New year brings new service initiatives
In my October 2011 budget message, I outlined areas of service improvements that the City of Columbia would begin to address in fiscal year 2012 with the goal of implementation by fiscal year 2013. Thanks to the support of City Council and staff, progress is occurring at City Hall.
Our 2011 citizen survey showed our customer service quality at 67 percent. That beats national and regional benchmarks, but it’s down 10 points from 2007. By focusing on top community priorities we are taking steps to improve customer service.
• We have combined expertise from our Planning and Development Department, Office of Neighborhood Services and the Building and Site Development Division of the Public Works Department to create the Community Development Department. From concept to ribbon-cutting — whether a multimillion dollar commercial enterprise or a garage in the back yard — we will help customers navigate the complex rules that affect development. Rather than bouncing clients among three separate offices in different locations, we are providing a “one-stop shop.”
– The former Building and Site Development location on the third floor of City Hall now serves as the Community Development Service Center. Customers can stop at this one location to apply for building permits and rental licenses, make code enforcement inquiries and access resources related to building and site development, as well as zoning and subdivisions.
– Neighborhood Services has moved from the old fire station on South Providence to City Hall. The Community Development Services Center will serve as the contact center for Neighborhood Services. Customers can get information on rental property enforcement, property maintenance code enforcement in residential areas, neighborhood associations and volunteer programs.
• We have embarked on a comprehensive customer service training program that sets specific, measurable service standards for all internal and external customer interactions. Our goal is to have a responsive, professional, helpful, knowledgeable and friendly workforce. We have hired EdTrek consulting to help customize a curriculum and implement a program that will allow us to sustain employee training in a cost-effective manner. Our first round of “train the trainer” sessions will begin in February.
• The Geospatial Information Services (GIS) Office continues to coordinate the city’s geospatial resources, such as aerial imagery and geographic data, for internal use and public viewing. Formed in April 2011, the GIS team launched the Columbia City View Map in November. This interactive map features a variety of information on properties in Columbia.
Supporting high performance
We are committed to serving and keeping our citizens and ourselves connected, informed and engaged. We seek to adopt a supportive management model, to effectively measure performance and to remove technological barriers.
• The city manager’s office has been realigned with key themes of our community vision. That vision was defined by citizens who worked on 13 topic groups including arts and culture; community character; community facilities and services; community pride and human relationships; development; downtown; economic development; education; environment; governance and decision making; health, social services and affordable housing; parks, recreation and greenways; and transportation.
– As city manager, I will continue to support transportation, governance, environment, economic development and city facilities goals.
– Tony St. Romaine is now deputy city manager. He will support parks, health, community development and community character goals.
– Carol Rhodes is now assistant city manager. She will support arts, culture and community pride goals.
• In support of greater collaboration between arts and tourism, the Office of Cultural Affairs is moving to the Walton Building in February. Located at Providence Road and Elm Street, the Walton Building is co-owned by the City of Columbia’s Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Columbia Chamber of Commerce.
• Our Journey to Excellence (J2E) group continues to help us adopt principals and practices in keeping with the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award, particularly in areas of productivity and effectiveness and the pursuit of performance excellence. This group of dedicated employees has played an important role in helping us assess who we are, creating the vision for what we want to become as an organization and determining how to get there.
• We are also embarking on new frontiers in technology. We are in various stages of adopting new technologies that will improve our communication functions, financial data management, public safety dispatch, records systems and more. But that is another story, so stay tuned.