Consultants Make Recommendations to Improve Ford City
In February, Novak Consulting Group Associate Jonathan Ingram introduced himself to the Ford City community as part of the team guiding Ford City through the Early Intervention Plan. He returned to the area last week to give the firm’s initial findings. (KP File Photo)
by Jonathan Weaver
Ford City Borough has been steadily decreasing expenditures, but it may have come at a cost.
During Novak Consulting Group’s evaluation as part of the Early Intervention Program, Associate Jonathan Ingram presented Borough Council with a nearly-100 page report, containing about 45 recommendations.
Last week during the monthly regular meeting, Ingram said with that “tight expenditure limitation,” Council could have not been able to invest in new hires or upgrades – but that’s where Novak comes in with some “creative funding sources.”
“There are challenges certainly, but there are also a number of opportunities that you are in as a good community to take advantage of moving forward,” Ingram said.
Consultants found an average of $190,000 in garbage fee revenue has been used to fund General Fund operations coupled with the lack of upgrading stormwater, transportation and water distribution infrastructure– something he hopes Council can eventually overcome.
Some of Novak’s recommendations include a long-term economic strategic plan, filling the Borough Manager position and expanding street maintenance tasks to increase preventative maintenance.
Ingram said the Operations Assessment started with a “deep dive.”
One of Novak Consulting Group’s recommendations was to enhance collection data for the Ford City Police Department - which Officer-in-Charge Michael Greenlee discusses here with the public and Borough Council members.
“We interviewed most of the staff who worked for the Borough – we also conducted focus groups as well. The purpose of those interviews and focus groups was really to get a good understanding of what is the status quo, what’s working and what isn’t,” Ingram said. “They really helped us drive our focus.”
As Department of Community and Economic Development’s Michael Foreman explained, Novak Consulting “worked diligently on a financial management plan, an operations plan, as well as looking for opportunities for shared services, community and economic development and future needs of the Borough as we move forward.”
“We see this as an opportunity to move the community forward with issues, concerns and challenges we have been confronting over the last several years, as the community moves from its past to its future, Foreman said.
“We look forward to continuing to work with the Borough in the future regarding implementation of this very important process, this action initiative.”
Borough Councilwoman Beth Bowser said both men’s efforts are an “asset” to the town and that some recommendations have already been fulfilled, but that others may take “years.”
“It’s a privilege that we have them. We as a Finance Committee have met with them throughout the whole process as we take the recommendations very seriously,” Bowser said. “As we got the pieces, we were able to implement them ahead of the presentation because it was sound advice – good logic and reasoning – why wait when we could?
“Most of these didn’t take any money to implement, but just rearranging and reorganizing and reutilizing what we already had.”
She concluded she was “very excited” to implement and upgrade the Strategic Planning Report.
A full copy of Novak Consulting Group’s report is available at the Borough Office or by contacting office officials via phone.
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By jorn jensen, September 20, 2016 @ 8:32 AM
“as the community moves from its past to its future”
To make Fjord City great again, you need what made Fjord City great in the past - work - meaningful, benefits-paid, well-paid, WORK. That will bring tax money to the town to rebuild the infrastructure.
You don’t need a consultant to tell you that - that is just reality and common sense.
How do you bring in work? Pressure your legislators to make Pennsylvania a right-to-work state. That would be a major mindset change for this area and for Pennsylvania, in general. We’re still stuck in the old union days. Stop and count all of the union jobs, unionized manufacturing plants, left in Armstrong County - you won’t even need all ten fingers to do that count.
So straight-forward that people can’t even see a way to the future.
By Just sayin, September 20, 2016 @ 11:10 AM
Re: Gas drillers using our river water
JJ wrote:
“It is not “our water” just because the river flows past Fjord City. Geez.”
My answer:
Jester Jorn: “Our water”—for recreation (boating, fishing, swimming), at the least. They have no right to take ANY towns’ water. It hurts the ecosystem, as well.
By Just sayin, September 20, 2016 @ 11:20 AM
From greenpeace.org
…fracking can pose a threat to local water resources, especially in areas where water is already scarce…
In the Marcellus Shale region, the most expansive shale play in the United States, 2 to 10 million gallons of water are needed every time a well is fractured. Because wells can be fractured multiple times, the total amount of water used for fracking is unknown and can vary by location and technology.
As of 2012, the fracking industry has drilled around 1.2 million wells, and is slated to add at least 35,000 new wells every year. (Jeff Goodell, “The Big Fracking Bubble: The Scam Behind the Gas Boom,” Rolling Stone 3/12/12 )
Because of the cost to truck water in from further away, companies prefer to use water from sources as close to the well as possible, which can result in significant impacts on local waterways and overburden local water treatment facilities. In Texas, which is suffering dangerous drought conditions, fracking continues even as water use by citizens is restricted, the landscape wilts and the animal life dies. In 2011 the Wall Street Journal reported that the diversion of water for fracking oil and gas wells is also a serious threat to ranchers and other businesses in Texas. (Russell Gold and Ana Campoy, “Oil’s Growing Thirst for Water,” Wall Street Journal, 12/6/2011)
By sickofpayingforit, September 20, 2016 @ 4:47 PM
So the naysayers for fracking don’t have natural gas in their houses, I would assume, or the very opposition would be hypocritical. I am leaning towards my assumption being wrong…….
By Just sayin, September 20, 2016 @ 5:40 PM
…fracking continues even as water use by citizens is restricted, the landscape wilts and the animal life dies.”
By Just sayin, September 20, 2016 @ 5:41 PM
Get the Frack out of here!!!
By jorn jensen, September 20, 2016 @ 6:14 PM
Oh for God’s sake, Just spraying, go hug a tree!