Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1915-11-30
4. ID u 7r % . u
AYSllANACER
Plan A SUCCESS
si-i:.-- ls
Chief Clerk GaIlarno, Iowa Municip-
al Accounting Department,
visits Dayton,
Ohio.
BRINGS BACK GOOD s'. REPORT
~ - -..--- \
Secures Information From BUSH
ness and q Professional |is'f Men In
stead Of Officers.
BRINGS BACK GOOD REPORT

L. ~ &
"The city manager plan of muni-l
(cipal government at Dayton, Ohio, is
a success ? according to George Gal
Ilarno. chief. clerk Of the municipal
accounting department. OF the state.
auditors office,
Mr. GallaTno has returned from
several days spent at Dayton, in at
tendance at the convention Of the
National Municipal league. While
there he took occasion to make spec
ial inquiries concerning the opera
ton of the plan Of having the entire
business Of city carried forward
under the direction and guidance Of
one man. M
Il secured, nay information" Mr.
Ga1larno said, not from the ofiic-
ials, nor from the city manager. Mr..
Waite, but ,fTTfp business and pro-
fessional men, from lawyers and edi-'
Itors, from Neifing men in various
forms Of oyment and from wom-
en- Of Dayton, who felt interest
enough in public affairs to attend
the meetings Of the national league
convention. / found, without an ex-l
ception, everyt person to whom I
talked was a. firm friend of the man
ager plan, ana all were agreed that
| it was working. out in a most salts
factory way.
"a gentleman in charge of p'l-
nicipal research bureau told me the.
Dayton plan was proving itself ideal.
1T is better than the Des Moines COM
mission plan, he declared. because 1T
brings all responsibility to one CEN
trail head. The people know who to
blame, If anything goes wrong, and
they know Who to praise when
things go right-just one man. the
manager.
"a waiter in one Of the large cafes
said there was considerable fault
found with. the plan at first because
the manager was secured from OUT
side the city and because. in turn,
the manager went to outside cities
for some Of his heads of departments.
The labor unions were more or less
opposed to the charter, he said. But
now they are all friendly. All others
talked to were practically in line
with those mentioned. No one in
Dayton today would. consider for a
moment proposition to go back to.
the old ward system OF city manage
ment.
Dayton is9deeply in debt. She
has bond obligations. accumulations
of many years, under the old form OF
government. !totaling something
more than $6.OO0,OOO. But She is
now looking Ut this enormous bur-
den smilingly,i and the fact that the
people are not discouraged is borne
out by the vote recently taken on a
new bond issue totaling more than
81, 100000. This proposition was
carried by almost a three-fourths
vote. A two-thirds vote is necessary
for approval OF bond issue in Ohio.
1.-THE financial tale Of the first
year Of Dayton,s experience as a city
managered city is told in report OF
its commissioners which shows that,
without issuing any bonds for the
operation expense Of the city, or
borrowing any money whatever for
the expenses Of the municipal gov
ernment they have been able to re-
duce by $4,000 temporary loan
made by former administrations for
money to run the city, and have Civ
en- additional and new public service
to the extent aof $139, 947.93 and all
this was done within the limit OF
the regular and normal income OF
the city"