Explanation
1. BACKGROUND:
This ordinance realigns departmental responsibilities with respect to management of the city's transportation infrastructure. The Department of Public Service's leadership performed a comprehensive review of processes and work flows. This review revealed inefficient processes, imbalance of workload amongst employees, and engineers and technical staff responsible for fiscal, legislative, and contracting functions thereby taking them away from performing their core function of delivering capital projects. The existing division's organization was also primarily focused on the automobile mode of transportation.
Therefore, the existing Division of Transportation which comprises approximately 503 employees will be eliminated and three new divisions will be created within the Department of Public Service; the Division of Mobility Options, Division of Planning and Operations, and Division of Design and Construction. The new divisions are organized around workflows, the capital project development process, and a multi-modal transportation system.
The Division of Mobility Options will focus exclusively on the core elements of Complete Streets; biking, sidewalks, ADA accommodation, on-street parking, traffic calming and mass transit. This division will bring greater awareness to the multi-modal transportation choices and will be responsible for implementing the Bicentennial Bikeway Plan and Operation Safewalks initiatives.
The Division of Planning and Operations will focus on planning services for transportation infrastructure including traffic and safety studies, pavement and structures management, capital project prioritization and scoping, zoning and right-of-way permit reviews, and plat reviews. The division will also provide street and traffic maintenance services including street sweeping, litter control, graffiti removal, snow removal, installation and maintenance of pavement markings, traffic signals, traffic signage, and parking meters.
The Division of Design and Construction will focus on design services for transportation infrastructure including development of construction plans, plan review, right-of-way and utility management, and management of design contracts. The division will also provide construction services including management of construction contracts, construction inspection, surveying, and materials testing services.
2. FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no direct fiscal impact associated with this reorganization and associated code changes; however, in the long term the three divisions should create operational efficiencies and streamline existing functions. The costs associated with new positions have been more than offset by the elimination of vacancies.
3. EMERGENCY LEGISLATION:
The Department of Public Service requests that this legislation be considered an emergency measure in order to ensure that the city code changes contained within are effective immediately to allow for the proper accounting of the 2009 Operating Budgets within the Department.
Title
To enact, amend, and repeal various sections of the Columbus City Codes to eliminate the Division of Transportation within the Department of Public Service, to create a new Division of Mobility Options; a new Division of Planning and Operations; and a new Division of Design and Construction within the Department of Public Service, and to reflect the impact of the reorganization in all affected sections of the Columbus City Codes; and to declare an emergency.
Body
WHEREAS, the leadership of the Department of Public Service has completed a comprehensive review of processes and work flows within the existing Division of Transportation, and documented inefficient processes, an imbalance of workload amongst employees, and engineers and technical staff responsible for fiscal, legislative, and contracting functions thereby taking them away from performing their core function of delivering capital projects; and
WHEREAS, as a result of this review it has been determined necessary to reorganize the existing Division of Transportation in the Department of Public Service; and
WHEREAS; the existing Division of Transportation will be divided up into the new Divisions of Mobility Options, Planning and Operations, and Design and Construction; and
WHEREAS, this reorganization is an outcome of the Administration's comprehensive review of work flows and will improve many services such as plan and permit review, project prioritization, capital project delivery, and maintenance of our existing transportation infrastructure; and
WHEREAS, an emergency exists within the usual daily operation of the Department of Public Service that it is necessary for the associated code changes to become effective immediately to allow for the correct, and proper accounting of the Department's 2009 Operating Budgets, for the preservation of the public, health, peace and safety; now, therefore:
BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF COLUMBUS:
Section 1. That specific sections within the Columbus City Code, 1959 are hereby revised as shown in the ATTACHMENT file identified as ORD0128-2009Revision.
Section 2. That for the reasons stated in the preamble hereto, which is hereby made a part hereof, this ordinance is hereby declared to be an emergency measure and shall take effect and be in force from and after its passage and approval by the Mayor or ten days after passage if the Mayor neither approves nor vetoes the same.