county manager

Board Raises Tax Rate To Preserve Services

By ARLnow.com

The Arlington County Board unanimously approved a $959.9 million FY 2011 budget on Saturday. The budget includes a 8.3 cent property tax rate hike, 24 percent higher than the recommended 6.7 cent increase in the county manager’s proposed budget.

Together with fee increases totaling about $71 a year, the tax burden on the average household will increase by about $346 per year.

Arlington’s residential property tax burden will now total $0.958 cents per $100 of assessed value, which is still lower than most neighboring jurisdictions.

The board said it was responding to public concern over some of the spending cuts outlined in the county manager’s budget. Dozens of people spoke out against many of the cuts at public budget hearings, although the majority of speakers at a separate tax rate hearing spoke out against raising taxes.

Among the line items rescued from the chopping block as a result of the tax hike:

  • Community policing
  • The second of the fire department’s two heavy rescue units
  • Emergency management personnel
  • Merit pay raises for county staff
  • Metro funding increase
  • The Aurora Hills and Lee senior centers
  • Sunday hours at the Central Library
  • Funding for library materials, such as periodicals
  • Park maintenance and nature centers
  • Partial funding of non-profit organizations, arts grants

“This budget reflects the values of our community,” County Board Chairman Jay Fisette said in a statement. “We listened to residents and acted to preserve core services and our quality of life. We have also been fiscally prudent, making deep and sometimes painful cuts that affected services and reduced staff. This budget ensures Arlington’s fiscal sustainability while protecting the most vulnerable among us.”

Read more about the budget from the Washington Post or the county’s website.

New Group Wades into Change-of-Government Fray

By ARLnow.com

A group of civic activists has formed the “Coalition for Arlington Good Government” (CAGG) to push back against an effort to change Arlington’s form of government.

The group’s goal is “to inform Arlington residents about the negative impacts of the proposal behind the petition drive.”

CAGG has set up a Facebook page with the slogan “Decline to Sign” and is in the process of launching a website.

The coalition’s co-chairs are Bill Bozman, Judy Connally, Alan Howze and Kris McLaughlin.

More from CAGG’s press release, after the jump.

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Group Fires Back at Change-of-Government Memo

By ARLnow.com

The Committee for a Better Arlington is firing back at a memo released by the County Attorney’s office yesterday. The memo concluded that the change-of-government plan promoted by the committee would be “a step backwards for the County.”

The committee just issued a strongly-worded statement (below) and pointed us to a memo from Ron Carlee, the previous county manager, which talks about the limitations of the County Manager Plan of government currently in place in Arlington.

Here’s the full statement:

It is disappointing that taxpayer dollars spent on the County Attorney’s salary were used for the overtly political memo disguised as a legal opinion on this ballot initiative.

The Committee for a Better Arlington was established in order to improve the current form of government in Arlington County so that it is more accountable and responsive to its citizens. It was established to improve the transparency between elected officials and Arlingtonians. More importantly, it was established to curtail the power an unelected bureaucrat has over the services and citizens of Arlington.

Prior to embarking on this initiative, the Committee for a Better Arlington deliberately reviewed the various forms of government provided for in the Virginia Code. The Committee felt the County Board form of government was the least disruptive yet responsive form of government that would remedy the faults in the current system – mainly communication and transparency with the County Board.

To date, thousands of Arlington registered voters have signed the petition expressing the same desire to improve Arlington County. This is not simply a matter pushed by Arlington’s police and fire unions to increase their pay.

If the County Attorney believes those who are pushing this change are naive then he believes the thousands of Arlington voters we meet each weekend at grocery stores, metro stops and farmers’ markets are also naive. Perhaps these voters will be equally naive come November and vote to improve the current system – one that places political expediency over better government practices.

County Attorney Blasts Change-of-Government Proposal

By ARLnow.com

A proposed change to Arlington’s form of government would “significantly impair” the county board’s effectiveness, and would invite “certain mischief” among elected officials, according to County Attorney Stephen MacIsaac.

In a memo to county board members, MacIsaac says the change would transfer some of the county government’s current powers to the state and would “compromise and even eliminate the County’s ability to achieve long established goals.”

The change-of-government proposal is sponsored by the Committee For a Better Arlington, which is endorsed by the Arlington Green Party, the Arlington County Republican Committee and the police and fire unions. The committee is currently trying to collect the 14,350 signatures necessary to put the proposal to a voter referendum.

If approved, the proposal would change Arlington’s government from the current “County Manager Plan” to the “County Board Form,” as outlined by state law.

The County Board Form calls for board members to be elected by districts, rather than at-large, and it would result in the board being elected all at one time, instead of holding separate, staggered elections.

MacIsaac said such a change could cause the “balkanizing” of county politics. Instead of promoting the interests of the county as a whole, there could be “competition among board members for funding and staff time for the betterment of one district over others.”

The change would also apply to the school board, “creating the possibility that schools in some districts would fare better than those in districts of less influential, powerful, or persuasive members.”

The County Board Form would give the board some of the executive powers currently entrusted to Arlington’s unelected county manager. Control over personnel matters, including appointments and compensation, would be transferred to the county board, “potentially introducing a form of political patronage not possible under the County Manager Plan.”

The county’s purchasing agent would report directly to the county board under the plan, presenting “the opportunity for undue influence in the award of contracts, and favoritism generally in the competitive procurement process.”

The change would also prevent the board from enforcing a human rights ordinance that prohibits all forms of discrimination, MacIsaac says. The board’s authority would be limited to the classes proscribed under state law, which does not include sexual orientation.

MacIsaac argues that the County Board Form was designed for a more rural county and is not suited to a large, wealthy, urban county like Arlington. As an example, he cites a state requirement that County Board Form governments establish a department devoted to agricultural and practical continuing education.

“It is naive to believe it is possible to change the form of Arlington’s government and expect the many powers Arlington now enjoys to neatly transfer into the comparatively small box afforded by the County Board Form,” MacIsaac concludes. “Adoption of the County Board Form would be a step backwards for the County.”

Interview with Michael Brown, Part Two

By ARLnow.com

In part one of our interview with incoming county manager Michael Brown, he talked about his decision to leave Savannah, where he’s been city manager for 15 years, and he discussed some of the budgetary and developmental issues facing Arlington. In part two, Brown talks about his goals and is asked about some specific issues he’ll be dealing with when he starts the job in May.

Q: What are some of your immediate and long-range goals as county manager?

A: At this point, I really need to listen and learn a lot before I start saying what I want to do. I’ve already begun the process; I did that when I was [recently in Arlington]. I need to very carefully listen to the board, to spend time with them as a group and spend time with them as individuals, see what their views and their visions are. That’s first. It’s not my role and not my nature to come in and prescribe to people that are well along their way in many areas.

Long-term I want to be effective, I want to be responsive. I want to continue their traditions of engagement and their traditions of high-quality services and a competent staff.

Q: The current budget proposal includes raising taxes. Some have said taxes should be raised higher, some have said taxes are high enough already. What are your thoughts on raising taxes during tough economic times?

A: That will be the board’s decision. They’re not doing it in a vacuum. They’re doing it in consideration of the past and the future. I read with interest several months ago the policy statement they had drafted [which prioritized funding for affordable housing, schools, and the social safety net, and called for the budget shortfall to be filled by a balance of tax hikes and spending cuts].

When they make that kind of policy decision, that’s the board’s call. They’re looking at the past, the short, the medium and the long range. I know that because that’s what they clearly demonstrated and that’s what we talked about in the interview process. So that’s a policy decision the board will make.

Q: Affordable housing is a major focus of the Arlington county board. How will you support affordable housing initiatives?

A: Clearly the board and the staff… do support diversity in the community and inclusiveness. That obviously does mean that a range of people must be able to live in Arlington and work in Arlington… so that means there has to be affordability.

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Interview with Michael Brown, Part One

By ARLnow.com

Michael Brown will become Arlington’s new county manager in May. The UVA alum and Northern Virginia native comes by way of Savannah, Georgia, where he’s served as the city’s top unelected official since 1995.

Brown talked to ARLnow.com over the phone from Savannah, where he’s busy preparing for the transition.

This is part one of the interview. Part two will appear later this week.

Q: You’re leaving Savannah, where you’ve served as city manager for 15 years. A lot of people there seem sad to see you go. Is it hard to leave? What convinced you to take the county manager job?

Brown: Well, it is, but you know — 15 years is a long tenure by any measure. Also, I think that a lot of things have been accomplished — not really by me alone, but by elected officials and by [my] staff.

There comes a time when it is possible to consider another chapter, and my wife and I think this is a great opportunity in Arlington. It’s certainly a great place to live and it’s a very good organization to work in.

Arlington has a great reputation, both as a community and as a government. It’s a world-class community and it is really a wonderful community. It’s got great leadership.

Q: There’s a “Change Arlington” movement that wants to take power away from the county manager (and modify the way county board members are elected). Does that concern you?

Brown: I’m aware of it and of course it would concern me, it would affect me. It is democracy — people can make proposals. It seems to me that the present system is working, but that’s up to the board and up to the stakeholders, the voters.

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Afternoon Notes: Woe In Savannah, Sushi Rock Opening

By ARLnow.com

New County Manager Will Be Missed in Savannah — “A sad day for the city of Savannah.” A “loss for the city.” In an uncommonly heartfelt display of sadness and regret over the departure of an unelected public official, media outlets and politicians in Savannah, Ga. are weighing in on the loss of Savannah city manager Michael Brown. A native Virginian, Brown will become Arlington’s new county manager in May.

Sushi Rock Set to Open — A rock-themed sushi bar is set to open in Courthouse today. “The place feels like the remnants of a 1980s Japanese tour by AC/DC, if only they kidnapped a chef and raided half the Tokyo fish market before they left,” writes UrbanDaddy. Sushi Rock is located in the space at 1900 Clarendon Blvd formerly occupied by Yaku.

Arlington Green Party Leader Quits — Josh Ruebner is leaving his position as head of the Arlington Green Party. The departure is a result of “internal conflict and name-calling,” reports Scott McCaffrey in the Sun Gazette.

Arlingtonian Arne Duncan Profiled — U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan’s two children attend Arlington Public Schools. Parenting Magazine profiled Duncan and wife Karen, who live in Arlington and send kids Claire, 8, and Ryan, 5, to a county elementary school.

iPad Fans Camp Outside Clarendon Apple Store — Apple sold more than 300,000 iPads on Saturday, its first day on sale. Some of those iPads were sold at the Clarendon Apple store, where the Washington Post has video of the ensuing iPad hysteria.

DEVELOPING: Arlington Hires New County Manager

By ARLnow.com

Arlington has hired Savannah, Georgia city manager Michael Brown as its new county manager. Brown will replace current acting county manager Barbara Donnellan.

“Michael Brown is a thoughtful, articulate and dedicated manager who brings broad expertise and a record of strong fiscal management,” said county board chairman Jay Fisette, who announced Brown’s hiring this afternoon. “He has a proven track record of success on economic development, public safety, and regional and planning issues. We look forward to having him on our team.”

During his 15-year tenure in Savannah, Brown provided city assistance for more than $1 billion in development, including retail stores, hotels, and condominiums. He supported the development of Savannah’s waterfront and the creation of more than 5,000 units of affordable housing. He was also instrumental in historic preservation and directed the creation or renovation of numerous parks.

Brown helped the city pass a $890 million special sales tax, but also worked to sustain a 27 percent property tax reduction over 10 years.

A Prince William County native, Brown graduated Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Virginia. His wife, Linda Lee, also hails from Prince William County. They have three children: Brendan, Alex and Rebecca.

Brown will begin his new job in Arlington on Monday, May 17.

“Arlington is a wonderful, world class community with great leadership including the Arlington County Board and staff,” Brown said in a statement.

“I am very appreciative of this appointment by the County Board. I hope that my skills and experience will be of real value in a number of initiatives such as plans for the growth corridors, neighborhood vitality, mobility, environmental sustainability, and good fiscal management. Also I share the Board’s and the community’s commitment to diversity and to inclusive citizen engagement and collaborative decision making. My wife Linda Lee and I are excited about Arlington’s many community cultural assets and opportunities.”

The Savannah Morning News has more on the resignation letter Brown sent to the city’s mayor today.