A right-sizing plan under consideration by the Augusta Commission could see the city divest a handful of unused properties and consolidate grounds maintenance in a single division.
Interim Administrator Takiyah Douse told a commission committee that consolidating services could end the “exaggerated conversation” that goes on over which city department is responsible for which maintenance.
“Is it a right-of-way? Is it grounds? Is it at a facility? Is it Parks and Recreation? No, it’s Central Services. No, it’s Engineering,” goes the conversation, Douse said. “We’ve heard this story over and over again.”
The commission tasked Douse earlier this year with developing a right-sizing plan, which she presented in greater detail Tuesday. The plan calls for the elimination of duplicated services, divesting unused parks and buildings, reassigning underused vehicles and more.
“The process of restructuring is to ensure we operate efficiently, as well as meet updated service objectives,” Douse said. “It’s important for you to know this is a plan, not a final destination.”
Douse’s recommendation is to locate all grounds and right-of-way maintenance functions – grass cutting, landscaping, park maintenance, trees, street-sweeping and the like – under Central Services, the department created in 2016 to oversee functions that include 311, fleet maintenance and real estate. Douse served as central services director prior to her appointment as interim administrator last year.
The move would ensure the best deployment of resources and give Augusta a competitive advantage in securing maintenance contracts, she said.
Currently, three departments – Parks and Recreation, Engineering and Central Services – oversee the bulk of grounds maintenance, but Environmental Services, which also did, was moved under Engineering last year. Each uses a mix of in-house and contracted services to maintain its assigned areas.
Divesting city parks, buildings
Other aspects of the plan include divesting five city parks, which could save the city around $145,000 a year to maintain, she said. The parks to be sold other otherwise disposed of are Alexander Barrett, Bedford Heights, Heard Avenue and Wood Street parks, along with the West Augusta Soccer Park. The soccer park is $122,180 of the maintenance cost despite access being limited to a soccer club.
The city could sell seven additional properties that could raise more than $3 million, Douse said. Those properties are the Old Engine Co. 12 on Mike Padgett Highway, the old Chamber of Commerce building in the Broad Street median, surplus property on Prep Phillips Drive, fire stations on Reynolds Street and Sandbar Ferry Road, the former sheriff’s substation on Mike Padgett and the construction yard on Highland Avenue.
In addition, the city could sell approximately 25 parcels acquired by Augusta Housing and Community Development for redevelopment in the Laney-Walker and Bethlehem communities, she said.
Douse also recommended reassigning underutilized vehicles to other departments. “You would be surprised to see how many vehicles are not utilized to their full capacity on a day-to-day basis,” she said.
‘A mammoth effort’
Two commissioners, Francine Scott and Jordan Johnson, questioned implementing the plan until after a position compensation and classification study is completed. Douse said preliminary results from that study are due in the fall.
Commissioner Sean Frantom said the plan may not go far enough. “The amount of printing that we do within this government when some things are automated now…. Some of the marketing we do; some of the parties. We’re appreciative of what (employees) do but they’re expensive,” he said.
Douse said actual implementation of the plan’s restructuring of positions would be “a mammoth effort” that would require extensive research. “I want to be sure that this is something that the commission is interested in” before proceeding, she said.
With four commissioners absent Tuesday, only one commission committee – administrative services, where Douse gave her presentation – had enough members to meet.
