Webster City freeman. [volume] (Webster City, Hamilton County, Iowa) 1884-1946, 1916-03-07
vOLLMER HAS A \
. GOOD PLATFORM
What the City Manager Of Webster
City Hopes to Accomplish for :
the Town. t-..s

The following dispatch from this
city appeared in the Register and
Leader this morning: 4@
H. G. Vollmer, new city manager
of Webster City, has a. big job, but
he has some ideas that are just as
big as his job. He is going to try to
put those ideas into practice and if
he does Webster City is likely to line
up with model cities like Dayton
Ohio. . @-".I
Mr.. Vollmer believes in efficiency;
at the same time he knows that the
average city government is conduct
ed along lines that are much the
opposite from efficient.
81 am trying to introduce ef1c-l
iency into all departments Of Web
ster City's government" he said.
''By co-ordinating the work, cutting.
down little expense here and lit
tie there and getting more work
done in given time think | can
give this city municipal system
that will serve as an example for
others in Iowa."
Mr.. Vollmer's first task will be the
elimination of politics and pull. They
have no part in an efficient form Of
government, he believes.
''The time will come when Ameri-
can cities will emerge from political
rule" the young manager predicted.
i"Politics has meant an enormous an-
|nual loss to the public, a useless ex-
penditure Of public money, waste
of opportunity that has been little
short of criminal"
He believes in publicity, in doing
things in the full light.
1.-The public should know what is
going on in the city government. 1T
should know what use is being made
of it's money; whether its hired men
are performing their duties as they
should and are giving a dollars
worth of service for a dollar he
declared Everybody in Webster
City who is sincere in his desire to
know what is being done may know.
There will be no secret chamber tao.
tics here"
Real cooperation among all the
elements Of the community is sthe-
method by which better commune
ity may be built, according to Mr..
vollmer
IF all business and social organ
izations and the various individuals
that make up community would
lay aside all differences and direct
their attention just to the job Of
making city grow bigger and bet
ter, tremendous lot could be ac-
complished,' is the way he sums it
up. 81 regard that as part of my
job-the coordination of the ele-
ments of strength in the community.
If genuine community spirit can be
developed, I shall feel that have
Succeeded"
A city's industries should be in
keeping with the needs and adyant-
ages of that city, he says. Webster
City, being an agricultural commun-
lily, should have industries that are
based upon and are designed to aid
agriculture, is his idea.
He is firm believer in wholesome
recreation. 1t is just as necessary
to a community's welfare as prosper
ity, he says. Public Fairgrounds for
the children and a place where
grownups may congregate and enjoy
clean entertainment are the two
needs of every city, Mr.. Vollmer de-
clares. They are among his plans
for Webster City. . a
Mr.. Vollmer is 80 years old and
is graduate OF the class of 1908
at the University of Iowa. He be-
came assistant city engineer at Bur-
lington in 1905 and later took
charge of the department. 1t was
his work as city engineer at Burling-
ton that attracted the business men
of Webster City when they started
the search for a city manager.