Steps Whitehorse mayor and council have to consider for effective political management:
* They can’t be all things to all people.
* They need to set better priorities for what they need to work on, so their time is used more efficiently and effectively.
* Delegate authority and responsibility to management and staff.
* Build trust and respect in the community by not playing politics and creating conflict.
* Get down to the business of the day by focusing on creating a strong, healthy city by getting our services and costs to operate in line.
* Develop a three-year plan that is realistic and shows what you want to accomplish in those three years. This should be done in the first six months.
* Create an environment of engagement, empowerment and caring.
* Develop a transparent process, so residents can approach the mayor and council by having half an hour of open discussion at council meetings, to bring forth new ideas and opportunities for the city to do better. Each meeting would have a public open session. Not bitch session but positive forward thinking on how to improve the city.
* Develop relationship with all levels of government, to work towards improving the city going forward. Especially issues that affect all governments like housing, land, transportation of transit use, cost sharing of projects and services, and integration of service delivery so they are more cost-effective. (I am not talking about firing anyone.)
* Big question: how do we finance the operation of non-essential services and how to determine what services to assist? Big challenge!
* Have an open-door policy on public matters that are important to residents.
* Let projects be driven by facts, rather than opinions.
* Big one! Tell the residents the truth, not what you want them to hear. And give them the facts, so residents can make informed decisions on the actions of mayor and council and provide constructive feedback.
* Number one: overall, listen to residents, if they are reasonable and fair, based in sound reasoning and logic.
* Show you are not in the job for personal gains but in the interest of the residents of the city.
Wilf Carter
Whitehorse