by the Board of Directors of Cityscape Detroit

The quality of city services will make or break any other proposals that Mayor Kilpatrick might bring forward. The City currently operates a wide and disparate collection of organizations from $1.5 billion of general taxes (the "General Fund"). There are 35 general fund departments, and 7 departments funded primarily from their own sources of funding ("Enterprise Funds"). Most General Fund revenues come from taxes on property and income, or fees charged for services. Few city activities can pay for themselves, and overall resources have long lagged inflation.

Given the decades-long drain of resources from the Detroit City limits, the Mayor should focus first on these questions: What services should City Government be in the business of delivering? What operational arrangements for delivering these services would have the highest quality result for the least cost? Are there human resources initiatives that might improve the delivery of services? Other big city governments have started to transform their city services, taking advantage of new resources while recognizing the realities of today's metropolitanism, by: treating citizens as customers, holding public agencies more accountable through better performance information, and integrating the best of what businesses and nonprofits offer.

The appropriate role of the City of Detroit government, at this point, is to do core services well. This would provide the foundation on which the considerable amount of business and nonprofit energy we already see, could build. Mayor Kilpatrick might consider the following reforms:

1) Clarify the City of Detroit's organizational chart.
In what functions should the City be involved, and at what level of commitment? The new Mayor is required by City Charter to submit an Executive Organization Plan (EOP) outlining the departments he will administer. His EOP could encompass a narrower range of services, and reduce the City Executives, clerical support, and overhead costs behind activities by combining or restructuring departments. Could advocacy-type activities now in Youth and Senior Citizens Departments be combined into one department, or led by Mayoral staff? Is cultural affairs something that we need municipal staff and overhead behind?

2) Consolidate municipal facilities and operations.
What buildings and operations are essential to the City's core service priorities? Much of the City's infrastructure was created when population was double what it now is, and many operations were organized in a different environment. Should the City operate small neighborhood Recreation Centers that serve only a handful of patrons in population-depleted areas, or might fewer larger magnet facilities offer more to more citizens? Some Fire station houses are now located near mostly vacant land. Given dramatic physical change in the city, and changing regulatory requirements, the myriad of disconnected inspection activities across City agencies might be more effective as well as cheaper if consolidated.

3) Organize service operations at a sub-city level.
How can city operations better respond to the needs and the assets of various neighborhoods? One size definitely does not fit all when it comes to city services. Mayor Kilpatrick\rquote s plan to define geographic areas - perhaps using the 10 areas mapped out by the Land Use Task Force in 1994 - would allow better targeting of city services. Neighborhoods with high occupancy might benefit from more stringent housing code enforcement, and neighborhood redevelopment might be pushed where a lot of open space exists. Data describing staffing, needs and performance, might be collected at this sub-City level for better focus. Better information promotes accountability, and would help coordinate department activities.

4) Explore public-private service delivery partnerships.
What assets might nontraditional organizations bring to the service delivery process? Some City assets are of such broad appeal as to make sensible private and nonprofit revenues, volunteerism, or in-kind assistance. Belle Isle and the museums already have partnerships that could be expanded. This summer, the City Council approved the creation of a nonprofit organization to raise funds for Eastern Market; Hart Plaza and Chene Park might be next. Further, the City has used community organizations for vacant lot maintenance, and might also contract for patrols, landscaping, and recreational programs that many already provide.

5) Consider intergovernmental solutions.
Are there things that the County, the State or nonprofit institutions are better positioned to carry out? Many cities have stepped out of bus systems, utilities and other activities in favor of governments that are more regional in scope and support. Detroit contributes $85 million to D-DOT, and supports public health (not generally a city responsibility) with $23 million. And what about the downtown parking system, Cobo Convention Center, power generation and incineration ? It's time to give up some control.

6) Restructure civil service positions.
Can the City adjust its staffing to reflect newer work requirements? Many civil service job descriptions need to be adjusted to the new roles and practices associated with the information age. Then, some staff such as clerical might be reassigned to newer functions.

7) Manage employee performance.
How do we get the most out of staff? The City has made strides in staff and manager training under the Archer Administration, but employee unions were not supportive of the application of modern performance management techniques. Employee performance management supplies the tools for employees to meet work responsibilities: communication of what's expected of them, training, and rewards or discipline as fits. In conjunction with continuous improvement processes, redeployment of staff, or early retirement policies, we can get more out of City staff.

8) Streamline city processes.
What service delivery activities might be eliminated or consolidated? Most bureaucratic procedures are developed for a specific goal or reason, but changes are often implemented without updating or eliminating the old. Existing city processes must be mapped and service goals identified, so that procedures can be revamped around important outputs without redundancies.

9) Make plans and stick with them.
Can we increase investment from all sectors by better communicating our functions and our methods ? The City has suffered miserably from the lack of an overall vision for its land use. Master Plans have either vanished before they get out of the discussion stage, or been summarily dismissed when the next exciting development was proposed. How can we expect anyone to invest their money or time in an environment so in flux? Similarly, setting and keeping a long-term strategy for operations is important to securing everyone's investment in Detroit's vitality.