Dorrene's Charlotte Report

By Dorrene Jeske
Ogden City Councilwoman-elect

Dear Weber County Forum Readers, here is my report on the National League of Cities Conference in Charlotte. I am sorry that it has taken me all week to write it. Sunday afternoon my great grandson, who is 7 months old, flipped himself back , out of his aunt's arms and tumbled down 15 cement stairs. He was in critical condition for a couple of days, using a respirator to breathe. He has a fractured skull with some brain damage in the part of the brain that controls balance and movement of his limbs. The extent of that damage isn't known and won't be known for a while. But he is breathing on his own now, and the doctors at Primary Children's Medical Center think he will be able to go home for Christmas. So Sunday and Monday were spent down there. The rest of the week has involved meetings every day with City staff members and one long meeting with the Department Directors. I also met with Mayor Godfrey, one-on-one, but I did take yesterday afternoon after our 8:00 AM meeting to do some Christmas shopping.

The seminars at the National League of Cities on Tuesday and Wednesday were superb! The material was helpful and presented by professionals from universities and companies. I might add that the material presented was so worthwhile and helpful that I purchased the set of CDs containing all the seminars at MY expense, NOT the taxpayers'. I have told Mr. Cook, Council Director, that they are available for use by the Council. They will be a great resource on many topics and will benefit the City and taxpayers immensely as they are accessed and used.

The networking opportunities with other council members from various cities and towns, who have experienced similar challenges as Ogden, was most worthwhile. It was most helpful to listen to their experiences and learn of their solutions.

I attended a seminar on "How to Revitalize your Downtown" It reinforced my feelings about the way the Rec Center was handled. The booklet that was available warned of ten myths (about half we have heard from the City over the last few months). It then described the solid business tools and how to put them into place to ensure economic success. The way the City has written the contract with Boyer, if passed December 27th, any and ALL control of the Rec Center and mall development will be REMOVED from the hands of the City Council!! Scott Brown will be the ONLY contact for the City! THIS IS TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!! But the current Council Members insist that they be the ones to vote on the contract. I asked if the new Council could revisit this, and was told that it was unlikely that Boyer would agree to it. Rick Safsten and Brandon Stephenson are the two Council Members who will be affected by this contract who may vote for it. They are up for re-election in two years, and should be contacted and persuaded to use good judgment when voting Dec. 27th. Even if they tell you that it's the RDA Board who is voting on it, let them know that you can remove them from that Board by voting them off the Council in two years. Let them know that as elected officials, they are accountable for everything concerning the Rec Center and the mall, and that you will hold them responsible and accountable even if they give up the power to oversee the development. Rick's home phone # is 392-2842, and Brandon's is 399-1419.

Back to the Conference. I attended a seminar on "Marketing Your City for Economic Development and Tourism." When I mentioned at our meeting yesterday, that I had attended this workshop, the Mayor told me that I was in charge of coming up with a name for the Rec Center/Mall and the River project. I'm a firm believer in brainstorming and I am organizing a committee to come up with "brand" names for the two projects and a motto to market Ogden. We have a lot of talented people in Ogden and I feel that we can save the City some money by doing it ourselves. At least, we're going to try! If you would like to be on that committee, email me at jeske4ogden@comcast.net, or call 782-5827, but I'm seldom at home any more. I received guidelines for developing a brand name that will reflect Ogden's personality, build vision and provide an identity now and in the future.

I also took a class on connecting with the community and involving them more via technical means. I am going to have a web page of my own, where I can inform you of actions the City plans, of activities, etc., and also provide an easy way for you to communicate your concerns and desires to me. I have already approached someone to help me with it.

I tried to have a one-on-one interview with a professional developer on revitalizing downtown, but the slots were filled by the time I got to the front of the line. They are sending the packet of information to me because I followed-up to see if there were any "no-shows."

The workshops Thursday and Friday were one and half hours and not as informative. They had some very good vendor displays. There were several about after-school programs and I will share that information with the Council when I take office to see if we can assist The Marshall White Center in any way.

I also picked up information on ways to receive help in addressing our aging water and sewer lines which are a major concern to me.

I took the workshop about how to schedule your family, professional and civic responsibilities so that you keep your life balanced. After this week, I need to review my notes and I'm looking forward to receiving the CDs with the recorded workshops.

I feel much more confident in my ability to handle the responsibilities of being your Council Representative than I did before I attended the Conference. I feel that I obtained good and viable suggestions/solutions for some of the challenges that face us as a Council. To me it was worth every penny it cost, and I hope that as I represent you on the Council and address the challenges and work for a better Ogden that you will feel the same way.

Dorrene