Townhall with Mayor Scott and City Administrator Shorter 3.17

We had a great conversation this week with Mayor Scott and City Administrator Christopher Shorter. The Mayor explained why Baltimore needed a City Administrator and we heard from Mr. Shorter about his background and goals in this new position. See the full video here.

Mayor Scott proposed the Charter Amendment to create the City Administrator when he was City Council President. More and more jurisdictions are moving to this model, and most of the jurisdictions in Maryland also have this model. The Mayor is the Chief Executive, and the Administrator is like a Chief Operating Officer. Mr. Shorter will be working with the Deputy Mayors and the Agency directors to make the changes needed and make sure the city runs smoothly.

Mr. Shorter comes from Washington DC government, having worked for Mayor Bowser as the DPW Director after a stint at the Boys and Girls Clubs. Prior to that he was in New York. Most recently he was the deputy City Administrator in Austin. Mayor Young, when inquiring about a City Administrator to national groups, heard Mr. Shorter’s name over and over, and sought him out for the job.

Mr. Shorter’s goals are:

-Procurement Reform: an RFP for a top-down assessment of our procurement system will sent out, and that assessment will be the basis of serious reforms of the system.

-Executive Recruitment: Recruiting the best talent for our agencies to be able to make the changes needed.

-Rewards and Recognition: Performance evaluation and rewards for excellent work build morale and a great workforce.

-Customer Service: Ensuring that interfacing with the public is consumer friendly and understandable. this includes reform of the 311 system.

-Regular Audits: This both means financial audits and performance audits

All of this while working to implement the Mayor’s goals.

Mr. Shorter talks a lot about Baltimore moving toward a Tier One City, which is possible. I asked him about reforming the water billing system, and he replied that first they want the top DPW director, and then he will work with that director to make the changes necessary.

I asked that the customer Service piece also include access to City services in various languages, and I also asked the Mayor about tax sale, and he said he had an announcement imminent.

We talked about the budget, and how there needs to be strategic planning goals and outcomes set to budget our way to performance. That is the goal for the 2023 budget and beyond.