We don't know Jim Spencer, but we certainly think his letter to The Explorer is "right on."
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In OV, halt growth of unnecessary government
The avalanche of letters both pro and con regarding the Oro Valley Town Council action for a study the OV Police Department are very emotionally charged and also very entertaining.
If one ignores the ridiculous, like comparing Los Angeles to Oro Valley and OV Police do the job we won't (hello, they are paid to be policemen!) a citizen should analyze the facts.
The facts are the town council has a mandate from the voters to run our town in the most efficient manner and to study their operations. It is their responsibility to then make any and all changes to ensure the same is justified. A $100K price tag for the study, in this economy, is however questionable.
What really are transparent in this whole issue are the OV police union's position and the crux of the problem. The union immediately jumps to the conclusion "this is just a way to justify staff reductions."
I can understand why the union is defensive. The OV Police Department is bloated with over-staffing as the result of years of the current and former councils' inability to "just say no" to budget growth. Kudos to Chief Sharp, who has, as any good bureaucrat does, built his empire on taxpayer dollars.
Sure, Oro Valley is a safe place to live and I am thankful for that. But consider why six motorcycle police hide in the foliage along major thoroughfares, several unmarked OV Police units roam our town and multiple OV Police units respond to Grandmother Jones being pulled over on Oracle for a non-functioning taillight. The reason is clear to me. The OV Police don't have much to do and there are too many of them doing that.
As a former councilman in another town (I was temporary insane) I know the bully tactics of police unions and bureaucrats cry of "this is for public safety and will save lives.
I urge the Oro Valley Town Council to "man up" (apology to Salette) and address this issue with both objective and subjective judgment. Oro Valley residents do not want any town employees to be eliminated. We want the growth of unnecessary government to stop.
Jim Spencer, Oro Valley
3 comments:
I'm not sure where anyone got the idea that the management study is going to cost $100k. I thought the council voted to direct staff to come back with pricing. Nobody knows yet what it will cost. The other departments were all $30-$50k if I remember correctly.
OV Mom---We too were wondering where the $100K figure came from.
The motion by Council Member Bill Garner was to direct staff to come back at the Jan 5 meeting with management companies that might do the study, and the associated estimated cost.
A fee of $50,000 was mentioned as an estimated cost.
The money may be a good investment if the result is long term savings.
I doubt there is any organization that is run perfectly. There's always room for improvement.
I cannot help but wonder how much job time is lost if the employee is busy with union and internal department issues. We need our police officers free of distractions!
The outside consultant can address all of this. Time spent more effectively will ultimately result in cost savings.
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