OUR VIEW: Where does city go from here?

As the dust settles from Tuesday’s election in which voters hit city revenues with a one-two punch, the question everyone in the city must deal with going forward is: What do we do now?

Although some comments on The Gazette’s Web site, gazette.com, seem to revel in the fact that City Council must make some difficult choices, there’s little to celebrate when one considers the likely job losses that will result from the defeat of 2C and the success of Issue 300. Many voters probably thought they were teaching City Council lessons about using scare tactics, unwarranted secrecy and wasting public funds on private enterprises. Judging from news reports, council got the message. But the eight council members and Mayor Lionel Rivera won’t be the ones cleaning out their desks and lockers as layoffs begin to hit the ranks of city workers.

One thing is clear: Colorado Springs can’t continue with the status quo, only smaller. It’s time for residents and city officials to work together to address the issues before us. There’s no shortage of ideas to help alleviate some of the pain; what we need is a willingness to try different things, things that have worked elsewhere, as well as ideas that have never made it past someone’s fertile imagination.

Several years ago in the middle of another tight budget year, the city accepted volunteers who “adopted” flower beds in city medians. As part of Springs in Bloom, volunteers purchased flowers, then prepared, planted and maintained the beds, keeping alive the beauty of our city. When budgets improved, the city was able to partially fund the program, according to Kim King of Park and Recreational Services. The program is still around, but King says it could be cut as the city trims next year’s budget.

Volunteers are very active in providing city services, but one must keep in mind that even volunteers are not cost-free for the city. Someone must oversee their work, and there are liability issues to consider. Volunteerism won’t solve this budget problem, but it is the kind of spirit Colorado Springs needs more of right now.

That’s not to say the Police and Fire departments should be staffed by volunteers, but those departments and others could benefit from volunteers providing some of the support work that keeps the professionals on the street.

In addition, city officials should look at contracting out some of the services that might otherwise be cut from the budget entirely. Any city service that is available from the private sector should be considered. If it turns out to be cheaper to keep things in-house, so be it, but it’s worth looking at. A possible advantage might be that some laid-off city workers could get jobs with the private contractors as they add staff to handle the extra workload.

Maybe there’s an opportunity to use minor offenders serving out community service sentences to help maintain parks and facilities. Those folks come from all walks of life and have many skills the city will need in coming months and years. It would be a shame to overlook the possibilities they offer.

Even in a recession, our city has one huge resource that likely isn’t being used to its fullest: people. Colorado Springs draws them from around the country, many of whom have been civically active in other cities. They have knowledge of programs and processes that have worked elsewhere, and shouldn’t be dismissed simply because “this is the way we’ve always done it” or “we tried that years ago and it didn’t work.” These are different times and old ideas might find some success under these conditions.

City Council will begin work on the 2010 budget on Monday. If you have an idea that might help members as they decide what goes and what stays, contact your representative, an at-large member or the mayor. Don’t bombard them with gloating calls about how they lost the election; they know the results. What they need now are answers and ideas. Contact information for council members is available at www.gazette.com/sections/opinion/contactofficials/.