The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1921-12-08
REAL LIVE CITY
MANAGER TALKS
CONTINUED from page u

get only the dregs. This causes, or is
apt to cause, an uneven development.
throughout the city. Besides there are
too many out rustling for different
things for there to be any adequate
organized development.
The second form of city government
the commission form, has been only a
relative success. Under the commits
sion form three men, or five men, or
seven men, are elected to run the city
as commissioners. 1t is on the whole
more democratic and more sensitive
to the wishes of the community at
large. One trouble with this commits
sion system is that too many powers
are delegated to the same group of
men. Say there are five commission
ers, then there are five men who con-
troll the legislative and executive
branches. It will be readily seen what
dangers this will lead to. You would
never wish to have the same men who
make the laws also enforce them. In
such a plan, there is none of that
check and balance which is one of
the inherent principles of our con-
stitutional government, laid down by
our forefathers.
City Manager Plan Third.
Besides another disadvantage is
that you cannot select five experts
through the ballot. Who will these five
men be? You will not be able to get
five eminently successful men in your
own town to leave their business and
give their whole time to running the
business of the city. It is unthinkable.
On the other hand, you will not want
to take poor business man, who has
not made success in his own line, and
put him in control Of city affairs.
"Now the third plan and what ap-
pears to be the most successful, is
the city plan. In this system, your
board of commissioners sit like a board
of directors. They hire man to run
the city. This man receives a salary
and gives his whole time. The city
| manager plan is based on the principle
Of fixed responsibility. Here you have
one person who must see that things
run efficiently, and if they do not, he
is the person to blame.
Responsibility and authority must
be in the same hands. This manager
of the city has no strings on his job,
any more than you have, who are en-
ployed in one Of the Offices or banks
or factories in the city. Your job de-
ponds on your making good and so
does his. He can be hired and fred
over night. This was recently illus
trated in Dayton, Ohio, where a city
manager was fired after two weeks trial
and another hired in his stead.
Still Have Commission.
You still have your commissioners,
but all the work of attending to details
is taken from them, and their work
consists partly as check and watch
on the manager, and partly is plan
ming more largely and wisely for the
city good.
"There must or should be somebody
who is doing such future planning or
you will have city running down
hill. There should be always some
body developing situations and meeting
contingencies before they arise.
"The city of Glencoe, H., which 1
represent as manager, has already
tried the plan and carried it beyond
the experiment stage. For eight years
the city manager has been in charge.
Glencoe is city of about 5000 popula-
ton. We have only $4,000 in bonds
outstanding. Every bond has been
paid as it became due, and we have
money in the bank.
| "How the plan has been received
by the people is indicated by the fact
that in the last three elections we
have had no opposition. We were able
to reduce the water loss from 81 per
cent to % per cent and for one period
to 10 per cent. This meant a saving
of from $4,000 to $4,000 for extra
water mains which would not have
been available if we had not been able
to check the leaks.
at has been necessary to build
three new bridges over Sheridan road
in the city. The three bridges were
unsafe. But how were we to raise the
money? The city manager went before
the county board. and received their
assurance that this body will meet the
entire expense of the bridges, an ex-
pense totalling quarter Of million
dollars. Glencoe was the first city in
the state of Illinois to get aid this way
in the building Of roads and bridges
in the town and it was accomplished
by taking advantage of a law some
twenty years old. but it took man.
ager to dig it out"
All Stockholders in Corporation.
Neergaard explained that ell Of the
citizens and taxpayers of Kenosha are
stockholders in an immense corpora
ton, and the idea of having q board
of directors who in turn hired a man
ager or general superintendent, was
no more radical than bank stockhold-
ers doing the same thing.
"The directors Of bank" said Mr..
| Neergaard, may not be experienced
bankers. But they know whether the
business is being conducted properly
by the results. They hire the man
who ia q banker and look to his re-
suits. Now we are all stockholders in
this corporation Of the city and it is
up to each one Of US as such to see
that our corporation is run in the
best, more efficient, most economical