OPINION: Chamber Gives City Manager A Good Grade
Editor's Note: The following is an opinion piece submitted by Richard B. Kennedy, president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce, on the performance of Michael V. O'Brien. O'Brien is up for evaluation by the City Council at Tuesday night's meeting. For the full agenda, click here.
Believe it or not, a "chicken ordinance" that would allow residents of Worcester to raise chickens on their property is currently before the Worcester City Council. To some, this agenda item may seem frivolous, but these are the types of issues - along with weightier items - that end up on City Manager Michael V. O'Brien's plate.
And he takes all of the challenges before him seriously. He was certainly no "chicken" in this challenging economy as he faced a year full of tough decisions. Manager O'Brien managed to carve out deals, create opportunities and cut expenses resulting in benefits to Worcester's residential and commercial taxpayers. What matters to those of us who live and work here also matters to Michael O'Brien - even if it's poultry.
In no particular pecking order, the following have been at the top of Mr. O'Brien's list of priorities:
Balancing The Budget
This daunting task required a variety of difficult decisions but one in particular really did the trick. In any organization, a balanced budget includes controlling the spiraling cost of health care. Add to that working with a number of collective bargaining groups, a long history of low employee contributions and low co-pays, and you've got a challenge on your hands.
Despite a few ruffled feathers, City Manager O'Brien has been creative and proactive by getting city employees to contribute a greater share of the cost of premiums - much like the private sector has been doing for years. Moving employees to a GIC-like product, and providing the same flexibility that the state has over health insurance while maintaining the collective bargaining rights of the unions, has reduced the cost of health care without sacrificing core city services that would have been affected by layoffs.
Economic Development
Fostering economic development that drives the economy forward has been an important part of O'Brien's accomplishments this year. Many private and quasi-public developers have hatched plans to enhance the city's economic future.
They include large developments like CitySquare where he spearheaded efforts to assist the new owners ensuring that demolition started quickly; working with Saint Vincent Hospital's parent company, Vanguard, to ensure that their new cancer center was included in the CitySquare footprint; making certain that the CSX expansion, and the intermodal regional hub and commuter rail expansion, moved forward by breaking ground this month and that the surrounding neighborhoods were minimally affected.
The city administration is working hand in hand with the Worcester Business Development Corp. on its ambitious plans for urban renewal in the Theatre District downtown. The plan will complement the CitySquare project and create an 18-hour environment, contributing greatly to the city's economic prosperity.
Healthy Business Climate
Developing a better business climate for small businesses has also been a top priority of the city manager. While the larger projects get more publicity, the city manager has also made it a priority to tackle issues affecting small business owners - the bulk of our economic backbone.
Two key items implemented this year are the new online permitting system and the addition of a staff member dedicated to small business assistance.
The new online system streamlines the permitting process and creates efficiencies allowing applicants to view updated progress reports in real time. The dedicated staffer works out of the economic development department to deal with issues experienced by small business owners. Rather than sitting behind a desk, this position is based in the field where they communicate policies directly to business and hear from them on issues affecting their ability to operate.
Clearly, this city manager understands the importance of small businesses to the economic stability of Worcester.
Infrastructure
Some accomplishments have largely flown under the radar. Critical to both residential and business owners are items such as keeping Worcester clean, improving the condition of roads and sidewalks and opening new playgrounds and pools.
As part of the city manager's five-point financial plan, which will address critical infrastructure needs, improvements will include new police cruisers, equipment and technology upgrades for schools, upgrades to parks, rehab of both schools and non-school, city-owned buildings, and damn repair and maintenance.
Finally, as one more feather in his cap, the city manager has led the way in creating a climate of affordability that extends to home ownership and cultural opportunities making Worcester one of the most cost effective places to live in New England. The many plans hatched in the O'Brien administration have been successfully implemented with the best interest of the City as a whole always at the forefront. With the support of the mayor and city council, Worcester remains a great place to live, work, play, and stay.
The chamber congratulates City Manager Michael O'Brien on another successful year of leading the City of Worcester.
Richard B. Kennedy is president and CEO of the Worcester Regional Chamber of Commerce.
WBJ Web Partners
Most Recent
Most Recent
0 Comments