___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ **Please- Understand as your read this and all of the other odd works of County "workers" IT IS REAL! REAL! REAL! These are the works of the Assistant Planning Director, Hypocrite/Bureaucrat/Chronic Time Waster David Lee Hostile Work Place has the Dirty Looks Flying- David Lee Helps Soothe Planning Department Employee's Battles CALLING Santa Cruz County Code Compliance - David Laughlin, Ken Hart, Anybody Home? The County of Santa Cruz Planning Commision Tainted by The Board of Supervisors Political Hires- and WORSE! The UnOfficial Building Official- Tainting the Title with Incompetence, Jennifer Hutchinson The Works and Musings of Planning Department Management Done On County Time With County Equipment- Or How Arrogant Do You Have to Be To Break the Rules You Enforce- Or What Happens When You Tell The Clerical Staff To Retreive Your "Work" from the Printer. Ray Tate Sr. Plays with the Inept County Planning Department as the Expence of Neighbors, Environment Advanced Step Placements flow for Untrained Substandard Employees- Overpaid from the Start with Other Peoples Money ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ COUNTY OF SANTA CRUZ INTER-OFFICE CORRESPONDENCE TO: Susan Mauriello FROM: David Lee SUBJECT: Alternative Proposal Let me first apologize for presenting this proposal at this time. However, it has just developed in my mind in the last two days, and because it is related to the reorganization, I must at least introduce this to you right now. As you mentioned, Susan, the other day, sometimes job opportunities are a matter of timing. The timing for this proposal is now. In short, I would like the two of you to consider adding a new Assistant Director position to run the Customer Service/Quality Control/Training function, rather than a Senior Admin Analyst, and allow me to transfer in to this position. Here’s my thinking. I am first and foremost an analyst. I worked for the CAO briefly as a Senior analyst before I was recruited to come into Planning. Before that I was the Chief of Admin Services for the District Attorney, where I started as an Administrative Officer. Prior to that, I have 5 years with the State Department of Education as an Associate Gov Program Analyst and Staff Services Analyst. I am very organized, good with numbers and data, and good at problem solving. (Can you hear the horn tooting?) Second, I am knowledgeable in the area of program evaluation and customer survey. I designed our existing customer survey forms. (They were discontinued by Dan awhile ago). When I was with the State Dept of Education, I coordinated the statewide survey of child development centers and helped prepare the Annual Comprehensive Report to the Legislature. As a student worker for the Health Department, I prepared a document entitled “A ROADMAP TO EVALUATION.” The goal of this project was to summarize different evaluation techniques to assist mental health providers in evaluating the effectiveness of their programs. (Two years after I prepared this document, I was advised that it was published by the Agency). Of course I could use some “brushing up” on modern techniques, but I feel I am very well grounded in this area. I also have a strong customer service orientation. If you were to contact members of the public, development professionals, and other County staff, I think you would find that I have a good reputation for being responsive and solution oriented. I wrote a comprehensive report on the Planning Department as a CAO analyst in 1985, and many of the recommendations in that report were implemented. I have been closely involved in all of the major reform efforts in the Department. I have good relationships with my fellow managers and staff, and believe that I can be effective in acting as a “change agent” in the department. I know how hard it is to run a demanding organization such as the Planning Department and reform it at the same time, so my approach with staff will be supportive and positive. In the area of training, I believe that I can have a positive impact. I know the planners and their training needs, so I can quickly design a training program to address our most critical needs. I believe that our internal training sessions should be videotaped, so that they can be used to train existing staff and new staff. My degree is in Community Health Education, so I am a big believer in education and prevention. I think I am friendly and have good “people skills”, which is important for this position. I also believe that our training program should include a public orientation. There are many areas we could hold workshops to educate the public about our requirements. When we have dome this in the past, it has been very well received. Whether it’s a program on the latest changes to the Building Codes or a seminar on Second units, there are many areas where we can provide a valuable service to the public and strengthen our relationships. I would like to see a public bulletin or newsletter (every couple of months) on what’s new in Planning (upcoming policy amendments, important hearings, code changes). I would also like to see us resume our informal meetings with the development community. We used to have breakfast with a group of development professionals once a month, and it was very valuable. Now to the question that I know has been running through your mind from the opening paragraph, how can we possible justify this at the Assistant Director level, and how can we afford it? In addition to the responsibilities discussed above, I know that an important part of where we need to improve is in our responsiveness to Board members, and written correspondence in general. I would manage all of the mail to the Director, and ensure that all correspondence is responded to in a timely manner. I would make sure that issues get resolved quickly. As an Assistant Director, I would have the juice to demand and ensure that Board concerns are addressed in a timely and complete fashion. I could help Alvin with the administrative oversight of the Advanced Planning, Housing, and Water Programs, allowing him to concentrate on policy. I am doing this now, but it is an area that needs greater attention. This would be a co-manager approach, (sound familiar?) where Alvin is directing all of the policy work, and I am responsible for all of the admin issues (personnel, fiscal, operational issues) in the policy units. It also opens up an Assistant Planning Director position (my current one). It would provide an opportunity for the organization to get a new recruit, perhaps someone with a stronger planning background. I think that the organization would benefit from some new blood, as they say. The best part of this deal is that I am willing to work 4 days a week, so that it won’t cost as much. I am at the point in my life where I would appreciate a little more free time, and I truly think that I could be effective in this job at less than full time. I don’t think that a .8 Assistant Director will cost that much more than a full time Senior Analyst. I can hit the ground sprinting, given my background and experience in the Department. I would be happy to sit down with either or both of you if you would like to discuss any of this further. I am a bit “burned out” in my present job, and I know that I would be energized by this new assignment. I am confident that I could help make this a better organization(the sound of the horns tooting are deafening by now). Thanks for taking the time to consider this proposal. NEED EVEN MORE MORE MORE WASTE BY THIS BUREACRAT? A Sampling of The Works of Santa Cruz County Assistant Planning Director David Lee or What Do You Expect for $143,530.15 a Year _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ |