Personnel costs typically make up the largest expenditure of any municipal budget and regardless of our budgeting philosophy, our approach to these costs as managers and budget directors is often formulaic. We project the personnel hours needed to fulfill our … Continue reading →
Don’t let a good crisis go to waste,” a phrase coined by Rahm Emmanuel while he was White House chief of staff, has become a point of discussion among crisis communications experts and enthusiasts. Is there such thing as a … Continue reading →
Starting with our June 2014 edition, we want to welcome you to the revised and improved version of The Municipal magazine. After conducting market research, we found that our readers and advertisers preferred a combined North and South edition. We … Continue reading →
Meet Stephen Shelley, Homestead, Fla.’s municipal equivalent of the backup quarterback. Shelley was elected last year to a two-year term as the city’s vice mayor, on the same ballot by which he was also reelected for another four years as … Continue reading →
Municipal leadership in all but the smallest cities is more than a full-time job. It’s a hands-on, calls-during-dinner, working vacation kind of commitment. Stepping away from that responsibility, especially for seven months, isn’t usually an option. But occasionally there’s no … Continue reading →
When it comes to mayoring a municipality, bigger doesn’t always mean busier. Meet Don Farmer, mayor of Van Wert, a city of about 10,700 in northwest Ohio. Self-described as a “young 75 years old,” Farmer stays on the move and … Continue reading →
By TROY KIDDER | Kidder and Co. Inc. If there wasn’t enough to do already as a municipal manager, the list just got longer. There is one issue quickly jumping to the top: improving communications and public relations with the … Continue reading →
Bringing loved ones home A 10-year-old autistic boy is in the backyard playing on his jungle gym. Mom frequently checks on him, but then the phone rings. Ten minutes later she glances out the kitchen window to find him gone. … Continue reading →
Is your community at risk? California is plagued by wildfires, but little is it known that every other state is at risk for them as well. Every year thousands of wildfires burn millions of acres across the United States. It’s … Continue reading →
With the largest firefighting show in the world coming up this month, The Municipal has public safety — particularly firefighting — on the brain. We’ve been particularly concerned lately by the invasion of wildland urban interface into practically every community … Continue reading →
CHIEF JOHN POPE III | Guest columnist Fire chief, Collins, Miss., Fire Department President, Mississippi Fire Fighter’s Association Chief Pope is a 17-year veteran of the municipal fire service. He has served as an instructor chief at Louisiana State University’s … Continue reading →
