1999-02-BOS-min - Laserfiche WebLink

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61-321 Selectmen's Meeting - February 22, 1999 for a long-range capital funding, the "out-of-the-box" initiatives to identify novel cost savings and revenue sources as well as his work with the DPW this year to implement cost savings with minimal impact on town services. These initiatives reflect not only Rick's ability to think strategically but his ability to engage his staff in addressing critical Town issues. Communication with Selectmen - another area in which we were very satisfied. We all feel that Rick does an excellent job in keeping us informed of emerging trends and potential problems. He and the Chair work closely together to prioritize issues and bring them forward to the whole Board. We feel that our working relationship is strengthened by Rick's commitment to keeping us all informed. Rick effectively uses information to empower us. Details sometimes escape Rick. We could all be more efficient if we relied on e-mail to make requests thereby creating a paper trail and perhaps including Rick's Office Manager in our requests. Communication with Other Boards, Committees and Officers This is an area in which there has been improvement over the past two years. We believe Rick's relationship with the Superintendent and School Committee is much more open and candid than it has been in the past due in no small part to a reciprocal openness offered by Dr. Baehr. Opportunities for engagement with the financial committees have been limited, but we do not regard this as problematic. We believe Rick has a good working relationship with the Chair of the Planning Board and would encourage him to continue to strengthen his relationship with the Planning Board and staff, particularly as we move forward with the Strategic Planning process. Negotiation of Contracts with Bargaining Units and Vendors We all share an admiration for Rick's negotiating skills. He knows what he wants to achieve and attains the best for the Town while maintaining the respect and dedication of the involved workforce. Although his working relationships have not been equally strong with all bargaining units, good results were achieved with all units in the most recent bargaining cycle, resulting in multi-year contracts for all unions. We expect that the resultant hiatus in contract negotiations will provide an opportunity for creative approaches that can strengthen communications and relations where there have been tensions in the past. Community Relations This is one area in which we were not unanimous in our observations, reflecting more a difference in our expectations than any deficiencies in Rick's performance. Some feel that Rick has made improvements in his relationship with the community. His relationship with members of the community can no longer be regarded as aloof, but there was some sentiment that he still has opportunity for improvement. Others of us feel that his communications are generally excellent, that he strikes the proper balance between involvement and protection of his staff in community matters. Specific examples include the work with the neighborhood in South Lexington to address traffic without recourse to introduction of traffic lights; the introduction of a biannual Newsletter, and the meeting chaired by the Chief of Police and the DPW Director to address neighborhood concerns about parking in the center. By the nature of his position, the Town Manager is the focus of the community concerns and we feel he