Palmer panel points to changes

PALMER — Organizing efforts for economic development, overhauling the city’s organizational structure and allocating more resources to public safety are among the recommendations outlined in Palmer’s “Citizen Efficiency Review Team Report.”

Made up of 24 industry professionals, government representatives and city residents, the group reviewed city services and practices to identify where government can be more efficient and cost-effective. The team’s report was released this past week just before Thanksgiving.

“The main purpose [of the review team] is to identify those main areas of government services that require improvement,” City Manager Bill Allen said.

One of those areas is economic development. In its 36-page report, the Citizen Efficiency Review Team recommends Palmer create an economic development plan, actively pursue new business and industry and create an economic development committee.

“The No. 1 thing that the city can do is create friendly process,” said Sara Jansen, Palmer’s community development coordinator. Overall, those “friendly processes” translate into making it easier for people to do business in Palmer. This includes streamlining the permitting process and providing application assistance.

In its report, the review team identifies places for development as the industrial park, business center and airport. The city also needs to market itself better, create a friendly environment for businesses to work with local government, and examine how Palmer can use incentives to encourage businesses to relocate or remain in the city.

As for how the city is organized, the review team recommends a structure that doesn’t include the mayor as a working city administrator. Under the proposed organization, city council is at the top of the government food chain with a trio of officials reporting directly to council — the city attorney, city clerk and city manager. Under the city manager, an executive assistant and special projects coordinator will take ownership of economic development, grant writing, monitor state and federal legislation and other functions.

Five other main areas of city government also report to the city manager under the proposed structure. One of those areas, public safety, is also prominently mentioned in the review team’s report.

Jansen said some of the main concerns the team has is that the Palmer Police Department needs more personnel and the officers it has are paid well below other law enforcement officers in the area. This makes retaining good officers difficult.

“The team observed that officer morale was exceptionally high,” the report says. “This appeared to be based on personal loyalty to one another and to the supervisors within the department. Palmer police officers report being heavily recruited by members of the Alaska State Troopers and Wasilla Police Department. The financial realities of the disproportionate pay between Palmer, the state troopers and the City of Wasilla are of serious concern.”

For about 8 percent of police duty hours each month one officer is on duty, the report says. Three additional police officers and one additional sergeant would solve the problem.

The report also highlights a need for additional paid Palmer Fire Department personnel. Palmer has four paid city employees in the fire department and about 40 volunteer firefighters. Although the fire chief expressed a desire for more paid fire staff, some city officials aren’t convinced.

“We can’t be in the full-time firefighter business,” said Tony Pippel, a Palmer City Council member. “We don’t have the tax [revenue] here for that.”

In addition to more personnel, the review team identified several other issues that need to be addressed. For example, OSHA requires firefighters to go through a medical screening process, but that process has not been completed.

With the information compiled and presented, Jansen said department directors will focus on implementing the review team’s suggestions.

“I think there are several great operational recommendations that we can institute quickly and some that will take some time,” she said.

Besides providing unbiased insight into how the city is functioning, Allen said the review process, if taken to heart, will save Palmer a lot of money in the long run. Instead relying on expensive consultants to help address issues, the city can enlist the help of knowledgeable professionals and residents on a volunteer basis.

Contact Chris Gillow at chris.gillow@frontiersman.com or 352-2284.