayor form, political power is concentrated in the mayor, which means that other members of the elected body relinquish at least some of their policy-making power and influence. This loss of decision- making power among council members can have a chilling effect on the voices of neighborhoods and city residents. The Power of Special Interests is Diffused Under the council-manager form of government, involvement of the entire elected body ensures a more balanced approach to community decision making, so th:t all interests ;ah e F« D ss and heard not just those that are well funded. Under the strong-mayor form, however, it's easier for special interests to use money and political power to influence a single c-:1ec:r d official, rather than having to secure a majority of the city councils support for their agenda. Merit-Based Decision Making Vs. Partisan Politics Under council-manager government, qualifications and performance -- and not skillful navigation of the political election process -- are the criteria the elected body uses to select a professional manager. The professional manager; in turn, uses his or her education, experience; and training to select department heads and other key managers to oversee the efficient delivery of services. In this way, council-manager government maintains critical checks and balances to ensure accountability at city hall. . Under the strong mayor form of government, the day-to-day management of community operations shifts to the mayor, who often lacks the appropriate training, education, and experience in municipal administration and finance to oversee the delivery of essential community services. Also, under the strong mayor form, there is the temptation to make decisions regarding the hiring and firing of key department head positions such as the police clef, public works director, and finance director based on the applicant's political support rather than his or her professional qualifications. For questions and comments contact Advance Waterloo Don Miller tcydb92@yahoo.coim Harrison Cass hecass4.8@grrail.cori Dave Dreyer davedreyer@outlook.com ' T ut,/,-c comAt4,1-- .. ._ ,... BLACKize,:': JTl ,...„ .,,,. . ..._,,„ , . ... . .. IAFRICAN AMERICAN 1 I-1 III.f;IF-kttr. 1[011. GOLINTY .„,. /110 -- s, Black Hawk County 125 ;t) Virtual Black Experiences BIKE FEATURING UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN IOWA PATH , .., ...d.,,,,- * * Ilik ..., . IT' l•-,r7^. V, , , - i : '.:YI.Y., - ),•,-A.:, k. 9., .,: 1 ' . ' . '`$--- — ,..1., .' ., . , ., .. „.., . , 4411: . , .. t . , . _ ... ... . ,4HPIP • i 1 ....k '• S James Maucker c-, 'frui .,'• 1. l__ N LA)W N Ruth Anderson TOWNS 1 • ..,,, : .1....- FIP.19111/111CM110„ ... " ..PSYCHOLOGICAL S IUD:LS JANE ELLIOTT'S BLUE EYES BROWN EYES EXPERIMENT LOST BUT NOT FORGOTTEN Unity Neighborhood ,. , , ,, ,..,„,...., .. r. t. , . „ ... . ., . „.., ...„, ..... , � .v �.yY4 .....,..,„ , THCENTURY „�.. ; ;, = 2O City of Waterloo Industrial Negro Railroad Community (1900-1970) Pictured from left to right 2020 Cultural Explorations/ Educational Curriculum / Historic Sites /Local Stories y (1r1 :1) ilit 0-, 44 pi th AA . - . A. . . 1 .. . . A A . +r'.. ems/ Lost But Not Forgotten African American Historical and Cultural Museum of Waterloo In 2015 Pearson Consulting LLC was hired by the African American Museum of Waterloo, Iowa to assemble and a community planning assistance team to help design, develop and implement a plan for a nationally recognized African American Heritage Corridor in North East Iowa. _. _____ ....._ , 1 - 1 a-LAC K. L 1 .,. ...„ .. . ..* ., you -::- .. , ... Ai: 14 I Black Hawk County, Iowa Black Experiences Historic Research and Points of Interest BLACK IOWA SCIINICLI_VI).1111?Ii Iowa EXPERIENCE WATERLOO PRESENTS Scan African American Here 00•0246*47 Heritage Trail 1LICAPITOL _ . ... , „_ . . . , ._ , ...... _, , .. . ..,. Ill ',.-% ''''...--.,.:47 *:'-'1'.- -sr•It',.-7,..%.,-'.11r- - iiiiiihabla. 1 ' 1 11 11 i 1 1 I LI t •- I IIII