Podcast #6: Technology in Politics

August 21, 2006

I received an interesting email recently.

Dear Wade

I am emailing you from Brisbane, Queensland, Australia… I have stumbled across your website in some research I am doing about podcasts, blogs, vlogs and other interactive online communication tools. I am doing this research as a job for our local Council.

I LOVE what you’ve done on your website! You are the perfect example of what a progressive Council Member should be doing to keep their community engaged.

I would love to interview you about what you’re doing with your website and the feedback you’ve received from your community.

Would you be open to my calling you in the next week or so to conduct a telephone interview and ask you some questions about what you’ve done? I could certainly learn a lot and give our local council some insight into how to utilise this technology effectively!

I really look forward to hearing from you soon.

With kind regards

Cathryn Boyce
Senior Account Executive
RedChilli Marketing Group

As it turns out, Cathryn was conducing marketing research for the City Council in Brisbane, Australia, to determine how they could use new technology to communicate with their citizens.

We talked about my website, how it all got started, and the podcasts I have been doing. The interview was a lot of fun. Hopefully, this interview will encourage other public officials to use technology to connect with those whom they serve.

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Written by Wade Emmert · Filed Under Podcast | 7 Comments

2007 City Budget Report

August 15, 2006

The City Council has just completed the preliminary budget for 2007 and I think you will be pleased with what we have done.

I am pleased to report that the tax rate will not increase this year, as it will in many other cities. This is due to the outstanding growth Cedar Hill has experienced, and our attempt to be fiscally responsible with your money.

As in past years, we have focused heavily on public safety. Past budgets have allocated 60% of our revenue to public safety. That trend continues in this budget.

Here are some of the highlights broken down by departments.

Police

First things first. The market for qualified polices officers is tight, and Cedar Hill is at the bottom of the pay scale. Out of 13 comparable cities, we rank near the bottom at number 12. That will change in this budget. We will move up to number 8, which puts us in the middle. That’s obviously good for the men and women who protect and serve, but it is also good for Cedar Hill. We benefit by attracting and keeping qualified and experienced police officers.

We are also adding 3 more police officers and some citizen support staff. Even with these new officers, we still are a behind the state average on officers per 1000 residents. That we have the lowest crime rate in the Best Southwest area is a testament to how well they are doing their jobs.

We are also purchasing some new equipment and replacing some old equipment.

Fire

Like police, our firefighter’s compensation will be adjusted to be in the middle of comparable cities, rather than at the bottom. They too do an outstanding job, and we don’t want to lose them.

We are purchasing a new ambulance to replace an old model as part of our equipment replacement program.

And now for some really good news. We are adding 5 more firefighters.

This is a milestone for Cedar Hill. With this budget, all of our fire stations will be fully staffed. When I first started on Council, our fire stations were “either/or” — meaning they could either send an ambulance or a fire engine, but not both. I am proud to say that now we are fully staffed and can dispatch an ambulance and engine/ladder from each fire station. That is good news for Cedar Hill!

Emergency Management

We are creating a regional emergency management program with the cities of Duncanville, DeSoto, and Lancaster. This program will create an Emergency Management Administrator who will help coordinate local emergency planning, emergency preparedness programs and provide information and training to the general public, city officials, city staff, schools, medical facilities, civic groups, and other outside agencies.

Administration

Under the heading of Administration, we have budgeted some dollars to improve our City website. If you have looked at the web site lately, you know that it is not very functional. Over the next year, that will change. We expect you to have access to many more city services, such as online bill pay and accurate and timely public service information.

We also will have a person dedicated to conveying information to citizens. This person, called a Public Information Officer, will work to communicate with citizens in a more timely and consistent manner. This person will be responsible for, among other things, the web site, the Highlights quarterly publication, and all other public announcements.

Public Works

The function that Public Works performs is not always glamorous, but it is essential to everything that happens in this city. This year we have approved an aggressive Capital Improvement Program (CIP). Additionally, we have set aside more dollars for future street repairs and more funding for drainage studies.

Code Enforcement/Building Inspection

Code Enforcement and Building Inspection are really two-sides of the same coin. Last year we added a new code enforcement officer and some computer software to help them track code violations. This year, we turn our focus to the building inspection side of the equation and will be purchasing some new software to help them manage all the inspections they do.

Conclusion

As you might imagine, there is more to the budget than these programs, but that should give you a broad overview of this year’s budget.

Written by Wade Emmert · Filed Under Budget/Finance | 11 Comments

Tour Uptown Village at Cedar Hill

August 10, 2006

Uptown Village at Cedar Hill is the new lifestyle center being built at FM 1382 and Uptown Blvd.

And it is unlike any other in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex.

It is an open-air lifestyle center anchored by two regional department stores — Dillards and Foleys. It will feature high-quality stores, like the Pottery Barn, William Sonoma, and Talbots.

The design of Uptown Village is special too. It will reflect the distinctive and historic architecture of Cedar Hill.

Set over 73 acres in the uptown district of Cedar Hill, its design concept is that of a downtown street that has evolved into a visually rich and historic retail district.

Uptown Village will make its debut in Cedar Hill, Texas in fall 2007.