You may be sure that these days are scarcely ordinary – we are on the cusp of the extraordinary, the exceptional, and innovative. Nearly a month ago, Whitewater broke ground on a taxpayer-funded tech park, along a street renamed Innovation Drive, beside our existing business park. There was a brief ceremony, filmed for those who…
City
City
Attitude, Behavior, Programs
by JOHN ADAMS •
There’s more than one way to change an organization. I’ve thought, over the years, that there were two principal ways: begin by shaping the attitude of employees, or by shaping their behavior. (I see that it’s possible to begin with both, but my point would be that one typically begins by emphasizing one over the…
City, Poverty
Poverty in Whitewater
by JOHN ADAMS •
Before the budget, before the municipal administration, politicians, bureaucrats, and back-patters, is a city of fourteen-thousand. Most of these fourteen-thousand have, sensibly, more important concerns than the latest, supposedly extraordinary and exceptional (excuse me, exceptional! bureaucratic achievement. Little over a month ago, there was a rare mention, for Whitewater, of (child) poverty. Our poverty rate…
City
The Mild Political Weather in Whitewater, Wisconsin
by JOHN ADAMS •
It’s a chilly October in Whitewater, Wisconsin, but the political climate has never been milder. That must seem odd, in a time of economic hardship with rising unemployment. There’s a gap, though, between the condition of ordinary residents and their interest in the plans and schemes from our municipal building. The political climate in the…
City
Marquee Projects
by JOHN ADAMS •
It’s not true that marquee projects make no difference to life in Whitewater, Wisconsin. They do make a difference, just not enough to alter the high poverty and slow growth that besets our community. Several big projects may have a comforting influence, and offer a cumulative lift, to those who use them. Outside that orbit,…
City
Shifting Leadership, Stable Elite
by JOHN ADAMS •
If one thinks about Whitewater over the last several years, all of its principal offices have changed hands once, or more, with the exception of the city’s police chief (who left briefly, but returned). No one else from 2000 yet retains a leading political or appointed office. Those who were front and center a decade…
City
Committees as Governor and Accelerator
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater, Wisconsin has any number of official public bodies and ad hoc committees. We probably have too many, working on too many tasks, at once. They’re often composed of the same people, something more common than even our small size makes necessary. Use of the same people, over and over, serves two advantages. First, no…
City
“Hitting icebergs is who they are and what they do.”
by JOHN ADAMS •
Over at The Truth About Cars there’s a post about the leadership of the New GM, with a great line, mixing all sorts of references: I have no idea why Mark LaNeve still works for General Motors. The former Cadillac man was serving Kool-Aid on the bridge when CEO Rick Wagoner was Richard Nixon channeling…
City
The Truth About Cars
by JOHN ADAMS •
The Truth About Cars is a group blog, that Robert Farago founded because he felt that few were writing honestly and candidly about the automobile industry. Here’s a description from TTAC website: The Truth About Cars provides no-holds-barred, take-no-prisoners automotive reviews and industry-related editorials. Our writers call it like they see it, and pull no…
City, Police
Vandalism and Alcohol
by JOHN ADAMS •
Whitewater’s had more than its share of property damage from vandalism. Strong property rights make a for a strong community; free markets in private property are the foundation of a productive society. We have vandalism, too, and just about everyone contends that much of it comes from over-drinking, leaving a bar, after weekend last call.…
City
A Proposal for Whitewater’s Municipal Public Meetings
by JOHN ADAMS •
I once read that one should offer solutions, not problems. Funny, something like this passes as …. insight. (I’m not sure where I read it. It might have been on a motivational poster, in a fortune cookie, or perhaps from an email I saw from a former city employee, writing to Chief Coan, discovered during…
City, School District
Most Plaintiffs Leave School District, Voluntarily Withdraw Civil Rights Lawsuit
by JOHN ADAMS •
Late last week, court filings indicate that most of plaintiffs in a civil rights lawsuit against the Whitewater School District and other named defendants had left the district, and consequently had sought voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit they had filed in early September. A letter from plaintiffs’ counsel filed with court contends that most, although…
City, Press
Brunner in the Daily Union‘s “No Input at Budget Hearing.”
by JOHN ADAMS •
Earlier, in a post entitled, “Come On, Whitewater! Stop Disappointing Your Politicians and Bureaucrats (Part 2),” I considered some of Whitewater City Manager Brunner’s remarks on low turnout at budget listening session. The session was covered at the Daily Union, in a story entitled, “No Input at Budget Hearing.” In this post, a few follow-up…
City
Come On, Whitewater! Stop Disappointing Your Politicians and Bureaucrats (Part 2)
by JOHN ADAMS •
Over at the Daily Union, there’s coverage of the first of two scheduled municipal budget listening sessions. In a story entitled, “No Input at Budget Hearing,” Whitewater City Manager Kevin Brunner comments on the lack of attendance, and his own trailblazing listening session concept. It’s not that Brunner receives hard questioning from the newspaper; that’s…