Humanities Homework Help

Remaining relevant

Quite some time ago, I was the sole Parks Planner for Osceola County. While that may sound very prestigious, I might add that my first day on the job was the Monday after the housing bubble burst in 2008. Previously, I worked in the Long Range Planning office, working on updates to the County’s comprehensive plan (think: Encyclopedia Britannica). I held that position for nearly two years, but it was time for a change. Bear in mind, those first two years were booming. The County was growing at a rapid pace. Life was good. Then, it wasn’t.

The realization of this fact was arriving to work that first day to find the parking lot completely filled with County Building Inspector vehicles. There was no where for me to park. This was strange. “This parking lot is always empty”, because the inspectors are out all day on building job sites until the evening, when they parked their trucks and went home. But, today was different. Building stopped, so there was no longer a need for an entire corps of inspectors.

Now, the scary part was that I was in the process of moving to a “non-essential” position. Sure, we need police, fire, EMT, and other first responders, but parks are a luxury, right? Yes, it’s nice to have such amenities, as they draw people to want to live in your community, but during times of crisis – such as that fateful day in 2008 – spending truckloads of money on developing new park acreage was the last thing on anyone’s mind.

So, what to do?

Well, my new bosses and I had a pow-wow as soon as I arrived. As a matter of fact, everyone on the Parks staff was invited. The objective was to make us as “essential” as possible, as our jobs just might depend on it.

Now, before you pass judgement on us for simply wanting to remain employed instead of doing what was in the best interest of the County, hear me out. We thought of that. Beyond that, however, we wanted to do something that would help the County dig itself out of the economic turmoil that gripped the nation.

One thing that came to mind was that we live in Florida, where grass grows so fast that sometimes you need to mow your yard twice a week or else…! So, we coordinated our teams with Road & Bridge to help them mow the medians and right-of-ways found along all the County roadways. We also decided to forego our master planning effort to construct a sports complex at Mac Overstreet (i.e. the property where the Valencia Poinciana campus now sits), in order to lend some of our funds to our Transportation Department.

The point is, we had to think outside the box in order to survive as an agency.

That’s what this activity is all about – finding ways that other agencies have done the same.

More cool, creative approaches to public service delivery from Central Florida

Here are two more examples of what I’m looking for. Now, don’t worry – there are plenty of similar stories out there, if you just look. In 2004 Central Florida had the misfortune of falling in the path of four major hurricanes: Charlie, Frances, Ivan, and Jeanne. While the storms were terrible, we learned a few things from the experience. Take, for instance, utility transformers. During the first storm, the local utility (in my case Orlando Utilities Commission, or OUC) left on our electricity during the storm. When my oak tree was uprooted, due to the powerful winds, it knocked out the power lines, including blowing up the transformer. And, being that this scenario occurred throughout the region, OUC had to purchase and install a zillion new transformers, which added time and expense to an already uncomfortable situation. For the subsequent storms, OUC took a different approach: They cut the power during the storm. Why, might you ask? Were a tree to fall on power lines during that storm, they would lose the lines but not the transformer (as it had no power going to it to blow it up.) After the most severe part of the storm was over, linemen would simply go around inspecting the lines to make sure they were safe, and then flip the switch once the “all clear” was given. Though customers were without power for a short while, the utility saved a great deal of money (on behalf of its customers), and improved its service at the same time.

Picture this: An upscale neighborhood near downtown Orlando struggled for a time with a rash of break-ins. The problem was suspected to originate from a nearby park, where would be thieves would shoot hoops during the day, while simultaneously casing the local houses and watching to see when residents would leave for work, etc. This went on for a while until a collaboration between OPD and the Parks staff had an epiphany: Based on prior observations of other similar situations, it was speculated that thieves preferred full-court over half-court basketball. So, when the Parks folks installed a fence down the middle of the near-by outdoor basketball court – making two half-courts instead of a single full-court – the thieves went elsewhere to play. Classic!

INSTRUCTIONS: This module requires each student to search the Internet for unique stories that demonstrate how an agency was able to innovate, thereby providing continuity in the delivery of public services. While the first module helped us to learn of the problem, and the second module revealed some of the adverse impacts to public agencies, this one focuses on the positive – on how a little ingenuity can help those agencies for which we work or aspire to work.

Again, I ask you to find a story that best illustrates how an agency or field in the public sector was able to cope or overcome adversity in a novel way and then pick a module theme from the first half of the semester (e.g. Accounting, Budgeting, Major Tax Structures, etc.) to use as your perspective.

Similar to the first two modules, once you find a good source story I want you to share it with your colleagues by posting it to this discussion forum. Your post can include video, still images, or mere text. As you can see by the RUBRIC I have allowed considerable leeway, so as not to overly stifle your creativity. One thing your post must include, however, is how it ties in with one or more of our previously-studies fiscal management subjects. As an added bonus (i.e. for Top Marks!) you can include some ideas about what to do as a remedy, etc. Lastly, as the rubric dictates, you need to respond to AT LEAST FIVE OTHER POSTS.