According to a recent edition of the highly regarded Kiplinger Washington newsletter, the issue of competence in government is high on a list of voter concerns. "The public has a lot to complain about: a badly managed war, poor care of wounded vets, porous borders, lost laptops with key data, food & drug safety, and now, falling bridges." One of the reasons for this sorry situation is "Bush’s distrust of bureaucrats. It crippled morale and led to an exodus of experienced workers...when government was needed...after Hurricane Katrina hit, for example...it wasn’t up to the job." It would appear that the next regime in Washington will have as large a job restoring credibility domestically as internationally.

Setting aside differing philosophies about the proper role of government, it is hard to argue logically that the governmental functions which exist shouldn’t be effectively carried out. Competence shouldn’t be taken for granted, but sought out and appreciated. There is a large and too often unappreciated body of professional civil servants, working not only on the federal level, but in state, county and local governments, which carry out the functions for which our elected officials take the credit and the blame.

This is just as true in the smaller arena which is Englewood. The responsibility of our elected officials (Mayor, Council members and Board of Education trustees) is to insure that the assigned functions of local government and public education are effectively carried out. But for this our officials inevitably depend heavily on the competence of paid professionals. Since the current city charter went into effect in 1980, the chief executive of our municipal government has been the City Manager, who serves at the pleasure of the 5-person City Council. In the schools it is the Superintendent who has a similar role.

Some of the persons who served on Englewood’s Charter Commission in the late 1970s still live here. The change which they recommended, and which was approved by referendum in 1979, was to a City Manager form of local government, with all except senior level municipal personnel decisions under the sole authority of a non-political professional City Manager. The objective was to minimize political considerations and maximize competency. Our success in realizing this objective over the last 27 years has varied.

At the present time, our local government is in a state of transition, since the Council this year has chosen to replace an unsatisfactory Manager, and is working with a temporary Manager while conducting a search for a permanent replacement. It should go without saying that their choice, expected soon, will be of great importance.