Mayor Lenny Curry is putting his stamp on how to run day-to-day city operations, taking several cues from his transition team.
The mayor filed legislation last week seeking major reorganization of the executive branch that includes the re-creation of a Neighborhoods Department and consolidation of other departments.
Kerri Stewart, Curry’s chief of staff, said many of the recommendations came from suggestions provided by Curry’s transition subcommittees last year.
Bringing back the Neighborhoods Department, she said, was a prevalent message throughout those discussions.
Recommitting to neighborhoods and blight issues, Stewart said, will have a positive impact on Curry’s No. 1 priority: public safety.
The Neighborhoods Department will operate under Chief Administrative Officer Sam Mousa and with a re-established Housing and Community Development Division — the “direct link” to city neighborhoods.
The department also would house the City Link/630-CITY office and several transferred offices like Regulatory Compliance, Municipal Code Compliance, Environmental Quality, Mosquito Control and Animal Care and Protective Services.
Other changes Curry is seeking in his reorganization include:
• Abolishing the Intra-Governmental Services Department. The Information Technologies, Procurement and Fleet Management divisions would be shifted to a reformed Finance and Administration Department reporting to Chief Financial Officer Mike Weinstein. The Equal Business Opportunity Office and ombudsman would be offices under Procurement. Vehicle inspection functions of the Office of Public Parking would shift to Fleet Management, while the rest of Public Parking would go under the Downtown Investment Authority. The Office of Grants and Compliance also would head to finance.
• The Office of Economic Development and Office of Sports and Entertainment are taken down a notch on the organizational chart. Instead of being direct reports to the mayor, they would be abolished as agencies and re-established as offices under Mousa.
• While former Mayor Alvin Brown’s education and public-private partnerships officers would be eliminated, several of Curry’s priorities would be formalized. The Office of Blight Initiative would operate under Mousa and establish citywide programs and initiatives. And a philanthropic officer and a data management and analysis officer would be created under the direction of Stewart. The philanthropic officer would coordinate and implement strategies to attract donors to support government activities, while the data management officer would use available city data for strategic planning.
As for Curry’s top officials taking on more of an oversight role, Stewart said that decision also came from recommendations from transition subcommittees.
There were simply too many direct reports to the mayor and the changes reflect a “more traditional style” of strong-mayor form of government, Stewart said.
The reorganization will “improve operational efficiency, enhance administrative oversight and provide improved fiduciary responsibility,” according to corresponding documents.
The potential cost savings are “insignificant,” according to the documents and the changes are simply managerial in nature, Stewart said. No layoffs are planned as part of the move.
The bill will be introduced Tuesday to City Council.
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