Land Use/Zoning 101--Video Has Been Completed

 

                                  The Zoning 101 Video, above, was produced in-house by county staff

                                             

As I campaigned for and won my seat on the commission last fall--one of the many things I pledged to do was to help the average citizen understand two very contentious processes that the county manages.

Code Enforcement was one

and Zoning/Land Use Regulations was the second one.

Because, as I discussed in my campaign platform, NEXT4ESCAMBIA, these two issues are ones that create about 90% of the consternation among citizens that I serve.

Heated phone calls, angry emails, and lots of frustration--often due to a lack of complete understanding of these processes.

So with this video, Zoning 101, that has now been completed and some follow-on tweaking to describe zoning designations and what they mean along with the Code Enforcement 101 video that is coming---2/3 of my "Big Ideas" from NEXT4ESCAMBIA will have been realized.  (The open salary database for all county employees-"Big-Idea number 3" from my plan was activated last October and is live right now, here.  Big Idea #1--districtwide elections for commissioners OR addition of two at-large commission seats---is coming for discussion between and among board members in March.)

I thanked the staff profusely for the efforts they put into creating this video.  Now, we just need to disseminate it and feature it as prominently as we can on our website.

Escambia Employee Salary Database Goes Live

As of today--the total wages paid yearly  to every employee of Escambia County (already an often requested public record) is available for citizens to search in a newly established database that went live today.   

The state of Florida has a website where citizens can search for the total compensation for any state employee---because this data is a public record and citizens have the right to know.

The salaries of the public employees of local governments are also a public record.

We often receive public records requests for this information on specific employees.

But if the state can publish a searchable database--why can't the county?

Answer: we can.  And now we are.

As a part of my NEXT4Escambia plan--a strategy position paper I have developed for addressing specific issues over the next four years that I have written based upon public input---this very sort of an open, searchable salary database initiative was a major component!

I brought it forward to the administrator, the idea was socialized with my counterparts, and ----voila---here it is.  Glad we got it done.

Now, citizens do not have to ask permission to see the total wages paid to any Escambia County Employee--they just need to go here--and look it up for themselves.  They can peruse all of the salaries or just look for specific individuals.

It is important that citizens know what we pay our employees, because we treat our employees well and they are well compensated with good pay and generous benefits.  Often times an employee's total wages paid will greatly exceed what an "hourly rate" might otherwise indicate.  So folks need to look at this. 

Surprisingly--we have dozens of job openings in multiple departments that we have had a tough time filling.  I tell folks that working for the county, you'll never get rich--but if start out and stick with it and make it a career--you will have excellent benefits and a pension and if you stick it out you can have a great retirement!

NOTE:--this database indicates total wages paid per the FISCAL year, not calendar year.

I am going to request that the IT folks also add a "date of hire" column to the database, as I feel this will be a good addition to add some context to the salary information (e.g. is the employee "new" or a "journeyman")

Commissioner May asked if we could add a column for employee race and sex, and I believe that is in the works as well.

What's Important in Escambia County over the Next 4 Years?

As most everyone now knows, I am in a re-election campaign for my office as your District 1 County Commissioner.  This is not my campaign site, but from time to time over the next 65 days until the primary election on August 18th I will be talking politics here and I'll be talking about my campaign.

So I have posted the required disclaimer on this site now (below), and also on this particular post.

You see, unlike any previous campaign I or any one of us has ever been through--this time we all have a common enemy in COVID-19 that is inhibiting our ability to go door to door safely to meet you, the constituents of District 1.  This virus and this pandemic is changing our campaigns and our communities (economically, financially and from a community health perspective)--so we all have to adapt.

Part of this adaptation means communicating more online through social media in whatever outlets each of us candidates has at our disposal.

I have maintained this blog for more than 12 years, and I have cultivated a modest audience of local residents who come frequently to this page for information and for topics I present here.  Today, the topic I present is a plan.  A plan for the next four years in Escambia County--a plan I developed based upon input I have received from you, my constituents, over the last three and a half years as your county commissioner.  It is based upon four specific elements that I believe are critical to our area, particularly in the wake of this Coronavirus Pandemic.

The Economy/Jobs

Infrastructure/Public Safety

Transparent Governance

Quality of Life/Quality of Place

I intend to work, as much as any one individual county commissioner can, on implementing the specific points I make in this document if I am so fortunate to be re-elected on August 18th in the primary election.  I feel good about my prospects in this election, I do believe I will win and that is what the polls I have run thus far indicate--however I take nothing for granted and I will campaign diligently through the finish line in this campaign---just as I've done in my previous elections. 

As always, I am open to any critique of this plan, and I am always open to adding to it as conditions change.   Meanwhile, I present my plan here for your review--thanks in advance for taking a look at it!




Political Advertisement paid for and approved by Jeff Bergosh, Republican, for Escambia County Commissioner District 1.