Omaha daily bee., 1920-12-13
The Bees Platform
FULL STEAM AHEAD FOR OMAHA

1t Omaha is to put on full steam ahead. it
must travel over the smooth and solid roadbed
that has taken other great and prosperous
cities to the city manager form of government.
There is need for coordination of public af-
iairs, more business-like administration. such
as experience elsewhere has proved can best lbe
obtained by the system which elects commits
sioners to outline the municipal policy and lets
them appoint an expert manager to deal with the
executive problems connected with public
service. =
The series OF articles written for The Sunday
Bee by various city managers unfolds a re-
markable story of how the same efficiency that
characterizes private business has been instilled
into municipal government There is also
growing list Of books dealing more at length
with the system as carried out in particular
cities. One of these volumes. now in the Omaha
public library, is Chester E. Richtor's "City
Manager in Dayton" In addition to examining
the specific accomplishments of Dayton since
going under the new rule six years ago, the
author draws several general conclusions such
as are to be found in the following excerpt:
"The successful operation of business
depends upon at least three things-organi-
cation, method and men, That holds true
OF city government and no form of gov
erninent alone can insure that capable men
will always be in charge Of its activities, and
that adequate methods will invariably be
more easily possible to secure qualified
officials for administrative positions than
does any other plan yet devised, and it pro-
vides ready method for getting rid of in
competents. Furthermore, it provides plan
OF organization for getting results when the
of off ;c
and the proper method of procedure is in
herent to such organization.
1t might be asserted that the services per-
formed in Dayton under the city manager
plan could be performed under any other
form. It will be evident from the pages
that follow that they not performed
under the mayorcouncil plan. The city
manager plan actually did accomplish re-
suits.
There it is in nutshell. Although theo-
retically other forms of municipal rule permit
wide scope for Improvement and efficiency, at
the same time they have not been successful
TO the degree that the newer method has been.>
The continuity OF civic effort is not endangered
at every election under the city manager plan,
and public interest in government is stimulated
by the conviction that the city is being run
toward certain desirable aims instead of blum
dering along under divided counsels. To large
degree city government in Dayton has been
humanized until it is more OF living organism
than a mere machine Nor can it be MAIN
tained that democracy is fouted under the plan,
for the effective control OF the government still
resides in the people.
In Dayton the city manager is subject to dis
nlissal by vote OF the commission or by recall
by the citizens themselves. This power has
never been used. and the advisability of the
direct recall is sometimes questioned There is
no tendency away from democracy, but in fact,
many city manager cities are now considering an
increase in popular representation over that in
vogue under other forms of government, by
providing, as have Kalamazoo, Mich, and
Ashtabula, O., for proportional representation.