Peter Auger

Tuesday night was a busy night around City Hall on our municipal campus.

We had an interactive Board of Review session finishing up their annual process.

Then the Tax Increment Finance Authority (TIFA) had their monthly meeting. This is a very involved and informed group that is working on growing the city’s three TIFA district’s property values.

Then the City’s Zoning Board of Appeals met, followed by our Planning Commission meeting. Sometimes the value in a good working Planning Commission is not doing something. We had a team on staff looking at the values and pitfalls to implementing a Property Inspection Ordinance. As a college town, we have been getting more college rentals as people attend one of the five Colleges or Universities in Auburn Hills (Congratulations to Oakland University who made the big dance last night, the first Michigan University to make the NCAA Basketball tournament).

After much review of current Ordinances, it was our team’s recommendation not to pursue a new ordinance but to have staff refresh themselves on our current ordinances and enforce them accordingly.

Normally these type of issues fly under the radar. I think it is very refreshing to have a Planning Commission push staff on issues and then have staff look at the given issue in depth and give a balanced review and recommendation to the working board. We normally focus on things that don’t work, I am always happy to report on our representative government hearing all different sides and professionally moving forward.

For the month of March, we are partnering with the Boys & Girls Club of Auburn Hills for our Casual for a Cause Friday’s with our city employees.   For a donation (from the list provided by the Boy’s and Girls’ Club) employees may wear jeans each Friday in March.

So, if you observe some city employees dressed more casual on Fridays, rest assured they helped out by donating needed goods to a program that helps youth in our community.

These programs have great support from our employee team. We have used these causes to resupply the food pantry, collect hundreds of winter garments for kids in need, and last month gathered over 900 books that will be supplied to area youth with the Auburn Hills Optimist Club Book Fair.

As the basketball world gets ready for the NCAA tournament, we are “gearing” up for a different March madness.

Last Thursday I was able to partake in a session at our Youth Dialogue Day which is sponsored by Rochester Auburn Hills Community Coalition (RAHCC). I always enjoy interacting with members of the community and youth can be so engaging. This event was no different.

The session I was able to attend dealt with drugs/alcohol with the school aged population. Our table had a good mix, one student each from Avondale, Stony Creek and Adams High Schools. All the students came from different backgrounds and could agree that drugs are still available to youth but abuse is not rampant in the schools.

I think it is important to dialogue with local teens from our High Schools, not that they have the answers, but their perspectives can help us deal with a host of different issues. Sometimes they even can identify the “problem” while we adults talk around the issue in an effort to be “politically correct” and not offend someone.

An example of this was when the discussion turned to how easy it was for teens to do anything they want since there are no parents at home. Yes, the students are calling out for parental involvement as a crucial function of parenting. Where this was not the only interesting topic revealed, I found it real interesting that these cries that went out seem to go right by others sitting at our table.

Sometimes we overlook the simplest things. Maybe we should go back to the basics and parents parenting may be a great start.

Believe it or not, there are people who do not think I live in the “Real World”.  From time to time, I’ve heard the complaints that I don’t ever have bad news to share.

Well, this week we received some news I did not particularly like. We did not land a project we were working on (over a billion dollars of investment).

In the “Real World” I know we can’t possibly obtain everything we try to (people are allowed to make bad decisions, right?), but we sure do our absolute best.

What I want to know is why?

So now the process begins dissecting every portion of this project to find the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (yes, that would be me). This project maybe lost, but we can learn from it, we can be stronger as an organization from the things we learn.

I am human and I too go through the emotional rollercoaster of adrenalin and the excitement of the possibility to the frustration of defeat and even into grieving.

So I will allow myself to grieve…Ok, now that that is over with, lets dig into the nuts and bolts of the deal. At the end of the day, it will make us stronger and we will be better prepared for our next opportunity.

I’ve noticed an interesting trend the past week or so as I’m commuting to my out of office meetings.  It’s taking me on average about 10 minutes longer than usual.   I don’t find myself filled with the usual irritations that come along with sitting in a lot of traffic.  I actually find it to be a good thing–Perhaps this is a sign that people are going back to work?

At least in Auburn Hills.

Just a snap shot…

Oasis Advanced Engineering Incorporated, located in Auburn Hills, they develop software and hardware for military simulation and training systems. Oasis is one of a selected group of engineering firms permitted by the U.S. Army to perform advanced technology integration and tests on the Abrams M1A2 SEP tank. Oasis provides system engineering and test services, designs and build high fidelity interactive simulators and trainers, device drivers, and vehicle tactical displays for simulators.

Oasis Advanced Engineering is currently hiring 24 positions.

Don’t forget what is also in the press about the company ALTe who are in the process of creating 367 new jobs at wages over $1,200 weekly here in Auburn Hills.

Ah yes, and it was only a month or two ago when we spoke about Continental’s North American expansion and consolidation into Auburn Hills creation of a couple hundred jobs.

Maybe the Mayor wasn’t making things up during his State of the City when he boasted, “Auburn Hills is open for business.”

Got to love all the traffic…

Ever heard a musical act that plays in a small venue without all the fancy lights, sound equipment etc…?

For lack of a better description, that was our Council workshop last night. I didn’t really know what to expect. City Council had called for the workshop, a sort of “pre” Goals & Objectives workshop.

Call me goofy. Okay I’ll pause here as you all say Goofy? I enjoyed what occurred. It started out slow as if no one knew what was expected or where the workshop was going, or even what the final outcomes might be.

As a fly on the wall it might have seemed like a disjointed conversation at times, jumping from topic to topic, but as a practitioner and student of an evolving organization I thought it was very insightful.

I am always appreciative of local elected officials who volunteer to help guide a community. I don’t think any of them do it for the money. People expect a lot of them, to know things about budget programming, service levels, and plans for the future. It is a noble cause and our staff will continue to be very responsive and arm themselves with information so that they may adequately answer questions they receive. Information so they can make the policy decisions that need to be made. Information so they can predict the predictable future and yes even the unpredictable future.

We already know the system isn’t perfect, but that is why it is great to see people from different mindsets throwing out ideas, perceptions, and strategies into an open dialog. Just like making sausage, the process isn’t always pretty.

So coming out of the workshop, I have a more refined view of where we are from the elected officials perspective. Nothing radical, but all in all, good information sharing session.
From the staff side of things, we have improved our communications greatly with City Council, but we still need to keep improving that information flow. None of the world’s problems were solved during the workshop, but consensus was gained to do this again and continue the conversation…

Guest Blogger: Linda Shannon, City Clerk                                                                                                            United States CENSUS 2010

You’ve been hearing about it in the media.  And, you will be hearing more, as households across the country begin receiving 2010 Census forms in March.  I heard that collective “Ugh!”

I have to admit, that was my initial response, as well.  Then I attended an informational meeting where I was happy to learn the Census Bureau has drastically pared down the form most of us will soon receive.  With only 10 questions, the form should only take about 10 minutes to complete.  Households will be asked to provide key demographic information, including: whether a housing unit is rented or owned; the address of the residence; and the names, genders, ages and races of others living in the household.  That’s it!  Far less time and effort than 10 years ago! 

In the context of our own busy lives, this is good news for you and me.  There is more at stake, however.  If even a small number of the other 9,969,725 Michigan residents do not respond, it will be good news for no one.  The numbers gathered in the 2010 Census will be used for the next ten (10) years to determine everything from Federal and State funding to political representation.

Over the last ten (10) years, unreported and misreported resident information in the 2000 Census cost Michigan a seat in Congress and approximately $2 billion dollars.  The proper reporting of Michigan’s snowbirds, alone, would have saved the Congressional seat.

The Census Bureau estimates that over the next ten (10) years a community will lose $1.2 million for every 100 residents not counted.  Ouch!

 And, as reported at Congress.com, an analysis by Election Data Services, Inc. projects that after the 2010 Census, Michigan will lose yet another seat in Congress.   Unable to dispute such, State demographer Kenneth Darge at least give us a little hope, “Michigan could conceivably retain all of its current seats after the 2010 Census if enough of its snowbirds are counted in the right place,” he said.

In the end, it is up to us whether we have more or less.  If we each do a little more than just prepare our own Census questionnaire (which takes less time this year) we may end up with more.   Encourage everyone you know to respond and let them know that all data is confidential.  The Census Bureau is bound by law not to share an individual’s responses with anyone, including other federal agencies and law enforcement agencies.

And, as so much seems to depend on our Michigan snowbirds, offer your help to those with difficulties.  Make sure they know that it doesn’t matter where they receive their Census materials or where they’re residing Census Day, April 1. 

Census rules state that an individual is to be counted as a resident in the place where they live MOST of the year.  Again, this goes for snowbirds, college students, business travelers and anyone else who resides outside of Michigan, part-time. 

So, please spread the word.  Add a little note to your next email, post, or tweet.  If we don’t do more, we may very well go through ten (10) more years with less.

An employee passed on a  paragraph pose called Desiderata, by Max Ehrmann.

…Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others, even to the dull and ignorant; they too have their story. Avoid loud and aggressive persons; they are vexatious to the spirit. If you compare yourself with others you may become vain or bitter, for always there will be greater and lesser persons than yourself…”

It kind of reminds me of a line from the musical “Annie” that said something of the sorts “You don’t have to be nice to people on the way up, if you never plan on coming back down.”

In Auburn Hills we take people’s requests seriously and attempt to respond to all requests in a professional and timely manner. We don’t always give the answers that people want, but we do attempt to speak the truth and listen to people’s stories for there is usually merit.

Some people like to say we in government hear all the complaints, but not when we do something right. You may be surprised at the good comments I get about our employees and the job they do, even if the initial contact comes in as a complaint about an issue.

I do know it is not like that everywhere and count my blessings that our team does get that we are here to provide a public service that is suppose to add to the public good.

You might consider me AWOL (absent without leave for you non military types). I just noticed that I have not blogged in five days.

I might lose my status as a blogger???

Sorry folks, it is not due to me not wanting to tell our story, sometimes I just run out of minutes.   Some people always ask what a city manager does every day. Normally I reply that depends on the day. In the last two weeks (last week and this current week) I look on my calendar and see forty meetings (and I am only in the office four days this week), I guess my response should be I go to meetings. 

Yes, as a city manager I go to a lot of meetings. This forces a lot of delegation and multi tasking between events.

Ah… but it keeps my days very interesting.

I will try to get back into the blog groove moving forward.

For those who want to try something different, you have a chance tonight.

Tonight at 7:00 pm is the Night of Laughs Comedy Show to support the Pistons Cares Telethon. It would be great to hear that they had a big turnout for this. The time frame for the event is not bad…just running 7:00 pm-8:30 pm. So it won’t be a late night for those who have to get baby sitters or go to bed at a reasonable time in order to work tomorrow.

This year all the proceeds will go directly to the Food Bank Council of Michigan helping Michigan Residents in Critical Need. There will be 5 local Detroit’s funniest comedians (an all new line-up this year for those that came out and supported last year).

The admission is only $15 and the doors open at 6:00pm.

Let’s feed some families in need!

So just don’t surf the web tonight, treat yourself to some medicine…