“Neighborhoods
make a city livable,” says Julie “and Dunedin’s
livability is one of the things that makes Dunedin distinct.
We must never lose focus on our city’s neighborhoods.
They are the life blood of this community.”
That is why Julie, shortly after taking office, called for a
program where the City would provide “seed money”
and match moneys raised by a neighborhood for improvements.
To date, the following neighborhoods have benefited from this
plan: Braemoor Estates, Braemoor South, Dunedin Mobile Manor,
Edgewater Terrace and Spanish Trails. Neighborhoods hoping to
participate in theis program are:
CLICK
HERE FOR STORY
Grant Program Renews Streets
St. Petersburg Times, September
17, 2005
CAUSEWAY
MASTER PLAN
| Dunedin
Beach Civic Association - From Left to Right: Julie
Scales, Nancy Holland, Norma Tillgeo, Dave Pauley, Irene
Georgeades, Marvin Stone and Tom Mills. |
“The
Causeway is one of our neighborhoods and the wishes and desires
of our citizens living there deserve greater attention.”
As a member of the Dunedin Beach Civic Association, an organization
which has initiated a number of Causeway improvements over the
years, Julie knows that safety, beautification and the environment
are key concerns. To address these matters, she initiated the
Causeway Master Plan project, which has taken input from citizens
through surveys and public meetings, on desired improvements.
Currently, landscaping improvements are being made at the east
end of the Causeway. Under the plan, traffic safety and ongoing
maintenance will be improved.
VISIONING
FOR THE FUTURE OF DUNEDIN
“We
all love Dunedin and don’t want to lose its distinctive
charm and character to unchecked development.”
Julie believes that, in most situations, the best results come
from careful planning. Therefore, she asked her fellow commissioners
to join her in directing City staff to undertake a “Visioning”
process, through which our citizens would share with the City
their hopes and concerns for the future of Dunedin. Scores of
citizens participated in the meetings and the consensus is clear:
Dunedin is a unique coastal community with a high quality of
life and careful planning for our future is the only way we
will retain the unique charm and quality that we love. The first
step in this planning process has been to limit the height of
new buildings to 50 feet. This was in response to a clear message
from our citizens: Dunedin is a city of “human-scale”
development.
ANNUAL
COST EFFICIENCY/REVENUE ENHANCEMENT REPORT
“I
am committed to holding the line on taxes while maintaining
our excellent level of service. To do this, the City must be
always alert to opportunities for cost savings.”
In 2003, Julie asked the City Manager to put together a team
which would oversee an ongoing efforts to identify cost savings
in city operations and to seek opportunities for non-tax revenues,
including state and federal grants. This effort resulted in
reports for the 2004 and 2005 fiscal years that uncovered opportunities
for saving several million dollars over a five year period. At
the 2005 Budget Workshops, the City Commission approved including
these annual reports for consideration in the annual budget
process.
IMPROVED CUSTOMER SERVICE
“Every
service of the City should be delivered with the attitude that
our customers - our citizens - are NUMBER ONE!”
Since taking office in 2003, Julie has demanded accountability
for service levels from the Community Services Department -
the City department responsible for issuing permits for a wide
variety of projects. Staffing and reorganizational changes have
been made - with minimal impact to the General Fund budget -
which should improve the focus of permitting process. The new
Building Official is reviewing the process and identifying improvements
that can be made and will be making a report to the City Commission.
The City Engineer has undertaken a review of the City’s
20-year old Developments Code to determine what provisions are
obsolete and how the Code can be amended to streamline staff
review. Julie has proposed a group of citizens who represent
the users of the permitting process to review the reports and
proposals of the Building Official and City Engineer and to
provide their input. “We must eliminate the frustrations
and delays experienced by our citizens and caused through no
fault of their own,” says Julie.
PRESERVING
OUR WATERFRONT
“Our
waterfront is a unique asset. We must preserve it for our citizens
and their children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren - for
our future.” In August of 2005, Julie
called for a change in the City Charter that would require Dunedin
voters to decide on any proposal to sell publicly owned waterfront
property that has been designated for open space and recreation.
“Our citizens have told us that our waterfront is one
of the most precious assets of our city, a feature that helps
to make us so special,” says Julie. “Any decision
on the fate of publicly owned waterfront property should rest
with the citizens, not a handful of politicians”
