INAUGURAL PREVIEW
Mayor-elect Greg Ballard says he’ll name nearly a dozen members of his cabinet this week. He says there will be a couple surprises in his choices, but the public should be happy with the picks. Ballard says some of the positions he’s filled are Chief of Staff, Corporation Counsel and Deputy Mayor of Neighborhoods. He adds the public shouldn’t expect wholesale firings, saying a number of individuals in city government have expertise in areas that can serve the public well.
Ballard says his priorities will be reducing the number of dropped calls to the Mayor’s Action Center line, putting the police department back under the Mayor, outlining a plan to deal with the abandoned housing issue and instituting an ex-offender work program.
Ballard also says he plans a baseline audit of city functions and will incorporate a program called “City Stat” to measure the performance of city agencies. He also plans to create a department of “Enterprise Development” to look at whether more privatization is needed for city services and whatever other efficiencies can be discovered.
The Mayor-elect also told me he wants to create a Mayor’s Night Out where the Mayor would take one night a month to meet with members of the community and also plans to increase city cooperation with neighborhood groups.
Ballard will be sworn in as Mayor on January 1.
