I am often asked to do something at City Hall that I am simply not allowed to do. For example, a citizen may have a complaint about the length of time it is taking for a permit and they want me to hurry it along. Or, the building department may be requiring something that the citizen thinks is unfair and they want me to intervene. Or, a local company thinks they are not getting a fair shake from city purchasing and they want me to intercede.
I am happy to work on any such issues but I have to work through the city manager.
The city charter prohibits me (and council members) from giving any direction to city staff. We can ask questions. We can ask for documents. But if I have an issue with a department, or a citizen has a complaint, I have to take it to the city manager.
I am happy to say the city manager is very willing to look into any issue and see if city staff is acting unfairly. As with most issues, there are two sides to the story and his job is to sort it out and make changes where appropriate.
Sometimes a certain procedure or a dispute rises to a policy question for council – do we need more funding in an area to improve customer service; do we need to change a policy or ordinance. The city manager then brings such questions to council for a regular public meeting.
This is a good system. You can imagine the chaos if six council members and I were all giving the staff different directions. The safety net is that if council is not satisfied with how the city manager is running things, we can fire him. He works directly for the council – a tough job. FBN
By Jerry Nabours
Jerry Nabours is mayor of the City of Flagstaff.