Ohio Township Association Conference

By Gene Krebs. On Saturday morning I spoke to the Ohio Township Association at their annual conference.  There were about 200 trustees and fiscal officers in attendance.  During my speech I explained that Ohio needs to make major changes in the way we govern ourselves in order to stay competitive in a global economy.  We need to adapt.  Ohio’s current governance structure, with 88 counties, 938 municipalities, 1,308 townships, 668 school districts, and 700 special districts is vast and fractured.  Only six states have more governments per square mile than we do.  This structure of governance was laid out when we were a predominantly horse and buggy economy; county lines were drawn so one could travel to and from the county seat on their horse in one day.  This is clearly no longer the case.  Instead, we are hemmed in by old governance structures. To illustrate how rapidly times are changing, and how urgently we need to adjust in order to keep up, I used this frame:

How many of you in the audience age 50 and over, and willing to admit it, were raised in a household where your family car had air conditioning?   Let me give you a broad brush statement, you probably drove to today’s meeting a car that gives you a higher standard of living than the house in which you were raised.  Leather seats.  Heated leather seats.  GM has cars with cooled leather seats.  A better stereo system than we ever enjoyed in our youth, a TV the same size as the one we enjoyed growing up, but this one comes in color, and the telephone party line many of us were raised on, versus the ever present cell/phone PDA.  In short, how we live now bears no resemblance of how we lived a few short years ago.  And just so the younger people in the room can be also relate to these changes, realize that today's elementary schools are full of children who have never seen a phone attached to a wall.  See how quickly things have and are changing?

The main takeaway message is that even though we have adapted to change in other areas of our life, we haven’t made the same adjustments when it comes to our governance structures.  This matters because it costs us money by doubling some costs and forfeiting economies of scale.  But it also costs us in opportunity.  Instead of cooperating and competing for jobs and economic prosperity around the world, we compete with ourselves locally.  We need to function as regions to capture the opportunities of the global economy.  As regions, Ohio can’t be beat and we can compete with anyone.  Greater Ohio Policy Center is a resource available to assist with this transition.  But the key is that we need to acknowledge that the status quo from our past will no longer work in the future.  Ohio needs to make some major changes in order to stay competitive, and the time to act is now.

House Committee Accepts Greater Ohio Recommendation

The Ohio House Government Elections Committee has accepted Greater Ohio Policy Center's recommendation to designate the Ohio Department of Transportation as one of the top-tier government agencies for a performance audit in House Bill 2. Greater Ohio, an advocate for performance audits for state agencies since late 2005, is pleased to have ODOT included with Jobs and Family Services and Education departments in the bill.

Our mission promotes economic and land use redevelopment strategies and policies to position Ohio for long-term, sustainable economic growth. Included in that mission is a need for a balanced transportation portfolio, including funding for highways, ports, rail and transit, which can ultimately help attract economic development and assist in sustainable growth.

Gene Krebs, our senior director of government affairs and policy, presented Greater Ohio’s message to the committee earlier this week, saying: “A performance audit [of ODOT] will provide both the Administration and the General Assembly critical information to help the agency run more efficiently and gave a better assessment of its funding.”

The inclusion of ODOT in HB2 is directly related to one of the recommendations from our report, Restoring Prosperity: Transforming Ohio’s Communities for the Next Economy, which was released in conjunction with the Brookings Institution last year. The report is a “blueprint” for structural changes and state policy reforms intended to bring economic vitality to the state.

One of the report’s recommendations calls for analysis and tracking of ODOT investment decisions on the basis of greatest returns on investment.

Below are some of the reasons we believe ODOT’s HB2 inclusion was imperative:

• ODOT’s role in economic development is second only to the Ohio Department of Development.

• A performance audit can take a fresh look at ODOT’s portfolio, and, with the findings, recommendations can be made where deficiencies are noted.

• A large amount of funding, whether it is gas tax revenues or federal funds, flows through ODOT that must be contracted out making it susceptible to misuse and misappropriation by a variety of personnel.

• ODOT is facing fiscal collapse.  According to its 2010-2011 Business Plan, the organization faces a $1.5 billion deficit by 2017 – a figure that could be closer to $3.9 billion.

Wednesday HB2 moved to the House Finance Committee for further review. A hearing before the full House is expected next week.  If passed, the bill would then move to the Senate.

If you feel as strongly about this issue as we do, we encourage you to contact your representatives to share your views before next week.

To see Krebs’ testimony, click here.

Spreading the Restoring Prosperity Message

In recent weeks, Greater Ohio Policy Center's Executive Director Lavea Brachman has been a panelist or participant at various economic development-related conferences throughout Ohio. At “Sustainable Hamilton County: Reinventing Our Communities,” Brachman focused on governance reform as an economic growth tool. Hamilton County has 88 local governments compared with the Ohio average of 41.3 and the national average of 27.9, but the region is at the forefront of innovation.  Brachman cited the Government Cooperation and Efficiency project in 2007, which helped cities, villages and townships save $1.5 million the first year, and Green County Schools’ shared-services program.

Panelists at “Regional Prosperity for Northeast Ohio: Growing Together,” a public forum at Cleveland State University, discussed how the communities of Northeastern Ohio can come together to create an environment for economic prosperity and the connections between job growth, economic development and government collaboration.

Brachman shared highlights of Greater Ohio’s report, Restoring Prosperity: Transforming Ohio’s Communities for the Next Economy, and their applications for leveraging brownfields and other assets to grow sustainably at the “2011 Ohio Brownfield Conference” sponsored by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency.

Finally, on Jan. 26, Brachman participated in “The City in 2050: Creating Blueprints for Change in Columbus,” sponsored by the Urban Land Institute Columbus, in partnership with the City of Columbus, Franklin County, the Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission and The Ohio State University Knowlton School of Architecture. The kick-off event is the first of a series exploring how residents will live, work and play in Columbus in 2050.

For more information about Greater Ohio’s activities, click here to view additional media clips.

The Urgency of Reform

Last week, the Urbanophile blog posted an excellent entry entitled The Urgency of Reform.  In his post he took a thoughtful look at some of the creative solutions being proposed by different states to tackle their challenging financial situations and budget shortfalls.  He aptly notes that crisis breeds innovation.  And innovation with respect to governance reform is something Ohio, like many other states, desperately needs. In his post he mentions Greater Ohio Policy Center’s Restoring Prosperity to Ohio Report, specifically pointing out our numerous recommendations for consolidation.  We hope these ideas catch on and gain traction across the state.  We must take advantage of this unique opportunity for sweeping reforms to do what is best for Ohio with a keen eye towards the long term affects of our actions.  If Ohio can implement these necessary changes, we will be very well positioned to compete in the next economy.

Greater Ohio on the Radio: Regionalism and Townships

Last week Greater Ohio appeared on "All Sides with Ann Fisher," a daily public affairs talk show broadcasted throughout central Ohio.  On January 19th's show, Lavea Brachman and Matt DeTemple—the executive director of the Ohio Township Association—discussed regionalism and what regionalism means from the perspective of townships.

We welcomed the chance to talk about opportunities for partnering with townships because we have identified regionalism and governmental cooperation as a key component of a broader strategy for increasing prosperity in Ohio and improving our overall economic competitiveness nationally and globally.

As the most basic governmental entity in Ohio, townships are well positioned to collaborate with their neighbors and coordinate services—regionalizing processes that, DeTemple pointed out, are already voluntarily occurring throughout the state.  On the show, we praised such activities and suggested that they be encouraged by local and state lawmakers for their cost savings and quality of services potential.  For example, a recent study from the Greater Cincinnati area found that in the first year of Hamilton County’s Government Cooperation and Efficiency Project, townships, villages, and cities saved over $1.5 million dollars.

As Ohio’s new General Assembly works to balance the budget we will continue to urge lawmakers to encourage and incentivize collaboration.

Policy Implications from the Building Prosperity in Greater Akron Forum

On Tuesday January 18, 2011, Greater Ohio Policy Center co-hosted the Building Prosperity to Greater Akron Forum.  Over two hundred people attended this event and helped frame new approaches to ensure a strong future for the Akron Metro Region by preparing for the next economy.  The Akron Beacon Journal article from the event quoted Greater Ohio Policy Center’s executive director Lavea Brachman saying, ''We want to draw attention to great attributes and challenges of our cities and metropolitan areas […] What better place to do that than in Akron.''

Keynote speaker Paul Grogan, President and CEO of The Boston Foundation, discussed the innovative use of metrics to guide policy decisions and invest in city issues.  Other speakers included Ohio House Speaker William Batchelder, Lieutenant Governor Mary Taylor, Congresswoman Betty Sutton, Carol Coletta of CEOs for Cities, Dr. Frank Douglas of the Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron, Ross DeVol of the Milken Institute and Ned Hill of Cleveland State University.  For a complete list of speakers, please see the agenda.

Some of the key issues that were arose include the central importance of education and workforce development, the need for product development and jobs to attract residents to the Akron metro region, continued investment in Akron’s assets and areas of expertise (such as corrosion prevention), increased regional partnerships, the key role of Quality of Place as a business proposition, and better cooperation between the state and the Greater Akron area.

Some radical proposals were debated, such as: reduce the number of counties in the state by setting a minimum population of 750,000; review the cost of the judicial system; and return the oversight of welfare programs to the state instead of counties.

***

But we want to hear what you think!  In your opinion, what is the most important issue?  What are key policies that need to be added or changed in order to help build prosperity in Akron?  What best practices need replication and support?  What state policy barriers do you face that need to be resolved?   As our work progresses, we want to include your thoughts and perspectives.  Thank you for sharing your ideas and working together to build prosperity.

Building Prosperity in Greater Akron Forum

Neither rain, nor sleet nor snow will keep Greater Ohio Policy Center from Akron on Tuesday, January 18^th.  We along with The University of Akron, the Greater Akron Chamber, Summit County and the city of Akron are partnering to present an economic forum at the John S. Knight Center to build upon Akron’s recent accomplishments and major initiatives, and develop new strategies to pave the way for continued growth. The Building Prosperity in Greater Akron Forum is one of a series of forums and meetings planned by Greater Ohio throughout the state in connection with our Restoring Prosperity: Transforming Ohio’s Communities for the Next Economy report, which was released in conjunction with the Brookings Institution last year. The report is a “blueprint” for structural changes and state policy reforms intended to bring economic vitality to the state.

Forum session topics will be:

• The “Akron Model:” Establishing a Baseline for Progress

• Clusters of Innovation (Regional and Global)

• Talent and Workforce Development

• Quality of Place and Product

• Identifying Solutions to State Policy Barriers

The keynote speaker will be Paul S. Grogan, president and chief executive officer of The Boston Foundation, who will discuss the importance of using clusters and how metric research can help guide future policy decisions. Ohio Lt. Governor Mary Taylor and Congresswoman Betty Sutton will provide remarks during the forum, while Ohio House Speaker William G. Batchelder will lead a plenary session on the General Assembly’s priorities for 2011.

For those of you that are attending we encourage you to tweet (don’t forget to use #AkronForum in your tweets!) during the presentation and offer your comments in our blog following the forum.  We need to hear your feedback to ensure that we are advocating for the right state policies to build on all the great initiatives and programs are already ongoing in the Greater Akron region.

Greater Ohio Policy Center: Year in Review

We don’t mean to brag, but 2010 has been an exciting year for Greater Ohio Policy Center.  Here's our "best of" list from the past 12 months.For good reason, 2010 has got us fired up and ready to accomplish even more in 2011, including a state-wide Policy Summit in the late spring, a Restoring Prosperity Forum in Akron on Tuesday, January 18, regular appearances on Columbus on the Record, and new original research on city and township trends.

To stay up-to-date and learn more about all of these events coming up in 2011, remember to follow us on our blog!

INFLUENCING STATE POLICY

Released our report, Restoring Prosperity: Transforming Ohio’s Communities for the Next Economy. Co-authored with the Brookings Institution, the report makes 39 policy recommendations which are organized under three broad categories: 1) building on Ohio’s assets; 2) governance reform; and 3) better aligning of federal policy with Ohio state policy.

Successfully lobbied the passage of the Land Bank Bill (Substitute House Bill Number 313) which allows 42 counties the authority to implement county land banks.  Of the 900 bills brought before the 128^thGeneral Assembly between 2008 and 2010, this was one of only 58 bills passed and signed.

Shaped recommendations found in the Compact with Cities Task Force. At the request of Ohio House Speaker Armond Budish, we helped design policy and legislative strategies which focus on stimulating economic growth in Ohio’s urban cores.

Advocated for regional governance and collaboration (a key pillar of our Restoring Prosperity agenda) through attendance, expert testimony, and a prepared informational document to the 2010 Ohio Commission on Local Government Reform and Collaboration.

Influenced and contributed to the development of a state pilot project, in connection with the Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund, that will provide $8 million for a new brownfield cleanup program utilizing sustainable practices for Urban Waterfronts, Sustainable Infrastructure, and wind and solar projects. This pilot follows on a recommendation from our Restoring Prosperity report.

Offered recommendations to the 2010 Budget Planning and Management Commission as this bipartisan, legislative commission explored long-term solutions for reducing state government spending and developing a plan for balancing Ohio’s next budget bill.

Influenced 2010 Ohio Farm Bureau policy by partnering with the Ohio Farm Bureau to distribute a paper which outlined how rural communities rely on strong metro and urban cores.  This paper reached over 600 Farm Bureau audiences.

Entered public discourse leading up to the November elections through candidate op-eds, in-depth analyses by newspapers on Greater Ohio policy concerns, and the incorporation of GO ideas in candidates’ platforms.

Published an op-ed in all eight major metro newspapers following the release of the Restoring Prosperity report.  The columns reiterated the report’s finding that Ohio is well positioned to compete in the next economy.

RESEARCHING FOR SUSTAINABLE GROWTH

Released the white paper, Ohio’s Cities  At  A Turning Point: Finding the Way Forward. Co-written with Brookings Institution, the white paper provides 10 policy recommendations to guide leaders as Ohio’s eight largest cities undergo a physical transformation.

Extensively analyzed demographic trends in Ohio, its metros, and the nation from 2000 to 2008.  Issued the “Shaping the State” report that concludes that demographic changes in Ohio reveal a state that is falling behind other states in some areas, but demonstrates strong potential in several others.

Provided Ohio-specific information on the value of exports.  Our analysis found that the state’s goods exports as a share of total exports is above the national average, but our service exports lag behind other states.

Currently assessing the feasibility of creating a center city organization in Youngstown. We’ve met with local civic leaders, business representatives, and elected officials to develop a plan that will comprehensively coordinate development activities in downtown Youngstown.

PARTNERING IN OHIO...

Provided strategic advice to the Northeast Ohio Consortium for a HUD Sustainability Grant. In October 2010, HUD announced that this proposal would be awarded $4.25 million.  Greater Ohio will continue to work with Northeast Ohio officials on this grant and has joined the leadership team. Hosted a Peer-to-Peer Civic Capacity Workshop for Small and Mid-Sized Cities.  In conjunction with Sen. Sherrod Brown’s staff, this convening brought together, local elected officials, policy-makers, and civic leaders from representative cities to discuss local capacity challenges and capacity building strategies.

Partnered with the Center for Community Progress (CCP) to lead a statewide Landbank Training Session.   In June, 11 counties participated in the daylong event with presentations by Greater Ohio, CCP and the Cuyahoga County Land Bank.

...AND BEYOND

Entered into a partnership with the German Marshall Fund of the United States to lead a new three year initiative on “cities in transition.” This partnership providing unique opportunities for Ohio’s local and state leaders to learn from European cities’ rebuilding practices.

Launched a multi-state Cities in Transition Initiative (CITI) network to solicit feedback, advice, and fresh ideas on issues facing these cities and provide a forum which collects practices and policies and creates the best possible federal, state, and local policy recommendations to meet these cities’ specific needs.

Participated in the Global Metro Summit. Sponsored by the Brookings Institution, the London School of Economics and Political Science, the Alfred Herrhausen Society, and TIME, this two-day program explored the drivers of urban economic transformation, a key concern for Greater Ohio.

Met with key federal policymakers at HUD and the EPA to continue developing recommendations and policies for cities in transition.  These meetings discussed how federal policies might help shrinking cities and what kinds of new policies may be needed.

Participated in a news conference call with U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and U.S. Rep. Tim Ryan (OH-17) to discuss the Livable Communities Act of 2010, a critical bill  that could direct federal assistance to and improve the livability of communities impacted major population and job loss.

SNAPSHOTS OF 2010

39 newspaper articles, 16 editorials, 19 blog posts, and 2 TV stories covering just the release of the Restoring Prosperity Report

An additional 97 newspaper articles and 15 blogs covering Greater Ohio work or citing Greater Ohio findings

5 TV appearances by Greater Ohio

50+ panels and presentations we’ve participated on or led

3,998 miles traveled, one-way, taking Greater Ohio on the road to Europe (Greater Ohio’s visit to Leipzig)

722 Twitter followers

183 Facebook “likes”

3,894 Greater Ohio Supporters who receive our regular updates including information on our initiatives, innovative best practices and newsclips from throughout the state

74 posts on our Greater Ohio Blog

13,335 visits to our new website which was completely redesigned in February to be more visually appealing and user friendly

4 different ways Greater Ohio staffers regularly commute to the office:  walking, biking, busing, and driving

1 new office which is now located in a refurbished mattress manufacturer building in an up-and-coming district near downtown Columbus

Columbus Metropolitan Club

By Gene Krebs. I attended yesterday's Columbus Metropolitan Club meeting that was supposed to feature Kathy Lawler, who was going to speak on the impact of the built environment on the aging population.  She was unable to attend due to the Snow-pocalypse of Atlanta.  Instead they had a panel moderated by Chester Jourdan of MORPC made up of area experts on aging.  The panelists included Marilyn Brown, Franklin County Commissioner; Linda Mauger, OSU gerontology; Linda Artis, Senior Independence and Cindy Farson, Central Ohio Aging.

They discussed that when seniors age, society needs to provide opportunities for mobility other than cars.  The demographics are against Ohio, especially in rural counties, as up to 20% of their population will be above 65 years-old very soon.

One of the panelists mentioned that Franklin County used to have a program for “group homes” for senior citizens, but it had to be cut due to budget constraints, and we needed to find funding for this again.  A nice young man was then brought to the microphone that actually has a business based on creating these group homes, proving that free enterprise will step in in many cases when the public sector bows out.

Kathy Lawler will be back on March 2^nd and it should be a good program.  Go to the CMC's website for more details; it is open to the public.

The Leadership Secrets of Bob The Builder

This blog is part of an occasional blog series on lessons learned from European "cities in transition." The guest author, Alan Mallach, non-resident senior fellow, Brookings Institution, participated in a recent trip to Europe along with Greater Ohio Executive Director Lavea Brachman. One thing that comes through loud and clear from both the Manchester and the Leipzig experience is that leadership matters. It’s pretty clear that without the leadership of Mayor Hinrich Lehmann-Grube in Leipzig after 1990, or the sustained leadership provided by operational/political partnership of Sir Howard Bernstein and Sir Richard Leese in Manchester since the 1980s, these cities would have achieved far less than what they have. I’d like to focus on Manchester, and on what Bob the Builder has to do with that city’s narrative.

There are a lot of interesting things about the Manchester leadership narrative, including the transformation of a band of fairly radical Socialists into entrepreneurs, the importance of continuity of leadership – Sirs Leese and Bernstein have been in their jobs since the mid 1990s, and stepped into their present day roles from key secondary leadership roles since the early or mid 1980s – or the (to me at least) inspiring rags-to-riches story of a 16 year old junior clerk (or tea-boy) working his way up to become the city’s Chief Executive.

Manchester 3

I think it was one of the folks at the University who commented about Bernstein “he’s a regular Bob the Builder.” I didn’t think about it a lot. I’d vaguely heard of Bob the Builder as a popular UK children’s TV and video character, and yes, Bernstein and company have built a lot of stuff. But actually the Bob the Builder comment wasn’t really about buildings. The show is about Bob and his team, and yes, he’s a builder, but the show is really about how to have a relentlessly positive attitude. The theme song of the program is a kind of challenge-response number, which goes like this:

Bob: Can we fix it???

Kids: Yes we can!!!!

As Bob the Builder’s web site helpfully points out, “Bob and the Can-Do Crew demonstrate the power of positive-thinking, problem-solving, teamwork and follow-through.”

One of the more impressive aspects of the Manchester story is precisely this can do attitude. The Olympic bid could be seen as a preposterously quixotic effort, but it clearly facilitated a lot of planning and investment, and led directly to the city’s holding the Commonwealth Games in 2002, which has been pretty universally acclaimed as a success, and an important turning point. The city’s response to the IRA bombing in 1996 was another.  Within less than six months after the bombing, a firm was at work on developing a master plan and rebuilding scheme for the area, after having been selected through a highly competitive design competition. A year later, reconstruction was well under way.  Manchester’s experience offers a telling counterpoint to the years of largely pointless and often unseemly wrangling that took place after the 9/11 World Trade Center bombing.

Manchester 4

While the attitude may be relentlessly can-do, it is grounded in realism. Bob the Builder doesn’t do fantasies; he gets the job done, and is devoted to teamwork (it helps that most of Bob’s ‘team’ are machines, rather than people). A British academic writer, by no means uncritical of Manchester or Bernstein, has written that “the role for Manchester City Council (MCC) that Bernstein has developed is simultaneously assertive about the capacity of local government’s ability to ‘make it happen’ and realistic about the way this capacity is strongly prescribed by MCC’s relation to other partners.”[1]

There are some legitimate issues with the Bob the Builder leadership style. It is not participatory.  In a conversation with folks from the University of Manchester, someone noted that Bernstein “knows what he wants and expects people to follow.” That issue is not unique to Bernstein or to Manchester. There is an inherent tension between leadership and participatory values, which needs to be acknowledged. Certainly, nobody ever accused Mayor Daley of being participatory. Leadership leads.

The other danger with that relentless can-do approach is that things come up that one can do, but one’s drive to make things happen and one’s ability to make them happen, can blind one to whether they are things one should do. Or that one tends to focus on the quickest path to the most visible end, and fail to consider alternatives that might take longer and be more complicated to put together, but yield results that create more long-term, sustainable outcomes in the end. Still, from what we saw, I’d give the city on balance pretty good marks.

Realistic, relentlessly can-do leadership is likely to be an important part of the transformation picture. And now, I’m going to turn on my TV to watch Bob the Builder.

[1] Adam Holden, “Bomb Sites: The Politics of Opportunity,” in Jamie Peck and Kevin Ward, eds. City of Revolution: Restructuring Manchester, Manchester University Press (2002).