Assistant City Manager Larry Arnold said staff is already working on
implementing the six goals commissioners set at a retreat Oct. 12, including the
major objectives of bringing more industry to the city and strengthening code
enforcement. And although some of the goals might be difficult to realize, he
said, he is confident that they'll all be at least begun by the time 2002 ends.
"My goal is to make sure that in each area we have very specific
strategies to move forward, and we have ways of monitoring and measuring
that," Arnold said. "That's what I'll be doing with staff, and we'll
make sure we keep the community in the loop and our government officials up to
date."
Arnold has been tapped by City Manager David Greene to oversee the
implementation of the objectives, delegating repsonsibility depending on the
work. Arnold said some of the objectives may end up being multi-year projects.
"Some of them, depending on the specific strategies, they may be works
in progress," he said. "They will all be under way in the calendar
year."
Of the six goals, at least three have already been started by staff. But some
of the goals are contingent on outside influences, such as the Cleveland Indians
and their future spring training plans, including one of the top objectives for
the commission.
-- Developing a master plan for the Chain of Lakes Complex will likely depend
on the team. Arnold said staff will be looking at how the complex operates now
and what the property could be used for in case the Indians decide to relocate.
Arnold said the city could create an amateur athletics niche, using the facility
for nonprofessional baseball and softball that would bring in more revenue for
the city.
"You find your strengths and really capitalize on them," he said.
"You find your niches that develop over time, and really work them."
-- Strengthening code enforcement and eliminating the backlog of cases, a top
priority, has already begun with the division's move into the police department,
Arnold said. Code enforcement and community police officers have been going
through the city street by street in a code blitz, citing people for violating
city ordinances in an effort to crack down on code infractions and clean up
neighborhoods.
"We will further refine that process," Arnold said.
W Arnold said both the city's power and cable franchise agreements are up for
renewal in a couple of years, and staff will be making sure the city gets the
best deal from utility companies who put their lines on city land. They also
hope to get those companies to put lines near soon-to-be developed areas, he
said.
W With city officials negotiating with Reliant Energy to build a power plant
on city-owned land, they're already trying to bring industry to Winter Haven.
But the rest of this objective includes refining the downtown development plan,
having at least three large corporations invest or locate in either of the two
Community Redevelopment Agency districts and pursuing development outside the
CRA districts, which are downtown and Florence Villa.
W Completing the Florence Villa master plan is high on the list for the CRA,
which should begin major redevelopment work in the district next summer.
W Greene has long said that he wants his top department heads under one roof,
so devising a 10-year facilities plan as an objective wasn't a surprise. Much of
the city's departments are spread out around the city.
Arnold said implementing the six objectives will be a team effort among the
staff, with him overseeing the work.
"It's a basic step-by-step process, but a number of those goals are
already underway," he said. "And what Im doing is actually calling a
group of key department heads and staff folks together and sit down and walk
through the goals."