Letter about Police Communications: Just Wondering?

September 9, 2010 Leave a comment

I take note of the letter currently in the Coral Gables Gazette about the staffing, overtime costs and overtime demands in the Communications Department.  The full letter can be found in the Coral Gables Gazette.   The following are some relevant extracts from the letter.

In January of 1999 the City built a beautiful communications center on the 4th floor of the police department.  At the time of the move there were 21 communication operators.  The staffing requirement at that time was 30 operators 10 per shift. The move to the new center was done with 9 operators less than what we needed. The operators were informed that 12 hour shifts were necessary for about a month due to the transitional period from going from a card system to completely being computerized.

In January of 2000, a few operators were hired and the mandatory 12 hour days were reduced to a mandatory 8 hours a week in overtime.  As the trainees came out of training the mandatory overtime went down to 4 hours a week and eventually the mandatory overtime was no longer required to run the center. Presently overtime is still necessary for staffing purposes as we are still not completely staffed due to some of the new hires quitting or not successfully completing the training process….

…At this time the department is still not fully staffed and we are still working overtime on a volunteer basis…

Regardless of what the City Manager has said, there have been measures put in place to decrease the overtime cost in the communications section. This includes a reduction in minimum staffing, reducing the amount of compensatory leave you can earn a month and revamping the training program. Based on the move and upgrade, to the new Communications Center, this situation was imposed in order to fully staff the center and provide the residents with the exceptional service they have always been use to…
I don’t completely understand the arguments (nor do I know what information was presented at the referenced Impasse Hearing).  But I have looked at the current and recent past budgets.
  • Exclusive of overtime pay, the average operator costs the city about $79,000 annually, including an average salary of $47,974 and benefits of $31,183.
  • The number of communications operators positions has remained steady at 32 from 2006 and then 33 to the present.
  • The city manager’s budget has cut overtime to total of $330,000 compared to a budgeted amount of $560,000 in 2007.
  • This looks like good management to me given the city’s financial situation.  Also, it would seem that the city is doing its best to keep the communications unit fully staffed although one always has people coming and going for different reasons.



Filed under Finance, Government, Organization

Can Coral Gables Really Work with its Citizens?

September 6, 2010 1 Comment

The National League of Cities provides excellent guidelines for cities, “Working Productively with 21st Century Citizens”.  I was struck by the commitment and philosophy of the NLC in promoting proactive governments that engage the many citizens that feel capable and want to contribute to good and successful government and a high quality of life to their city.

Unfortunately, this approach is strange to the culture of the City of Coral Gables that incorporates only a few citizens mostly friendly to current authorities.  There is a great need to expand the participation of citizens in Coral Gables, but this takes, first, a policy and commitment and, second, intensive work by the city to make it happen rather than follow perfunctory representations of community involvement through conventional, mostly powerless, boards.

Local officials in all kinds of communities are dealing with major changes in the relationship between citizens and government. Ordinary people seem more capable and more confident, but also more skeptical and even aggressive. Citizens may have less time for public life, but they often bring more knowledge and skills to the table. They feel more entitled to the services and protection of government, and yet have less faith in public officials. It seems like many citizens are more interested in governing, and less willing to be governed, than ever before. These changes can make local problem-solving and decision- making more difficult; they also can present opportunities for effective community building that will significantly enhance local governance capacity.

While city officials and commissioners may be uncomfortable with a new philosophy of engagement and participation by citizens, the process is sure to greatly strengthen the support and ideas of taxpayers and residents in the many hard decisions that will have to made in the coming years.

Filed under Community, Coral Gables, Government

Coral Gables’ Police Salaries and Benefits: Did You Pick the Wrong Profession?

September 3, 2010 Leave a comment

One can calculate average salaries and benefits in the 2010-2011 Estimated Budget for Coral Gables for the police department and you get the following amazing salaries and benefits.  This clearly evidences that it is time to cut salaries and benefits substantially.

  • (1) police chief $152,917 plus about $99,396 = $252,313 (note:  I have estimated benefit costs as 65% of salaries, but they could be a little more or less for any given position.)
  • (1) assistant police chief $84,220 plus $54,743 benefits = $138,963
  • (3) police sergeants $90,772 average plus $59,002 benefits =$149,774
  • (2) police lieutenants  $110,473 average plus $71,808 benefits = $182,280
  • (97) police patrol $78,449 average plus $51,858 benefits =$130,307

These are just averages.  They do not show very high salaries and benefits for certain individuals.  We trust that Mr. Salerno has set the negotiating conditions for lower salaries and benefits.

Filed under Budget, Employees and Unions, Finance, Government, Pensions

Improving the City of Coral Gables: Information for the Citizen

September 3, 2010 Leave a comment

The National League of Cities has a great set of documents that provide good practices and guidelines to help improve the operations of cities, small and large.  The National League of Cities publishes “City Practice Briefs” and “Municipal Action Guidelines” that distill good practices, experiences and effective ways of strengthening local government.  Some of these briefs and guides are very relevant to Coral Gables and useful for the interested citizen.

City Practice Briefs provide a selection of city practices and programs on specific topics to assist municipal officials faced with decisions. Each City Practice Brief provides a summary of five to ten city programs along with contact information and is designed to facilitate networking.

Municipal Action Guides provide helpful background information on various topics in a concise format intended to offer guidance to municipal officials faced with decisions.  Each Municipal Action Guide is designed to identify a current challenge, outline strategies for addressing the challenge, list action steps that can be taken, include examples of effective city practices and programs, and identify other resources that are available.

via City Practice Resources | About Cities | National League of Cities.

Filed under Government, Organization

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