While we’re extremely supportive of efforts between the cities
of Morgan Hill and Gilroy to look for ways to combine services to
save money, one item that came out of last week’s meeting is
stunning: that studies could take up to three years.
1. Economy demands efficiency
While we’re extremely supportive of efforts between the cities of Morgan Hill and Gilroy to look for ways to combine services to save money, one item that came out of last week’s meeting is stunning: that studies could take up to three years.
Three years?
The current economic crisis isn’t going to give us three years to find ways to save money. Things are going from bad to worse with record speed – witness the layoff numbers that continue to mount, as just one example – and our governmental agencies need to find ways to cope now.
2. Economic squeeze
The economic crisis is a vise for governmental agencies: as the economy worsens, demand for services increases while revenue decreases.
Yes, all ideas must be explored with due diligence and presented to the public for comment, but it’s distressing to hear elected officials provide estimates that it will take up to three-quarters of the current president’s term in office to evaluate which services are good candidates for sharing between Gilroy and Morgan Hill.
That’s like finding out you have cancer and taking three years to decide whether to administer chemotherapy or radiation. The patient isn’t going to survive that kind of dithering.
3. Four areas to study
The cities are looking at four areas where they might combine services: fire, emergency dispatching, environmental programs and recreation. These are all sensible areas for research. What’s not sensible is taking up to three years to study them.
In the private sector, if an employee told a manager who asked him to study a joint venture proposal with another company that he’d get back with an answer in three years, the employee would be told, at the very least, to significantly shorten that estimate.
Elected officials in Morgan Hill and Gilroy work for the residents of these communities. We need to tell them to shorten their estimate. Some situations demand quick action. This economy is one of them. Let’s hear about the advantages and disadvantages of combining services in a few months, not a few years.
