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Outgoing manager's advice a good start

By JEFF WEBB
Published November 13, 2005

Proving that a lame duck can still quack, outgoing Hernando County Administrator Gary Adams is in the liberating position of making suggestions to county commissioners in the form of take-it-or-leave-it advice.

It's not as if Adams has copped an attitude during the final weeks before he heads for a better job Up North. On the contrary, he is working as hard and sincerely as he always has to tie up loose ends and leave the local ship of state in better shape than when he found it.

That work ethic is evident in a report Adams presented to the commissioners recently that provided an overview of the need to expand, consolidate and relocate some government facilities. Adams identified 10 problem areas, but he singled out three that need immediate attention. They are:

Finding space for two new judges.

Determining what to do with the old Brooksville Regional Hospital.

Constructing a facility to replace the Cooperative Extension Office adjacent to the Hernando County Fairgrounds.

Adams' sense of urgency is not exaggerated. The judges are already on the job and need a permanent workplace, instead of the courtroom sharing arrangement they are in now.

The Cooperative Extension offices consist of a cluster of run-down modular buildings that have been tied together, and soon the parking lot for visitors will be overtaken by a road leading to a new housing development.

And Brooksville Regional Hospital has already moved into its new digs on State Road 50, vacating its facility on Ponce De Leon Boulevard. The company that owns the hospital will maintain the vacant building until April, but after that, upkeep will revert to taxpayers.

The commission followed Adams' advice that it appoint a citizens committee to examine all the space needs. The panel will have 25 members; some may be appointed by commissioners and some may be selected from a pool of applicants.

It makes sense to get a buy-in from the public. It draws on the expertise of residents who can look at problems with fresh eyes, and gives the commissioners cover if their suggestions prove unpopular with the public.

But the best reason to form a committee has more to do with cash than consensus.

The outgoing county administrator was refreshingly direct with commissioners in his report: "... resolving all of these problems will require a great deal of money." He went on to suggest several options for raising that money. Those include asking voters to increase the sales tax, borrowing money by issuing bonds, and selling some property and using that money for new facilities.

Adams knows that commissioners will need to have the support of the citizens committee to justify the expense. He also correctly anticipates that people who are not directly answerable to the public will be more inclined to make decisions based on needs, rather than political consequences.

In that vein, Adams even suggested that once the the citizens committee approved a list of construction projects, the County Commission could not deviate from that schedule without bringing the proposed changes back to the committee. Such empowerment of an appointed panel of residents would be unprecedented in Hernando County, and it will be interesting to see if the commissioners are willing to share that authority.

It will take time to assemble the committee and a while longer for its members to gather the information they will need to develop a long-term facilities plan. That's why the commissioners should consider taking those three most-pressing issues and acting on them as soon as possible. It would not be fair to the appointed committee to be placed under the gun from the outset; let that group ease into its advisory role.

It's no skin off Adams' nose if the commissioners decide to ignore his counsel. He's moving on. But, to his credit - and to the delight of everyone who favors progress over procrastination - he took it upon himself to give the commissioners a very useful blueprint. It is one of the most constructive in his 16-month tenure.

Taxpayers should watch to make sure the commissioners don't duck his advice.

Jeff Webb can be reached at 352 754-6123 or webb@sptimes.com

[Last modified November 13, 2005, 03:00:43]