Here’s what the mayor is supposed to do: Sec. 3.1-35-5. Mayor or president; general duties. The mayor or president shall perform all the duties which are prescribed by law, including ordinances, and shall take care that the laws and ordinances are faithfully executed. The mayor or president from time to time may, and annually shall,…
Category: City Watch
A Retelling of DeKalb’s Reduction in Force Story
This ties together a half-dozen posts delivered over four months. It also better separates the facts from the adventures in obtaining them. How the RIF Played Out Publicly In February 2010, staff reported during a special meeting that DeKalb was facing budgetary shortfalls totaling more than $5 million by the end of FY2011. They attributed…
More on Corn Fest & Parking Fees
Here’s a piece of an e-mail from an FAA official to the City of DeKalb about FAA requirements for holding Corn Fest at the airport, which DeKalb County Online got hold of in May: Of particular importance is the amount of money received by the airport from the event. This MUST be some form of…
ReNew DeKalb’s Annual Meeting
ReNew DeKalb’s annual meeting is set for Thursday, July 28, beginning at 5 p.m. From the info provided at DeKalb County Online, it is unclear when the actual business meeting starts (and there seems to be nothing about it on ReNew’s own website as of this morning). Perhaps it’s the “community presentation” part? Knowing this…
Chronicle Misses the Mark with Corn Fest Parking Fees
In “Our View: Corn Fest fee to park is fair,” the Chronicle today makes the case for users of Corn Fest to help pay for it. The city provides, among other things, a location for the festival and police and emergency personnel in case something goes wrong. The emergency personnel are paid out of their…
Council in the Twilight Zone
Better late than never? Here are a few comments on the City of DeKalb meetings Monday night. Group Therapy When I switched on the Committee of the Whole meeting (admittedly not right at the beginning) there was an immediate feeling of disorientation. The mayor was complaining about a constituent taking up too much of his…
The Private Redistricting of DeKalb
The Chronicle reports today that the city has begun to redraw ward boundaries. First of all, what’s the rush? But City Manager Mark Biernacki said the council will try to get a new map approved before this October. That way, if any sitting council member finds he or she is outside of their ward’s new…
DeKalb Spent $1.81 Million on Reduction in Force
After receiving and posting (thanks to the Attorney General) information pertaining to the Voluntary Separation Program (VSP), I then asked the City of DeKalb to produce the figures to account for the $1.1 million they borrowed to spend on the Reduction in Force (RIF), including the VSP. The reply? “There is no public record that…
FY2012 Raises
In today’s “Our view: Give DeKalb staff its raises,” the Daily Chronicle argues on behalf of cost-of-living adjustments for management staff. Let’s respond to the reasoning for its vigorous advocacy on behalf of Biernacki & Co.
EPI and Compensation
The Strategic Financial Evaluation Report by Executive Partners, Inc., known for short as the EPI report, was issued in May 2009. The consultants were called in because DeKalb had found itself in serious financial trouble beginning in late 2007. The city tends to blame the economy, and it is true that the crash of the…