Dartmouth Reinvents Itself

Lara Stone, Select Board
Shannon Jenkins, Finance Committee
Greg Jones & Phil Lenz, School Committee

In the early ‘90s David Osborne & Ted Gaebler wrote a book, Reinventing Government-How the entrepreneurial spirit is transforming the public sector.  Almost 20 years later their theories are still completely applicable to the town of Dartmouth. We have a population of approximately 35,000 residents and our budget hovers at $69 million dollars. We can and do operate pretty effectively but as the authors of the book suggest, in order to constantly reinvent ourselves we must “habitually use our resources in new ways to heighten our efficiency and our effectiveness.” Dartmouth has been pretty successful in the last several years at implementing an entrepreneurial spirit. Here’s some evidence we’ve collected:

1. Creating systems that work- As Osborne & Gaebler point out, people who work in government are NOT the problem; the systems in which they work are the problem. We think we know this first hand in Dartmouth. We have, for the most part, talented, dedicated and hard-working employees who go out of their way to make sure that they deliver services to the public efficiently and effectively. You will be hearing more in the next 6-9 months as the Business Plan is adopted and the Charter Review process comes to a close, about how we can make sure that the board, committee and town department structure is streamlined to best support employees. To us this does not mean consolidating employees who deliver services out of a job, but it may mean consolidating some volunteers out of a role or re-directing their efforts on a committee or board. We have already hired a Director of Development who has brought new resources into the town, hired a new police chief who has reduced overtime expenditures and restructured the department to better serve the community and completed a year under the administrative leadership of a new town administrator.
2. Collaboration- Governing officials hear all the time that in these economic times we have to do more with less. We are told we have two choices. Raise taxes or reduce spending. We are told that we have to improve education, maintain public safety and provide better town services for the same tax dollar and certainly at no more than 2 ½ percent than the year before. Dartmouth has excelled at the “third choice”—we have been quite successful at working together to collaboratively solve problems. Sometimes this means reducing spending. Sometimes it looks like increasing revenues but in most notable cases it has demanded a team approach. The School Department and Committee, Finance Committee and Select Board unanimously designed and approved the implementation of Full Day Kindergarten in Town. 246 children started this month. The Council on Aging volunteers and committee members built the Bullard Wellness Center while making public works improvements at the DeMello School at the same time for a fraction of the cost. Staff and committee members have gathered around the table and in short order, (eight months is pretty short in government time), have implemented Phase I of the Dartmouth Community Park Project on Dartmouth Street.  The School Committee also negotiated a fiscally responsible two-year teacher contract.
3. Customer-Driven- We are making choices in Dartmouth to put the public first not the bureaucrat. Businesses want to locate in our community and we are improving the way they are received. A project management approach to economic development is being utilized. We revamped our website to provide better access to residents and received a Commonwealth Award for open communication in government. The Collectors office allows for online payments. We have located a School Resource Officer in both the High School and the Middle School this year to better address the growing needs of our youth.
4. Innovation- Dartmouth is trying new approaches to solving problems. While not everyone likes the orange pay-as-you-throw trash bags, this is a creative system that is working to reduce trash and increase recycling in our community. It works. Instead of paying for our Ambulance contract next year, this budget line item has been eliminated and the company will pay us a portion of the cost of our dispatch services. Dartmouth applied for and was chosen as a Pepsi Challenge site for a volunteer clean- up of our local parks. The Waterways Commission, our harbormaster and the police department worked together on implementing a harbor patrol to improve public safety. Dartmouth implemented the Meals Tax option in order to target resources for the implementation of Full Day Kindergarten. Finally, we have pursued and secured public support for the building of two wind turbines on town-owned land in our community which will over time decrease our energy costs and increase revenues.
5. Community Morale- Our town has administrator and directors in several key positions—public safety, budget & finance, development and the building department.  After 20 years with the same Executive Administrator, we’ve gone through a pretty big transition to bring in someone new and are now coming out of what we would call “a healing period.” How we treat one another and respect one another in the public domain is paramount. While results are critical and we are proud of the part each of our boards has played in producing them, we are most proud of the improved community morale our town has experienced in the last 18 months. Town staff and volunteers who are both elected and appointed work side by side every day to better our community. We do not always completely agree on an approach. When this occurs we have the choice to conduct ourselves with professional grace. We can take the high road. We can and do ask questions and thank someone who conducted research that broadened our view. We can and do give one another the benefit of the doubt and we can and do compliment instead of criticize. Dartmouth has a pile of evidence before us as to what we are doing well and it illustrates how we must continue to approach the hard work ahead of us.

If you would like to get involved or join a committee in town please feel free to contact us:

Shannon Jenkins:  Shannon Jenkins

Greg Jones: Greg Jones

Phil Lenz: Phil Lenz

Lara Stone: Lara Stone