Open and free discussion, without profanity, about the city of League City.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Rumor sez it’s Chief Jez
I keep hearing that the new interim city manager will be Chief Jez. Anyone hear anything else? Or do you think the council will employ that firm they used before?
I haven't heard, Chris. But my question is why Mark Sokolow, former League City attorney, wrote a guest column in the June 30 GCDN about the current LC city manager, noting that there needs to be an interim city manager soon?
I support Chief Jez as interim City Manager. He understands the near-term challenges facing this city and issues related to city council. However, INTERIM is the key word. Hire a proven search firm specializing in placement of city managers and senior city staff. Then hire a professional city manager with stellar resume and lots of experience. Give some weight on local/regional talent. If possible seek a short term contract without huge severance pay. Hope that council and mayor can define their roles. Only afterward should we hire a permanent city manager. I have heard there is a guy in Seguin that may be best suited for the job.
BHL: Who in their right mind would think he'll still be COP after he becomes CM? Where has that ever happened, outside of a Chuck Norris movie? Paul: You spend way more on permanent, professional, experience, proven, stellar, and best suited than this job calls for. Just look at the history of the position. How long do we keep city managers here? Let's not go investing gobs of our money on a guy who won't be around that long, okay? Call Girl Friday or Temp Help in the yellow pages.
Upon learning of the imminent departures of Jahns and Oller, my first thought was, "Crap, I hope they don't drive Jez off too", because he seems like a decent guy. Would the CM position be a suicide mission for him?
Has anyone heard if David Benson being considered. City Website reports his position as Chief of Staff. ?? I thought, probably incorrectly, he was in public relations. Credentials??
There's a lot of good managers in the area losing their jobs. Management is management. A very good manager would come up to speed in no time. Perhaps LC needs to look in their backyard and find a home candidate who understands our city and it's problems.
Morgan, The way I see it, a top CEO can move from one industry to another and be successful. The skills are constant. The environment is different, but a good manager knows how to tap into the avaialble resources (i.e. directors) to get the job done. Perhaps I need to clarify that it has to be a high level manager as opposed to someone at my level who only deals with about $5 mil in procurements and 15 folks under him.
Morgan, don't waste your time trying to rationalize with BHL he knows all, just ask him. Paul, any luck finding a CM to build your bridge? or to secretly higher a law firm to settle it? She came and went Paul, where is your bridge? It seems that if your case was legit the bridge would be here?
Joe: You seem to think there is some correlation between legitimacy or merit of a case and the length of time it gets dragged through our floundering court system.
On another legal note, I hear that virtually no sound or noise level is allowed in LC. Now, it's all up to any cop's discretion (not that of a dB meter or a neighbor complaining) if a band or party is too loud. Another reason for events to leave this town. How do ordinances get changed like this with virtually no public discussion? .
The Sound levels are similar in every surrounding City, its my understanding that they are not enforced until there is a complaint. I understand what you are saying but its hard to protect others while allowing entertainment at the same time. I do believe that commercial and residential are a different level, and I also believe a person can get a variance.
Morgan, I understand where you are coming from but I have to agree to disagree based upon personal experience. I have known and worked with an Intel Design Engineer who was asked to become a director of ops for a startup by a fellow coworker starting up. The engineer knew nothing about ops. But that didn't matter because the future CEO recognized an inherent skill that he wanted and knew would lead to success. The startup went on to be a multimillion dollar success.
When you break down the job of City Mgr into it's core functions, it's just that.. core functions. The specialized knowledge should be possessed by staffers. A high level manager should primarily be concerned about strategic plan implementation (i.e. resources needed), clear direction to his immediate subordinates as to what is to be done, and when it is to be done. A hihg level manager should never have to get into the intricate details, he should just be intellegent enough to understand what is occurring and have the ability to ask good questions to aid the directors in navigating minefields.
Perhaps you have a more concrete example as to why such a transition would not succeed. Simply saying it won't work doesn't make it so.
BHL - I'm not simply saying it. I have a family member whose professional field is in Public Administration. If the City Manager is not appropriately degreed and accredited, he cannot possibly have the knowledge base for the decisions he is ultimately accountable for. I don't think our professional staff has the time or interest in training someone to be our City Manager. You think we have had morale problems in the past - just bring in John Q. Manager and League City will fill the pages of the Daily News.
Joe: Yes, residential and commercial are (or should be) different. In a particular recurring case here, it's about a collision of the two, a resident who chooses to live three lots away from a state highway where an ice house (bar) regularly has a live band playing on week-ends. Every week, like clockwork, he wants the business, which has been there for thirty-plus years, to simply go away. I put the question about this to three of our former "city's most distinguished" last night, and they simply didn't care. Who can blame them, after your pal ran them off? But a current councilman says the ordinance was dropped because it was felt we could not enforce it. Really? It's been enforced for decades (and, in my opinion, fairly and effectively, because it relied on the science of a dB or VU meter, and not on the mood of a human ear. So where does that leave us now? Does LC now have NO sound abatement policy, meaning it's an anybody's guess free-for-all? Or does it mean that the policy is written in pencil by the next cop (or complainer) who comes along? He didn't say.
Rumors, manufacturing of so called facts and Innuendo and downright lies got us back to square one. I think the people of League City are sick of this kind of thing. The citizens want good leadership and a government that works for everyone, the politicians, employees and the citizens. The last round of rumor and innuendo is the kind of thing really demoralizes the city staff and the citizens. If the senior staff did something against the law, then file charges, if not, don’t cast aspersions, we the citizens are sick of it. We need to pass an ordinance that prohibits the publication of anonymous websites and publications for the purposes of influencing city elections. Then maybe we could have a civil government elected.
27 comments:
It should not be Jez unless he resigns as chief. Too much power in one person. Not good.
I haven't heard, Chris. But my question is why Mark Sokolow, former League City attorney, wrote a guest column in the June 30 GCDN about the current LC city manager, noting that there needs to be an interim city manager soon?
I support Chief Jez as interim City Manager. He understands the near-term challenges facing this city and issues related to city council. However, INTERIM is the key word. Hire a proven search firm specializing in placement of city managers and senior city staff. Then hire a professional city manager with stellar resume and lots of experience. Give some weight on local/regional talent. If possible seek a short term contract without huge severance pay. Hope that council and mayor can define their roles. Only afterward should we hire a permanent city manager. I have heard there is a guy in Seguin that may be best suited for the job.
BHL: Who in their right mind would think he'll still be COP after he becomes CM? Where has that ever happened, outside of a Chuck Norris movie?
Paul: You spend way more on permanent, professional, experience, proven, stellar, and best suited than this job calls for. Just look at the history of the position. How long do we keep city managers here? Let's not go investing gobs of our money on a guy who won't be around that long, okay? Call Girl Friday or Temp Help in the yellow pages.
Chuck: Every CM is an interim CM here.
Paul M: Argg!! You may be right. Then we still need a public works director.
Upon learning of the imminent departures of Jahns and Oller, my first thought was, "Crap, I hope they don't drive Jez off too", because he seems like a decent guy. Would the CM position be a suicide mission for him?
Has anyone heard if David Benson being considered. City Website reports his position as Chief of Staff. ?? I thought, probably incorrectly, he was in public relations. Credentials??
There's a lot of good managers in the area losing their jobs. Management is management. A very good manager would come up to speed in no time. Perhaps LC needs to look in their backyard and find a home candidate who understands our city and it's problems.
BHL: City Management is a specialized field and should require, at the very least, a degree in Public Administration.
Morgan,
The way I see it, a top CEO can move from one industry to another and be successful. The skills are constant. The environment is different, but a good manager knows how to tap into the avaialble resources (i.e. directors) to get the job done. Perhaps I need to clarify that it has to be a high level manager as opposed to someone at my level who only deals with about $5 mil in procurements and 15 folks under him.
Morgan, don't waste your time trying to rationalize with BHL he knows all, just ask him. Paul, any luck finding a CM to build your bridge? or to secretly higher a law firm to settle it? She came and went Paul, where is your bridge? It seems that if your case was legit the bridge would be here?
Joe: You seem to think there is some correlation between legitimacy or merit of a case and the length of time it gets dragged through our floundering court system.
On another legal note, I hear that virtually no sound or noise level is allowed in LC. Now, it's all up to any cop's discretion (not that of a dB meter or a neighbor complaining) if a band or party is too loud. Another reason for events to leave this town. How do ordinances get changed like this with virtually no public discussion?
.
Seriously BHL? Management disciplines are not interchangeable just like Engineering disciplines are not interchangeable.
The Sound levels are similar in every surrounding City, its my understanding that they are not enforced until there is a complaint. I understand what you are saying but its hard to protect others while allowing entertainment at the same time. I do believe that commercial and residential are a different level, and I also believe a person can get a variance.
Morgan, I understand where you are coming from but I have to agree to disagree based upon personal experience. I have known and worked with an Intel Design Engineer who was asked to become a director of ops for a startup by a fellow coworker starting up. The engineer knew nothing about ops. But that didn't matter because the future CEO recognized an inherent skill that he wanted and knew would lead to success. The startup went on to be a multimillion dollar success.
When you break down the job of City Mgr into it's core functions, it's just that.. core functions. The specialized knowledge should be possessed by staffers. A high level manager should primarily be concerned about strategic plan implementation (i.e. resources needed), clear direction to his immediate subordinates as to what is to be done, and when it is to be done. A hihg level manager should never have to get into the intricate details, he should just be intellegent enough to understand what is occurring and have the ability to ask good questions to aid the directors in navigating minefields.
Perhaps you have a more concrete example as to why such a transition would not succeed. Simply saying it won't work doesn't make it so.
BTW - Joe is wrong once again. I don't know it all.
BHL - I'm not simply saying it. I have a family member whose professional field is in Public Administration. If the City Manager is not appropriately degreed and accredited, he cannot possibly have the knowledge base for the decisions he is ultimately accountable for. I don't think our professional staff has the time or interest in training someone to be our City Manager. You think we have had morale problems in the past - just bring in John Q. Manager and League City will fill the pages of the Daily News.
Chief Jez would do a great job.
Chief Jez would do a great job. Someone has to be at the helm!
Joe: Yes, residential and commercial are (or should be) different.
In a particular recurring case here, it's about a collision of the two, a resident who chooses to live three lots away from a state highway where an ice house (bar) regularly has a live band playing on week-ends. Every week, like clockwork, he wants the business, which has been there for thirty-plus years, to simply go away.
I put the question about this to three of our former "city's most distinguished" last night, and they simply didn't care. Who can blame them, after your pal ran them off?
But a current councilman says the ordinance was dropped because it was felt we could not enforce it.
Really? It's been enforced for decades (and, in my opinion, fairly and effectively, because it relied on the science of a dB or VU meter, and not on the mood of a human ear.
So where does that leave us now? Does LC now have NO sound abatement policy, meaning it's an anybody's guess free-for-all? Or does it mean that the policy is written in pencil by the next cop (or complainer) who comes along? He didn't say.
Joe
As I posted I support Chief Jez as interm City Manager.
For the rest of your comments I am clueless.
Thanks for your continued support of the Glen Cove folks.
Rumors, manufacturing of so called facts and Innuendo and downright lies got us back to square one. I think the people of League City are sick of this kind of thing. The citizens want good leadership and a government that works for everyone, the politicians, employees and the citizens. The last round of rumor and innuendo is the kind of thing really demoralizes the city staff and the citizens. If the senior staff did something against the law, then file charges, if not, don’t cast aspersions, we the citizens are sick of it. We need to pass an ordinance that prohibits the publication of anonymous websites and publications for the purposes of influencing city elections. Then maybe we could have a civil government elected.
How about the Mayor? He is going to make sure he runs the show so why pay another salary.
maybe Tim can get things under control. It is a formidable job.
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