The Hart Skateboard Park is a perfect example to illustrate the contrasting leadership styles of Mayor Lyn Hall and city manager Kathleen Soltis with previous mayor Shari Green and the last city manager Beth James.
A year ago at this time, the Hart Skateboard Park was in turnaround, a Hollywood expression for a project that has some merit so it's still on the table as a possibility but unless powerful backers come forward, it will never get made. Now, the Hart Skateboard Park is being fast-tracked to completion. City council accepted a report Monday that calls for community consultation this fall, planning over the winter, the project going out to tender next spring and the park being built next summer.
As far as government progress goes, that's the equivalent of zero to 60 in about three seconds flat.
Under the previous regime, every decision large and small went through the offices of James and Green. Directors and managers were discouraged to pursue initiatives and explore opportunities without clearance from Green and James.
The bottleneck slowed everything down.
Under Hall and Soltis, however, the floodgates have been thrown open. Directors and managers with the city have not only been given the authority to make decisions and efficiently operate their departments, they are expected to exercise that authority.
In exchange for that freedom, mayor and council expect to see steady progress towards resolution on all open files.
Everybody loves to see less red tape and government that reacts quickly and pursues good ideas with urgency... until they don't like the decisions themselves.
It's not 'if' but 'when' area residents will complain about the lack of consultation and the few opportunities for input on the Hart Skateboard Park.
That already transpired with city council's decision earlier this year to change the name of Fort George Park to Lheidli T'enneh Memorial Park. Much of the opposition to the project centred around the lack of extensive community involvement before the name was changed. City council received staff input and made the change. In other words, the idea was studied briefly, but thoroughly, and then a decision was brought down.
No consultants. No reports. No community meetings. No waffling.
All in favor? Opposed?
Motion carried.
What's next?
Full marks to Hall, with the backing of council, and Soltis for so quickly transforming the culture among city employees from "cover my butt" to "get it done."
The danger, of course, is rushing into things too fast, without considering the nuance and complexities of the situation.
Another fast decision mayor and council made earlier this year was to shut down Initiatives Prince George and bring the economic development office into city hall. Only time will tell whether that was the right decision or not. What was clear almost immediately, however, was the city should have tapped the brakes long enough to figure how to quickly dissolve IPG in a manner that was more respectful to its volunteer board and its staff.
Clearly city council no longer was confident in the IPG leadership to fulfill their mandate so why express confidence in these same individuals to shut down operations and aid in their transition to city hall?
What eventually happened is what should have happened all in one day.
The board should have been thanked for their efforts as volunteer appointees and dismissed, Soltis should have been immediately named as the sole IPG director and her first action should have been to lay off all staff with proper severance packages that paid them until the end of the year, when the IPG contract expired, along with any additional owed wages and benefits. The second action should have been to offer contracts to one or more staff members, over and above their severance, to aid in closing the office.
Instead, the whole affair was drawn out over six weeks of uncertainty.
The plus side of quick and decisive leadership is that it's quick and decisive. The downside is that sometimes process gets overlooked.
Getting it done is great, but get it done right is even better.
-- Managing editor Neil Godbout
