December 2015 - Parks & Recreation - 17

Public Works
*	 The increased usage of GPS during
inclement weather conditions to
properly respond to storms, snowfalls and water damage and to improve driving conditions
*	 The increased use of online services enabling citizens to report
the location of graffiti and/or potholes, that staff can promptly remove or repair

*	 Many department managers, as
well as their employees, can access
their respective budgets online 247, throughout the year, to help facilitate better planning
*	 Coordinated efforts to save funds
from the current approved budget
to offset a projected deficit for the
coming fiscal year are now common, as are joint purchasing programs with other cities, counties,
councils-of-government and even
state governments
Health Services
*	 More health-related educational
programs are being provided to senior citizens
*	 A greater number of physical fitness workshops are being provided
to senior citizens
*	 Many educational programs and
services are being provided to reduce childhood obesity
*	 Health-related literature and programmatic offerings are commonly
being made available to citizens of
all ages
Information Technology (IT)
*	 State-of-the-art websites are increasingly commonplace to help
citizens navigate all governmental
departments, including management of registration for park and
recreation events and services
*	 In some cases, organization-wide
departmental user committees are
formed to ensure that all municipal departments and functions are
being properly served from an IT
standpoint
*	 Social media is increasingly being
used to announce events and information to the public
Parks and Recreation
*	 The expansion of feeding pro	

grams for both children and senior
citizens
*	 The increased amount of programmatic offerings demanded by citizens of all ages
*	 The increased dissemination of
health-related information, including encouraging healthier eating
and exercise habits
*	 The placement and/or enlargement of computer rooms for community-wide Internet access
Planning and Building
*	 Some planning services, zoning
maps and property assessment information may be obtained online,
making it easier to envision new
projects and compare services across
municipalities
*	 Nationally, there has been some consolidation by states of the number
of workforce training, tourism and
planning districts (e.g., including regional councils of government)
*	 Public officials are increasingly taking measures to revitalize their city's
main streets with wider sidewalks,
more trees and vegetation, and
benches for citizens to relax on -
not just for waiting to catch the bus

The Future
Public officials and local government
employees have only limited control
over the dynamics of their " working environment, " whether political,
economic, social or legal. Politically, those dynamics are affected by
the election of liberal, conservative
or moderate municipal officials, or
some combination thereof. In terms
of economics, residents may be looking at hard times through decreased
property values, or boom times when
new businesses move in to increase
the tax base. An aging population,
fluctuating income levels and disparate access to education impacts the
social environment. Finally, municipal policies and initiatives are bound
by the rule of law, which may be
cumbersome or time-consuming to
modify or update.
Local public officials, including
park and recreation leaders, must respond to these societal changes, even
if they may have little or no direct control over them. It is better to recognize
the shifting social landscape and plan
ahead, than be forced to react in circumstances that are perhaps not ideal.

Roger L. Kemp, Ph.D., ICMA-CM, is a
Professor in the School of Public Service,
Department of Public Management, at Henry
Lee College, University of New Haven
(rlkbsr@snet.net).

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Parks & Recreation

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December 2015 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of December 2015 - Parks & Recreation
